AB 1277, as amended, Skinner. Department of Industrial Relations.
begin insertExisting law establishes the Division of Occupational Safety and Health in the Department of Industrial Relations to enforce employment safety laws. Existing law authorizes the division to conduct hearings, inspections, and investigations regarding alleged violations of employment safety laws and to issue citations to employers. Existing law establishes the Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board in the department and prescribes procedures for the appeals board to hear and decide employer appeals of the division’s enforcement actions.
end insertbegin insertExisting law requires the rules of practice and procedure established by the appeals board to provide affected employees or representatives of affected employees an opportunity to participate as parties to a hearing contesting specified enforcement actions.
end insertbegin insertThis bill would require that the board’s rules of practice and procedure also provide for the scheduling of hearings in a manner designed to minimize inconvenience to the division, parties, and witnesses, and to provide for completion of the hearings without significant lapses in time, as specified.
end insertExisting law creates various funds within the State Treasury that are administered by the Department of Industrial Relations, including, among others, the Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund and the Occupational Safety and Health Fund.
end deleteUnder existing law, moneys in the Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund are required to be expended by the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the support of specified activities performed by the department’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Existing law imposes certain surcharges upon employers, as defined, which are deposited into these and other designated funds.
end deleteUnder existing law the Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund and related surcharges, as well as a limitation on the surcharge generating revenues for the Occupational Safety and Health Fund, become inoperative on July 1, 2013.
end deleteThis bill would extend the dates upon which the povisions described above become inoperative, to July 1, 2017.
end deleteVote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
begin insertSection 6603 of the end insertbegin insertLabor Codeend insertbegin insert is amended to
2read:end insert
(a) The rules of practice and procedure adopted by the
4appeals board shall be consistent with Article 8 (commencing with
5Section 11435.05) of Chapter 4.5 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title
62 of, and Sections 11507, 11507.6, 11507.7, 11513, 11514, 11515,
7and 11516 of, the Government Code, and shall provide affected
8employees or representatives of affected employees an opportunity
9to participate as parties to a hearing under Section 6602.begin insert The rules
10of practice and procedure also shall provide end insertbegin insertfor the scheduling of
11hearings in a manner designed to minimize inconvenience to the
12division and all parties
and witnesses who are required to attend
13the hearings, and for the completion of the hearings without
14significant lapses in time if the hearings are not completed within
15the scheduled time.end insert
16(b) The superior courts shall have jurisdiction over contempt
17proceedings, as provided in Article 12 (commencing with Section
1811455.10) of Chapter 4.5 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
19Government Code.
Section 62.5 of the Labor Code, as amended by
2Section 4 of Chapter 363 of the Statutes of 2012, is amended to
3read:
(a) (1) The Workers’ Compensation Administration
5Revolving Fund is hereby created as a special account in the State
6Treasury. Money in the fund may be expended by the department,
7upon appropriation by the Legislature, for all of the following
8purposes, and may not be used or borrowed for any other purpose:
9(A) For the administration of the workers’ compensation
10program set forth in this division and Division 4 (commencing
11with Section 3200), other than the activities financed pursuant to
12paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 3702.5.
13(B) For the Return-to-Work Program set forth in Section 139.48.
14(C) For the
enforcement of the insurance coverage program
15established and maintained by the Labor Commissioner pursuant
16to Section 90.3.
17(2) The fund shall consist of surcharges made pursuant to
18paragraph (1) of subdivision (f).
19(b) (1) The Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund is hereby
20created as a special trust fund account in the State Treasury, of
21which the director is trustee, and its sources of funds are as
22provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (f). Notwithstanding
23Section 13340 of the Government Code, the fund is continuously
24appropriated for the payment of nonadministrative expenses of the
25workers’ compensation program for workers injured while
26employed by uninsured employers in accordance with Article 2
27(commencing with Section 3710) of Chapter 4 of Part 1 of Division
284, and shall not be used for any other purpose. All moneys collected
29shall be retained in
the trust fund until paid as benefits to workers
30injured while employed by uninsured employers.
31Nonadministrative expenses include audits and reports of services
32prepared pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 3716.1. The
33surcharge amount for this fund shall be stated separately.
34(2) Notwithstanding any other law, all references to the
35Uninsured Employers Fund shall mean the Uninsured Employers
36Benefits Trust Fund.
37(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), in the event that budgetary
38restrictions or impasse prevent the timely payment of administrative
39expenses from the Workers’ Compensation Administration
40Revolving Fund, those expenses shall be advanced from the
P4 1Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund. Expense advances
2made pursuant to this paragraph shall be reimbursed in full to the
3
Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund upon enactment of the
4annual Budget Act.
5(4) Any moneys from penalties collected pursuant to Section
63722 as a result of the insurance coverage program established
7under Section 90.3 shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the
8credit of the Workers’ Compensation Administration Revolving
9Fund created under this section, to cover expenses incurred by the
10director under the insurance coverage program. The amount of
11any penalties in excess of payment of administrative expenses
12incurred by the director for the insurance coverage program
13established under Section 90.3 shall be deposited in the State
14Treasury to the credit of the Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust
15Fund for nonadministrative expenses, as prescribed in paragraph
16(1), and notwithstanding paragraph (1), shall only be available
17upon appropriation by the Legislature.
18(c) (1) The Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund is hereby
19created as a special trust fund account in the State Treasury, of
20which the director is trustee, and its sources of funds are as
21provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (f). Notwithstanding
22Section 13340 of the Government Code, the fund is continuously
23appropriated for the nonadministrative expenses of the workers’
24compensation program for workers who have suffered serious
25injury and who are suffering from previous and serious permanent
26disabilities or physical impairments, in accordance with Article 5
27(commencing with Section 4751) of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of Division
284, and Section 4 of Article XIV of the California Constitution, and
29shall not be used for any other purpose. All moneys collected shall
30be retained in the trust fund until paid as benefits to workers who
31have suffered serious injury and who are suffering from previous
32and serious permanent disabilities or physical impairments.
33Nonadministrative expenses include audits and
reports of services
34pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 4755. The surcharge amount
35for this fund shall be stated separately.
36(2) Notwithstanding any other law, all references to the
37Subsequent Injuries Fund shall mean the Subsequent Injuries
38Benefits Trust Fund.
39(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), in the event that budgetary
40restrictions or impasse prevent the timely payment of administrative
P5 1expenses from the Workers’ Compensation Administration
2Revolving Fund, those expenses shall be advanced from the
3Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund. Expense advances made
4pursuant to this paragraph shall be reimbursed in full to the
5Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund upon enactment of the
6annual Budget Act.
7(d) The Occupational Safety and Health Fund is hereby created
8as a special account in the State Treasury.
Moneys in the account
9may be expended by the department, upon appropriation by the
10Legislature, for support of the Division of Occupational Safety
11and Health, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board,
12and the Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board, and the
13activities these entities perform as set forth in this division, and
14Division 5 (commencing with Section 6300).
15(e) The Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund is hereby
16created as a special account in the State Treasury. Moneys in the
17fund may be expended by the department, upon appropriation by
18the Legislature, for the support of the activities that the Division
19of Labor Standards Enforcement performs pursuant to this division
20and Division 2 (commencing with Section 200), Division 3
21(commencing with Section 2700), and Division 4 (commencing
22with Section 3200). The fund shall consist of surcharges imposed
23pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (f).
24(f) (1) Separate surcharges shall be levied by the director upon
25all employers, as defined in Section 3300, for purposes of deposit
26in the Workers’ Compensation Administration Revolving Fund,
27the Uninsured Employers Benefits Trust Fund, the Subsequent
28Injuries Benefits Trust Fund, and the Occupational Safety and
29Health Fund. The total amount of the surcharges shall be allocated
30between self-insured employers and insured employers in
31proportion to payroll respectively paid in the most recent year for
32which payroll information is available. The director shall adopt
33reasonable regulations governing the manner of collection of the
34surcharges. The regulations shall require the surcharges to be paid
35by self-insurers to be expressed as a percentage of indemnity paid
36during the most recent year for which information is available,
37and the surcharges to be paid by insured employers to be expressed
38as a percentage of premium. In no
event shall the surcharges paid
39by insured employers be considered a premium for computation
40of a gross premium tax or agents’ commission. In no event shall
P6 1the total amount of the surcharges paid by insured and self-insured
2employers exceed the amounts reasonably necessary to carry out
3the purposes of this section.
4(2) The surcharge levied by the director for the Occupational
5Safety and Health Fund, pursuant to paragraph (1), shall not
6generate revenues in excess of fifty-two million dollars
7($52,000,000) on and after the 2009-10 fiscal year, adjusted for
8each fiscal year as appropriate to reconcile any overassessments
9or underassessments from previous fiscal years pursuant to Sections
1015606 and 15609 of Title 8 of the California
Code of Regulations,
11and may increase by not more than the state-local government
12deflator each year thereafter through July 1, 2013, and, as
13appropriate, to reconcile any over/under assessments from previous
14fiscal years. For the 2013-14 fiscal year, the surcharge level shall
15return to the level in place on June 30, 2009, adjusted for inflation
16based on the state-local government deflator.
17(3) A separate surcharge shall be levied by the director upon all
18employers, as defined in Section 3300, for purposes of deposit in
19the Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund. The total amount
20of the surcharges shall be allocated between employers in
21proportion to payroll respectively paid in the most recent year for
22which payroll information is available. The director shall adopt
23reasonable regulations governing the manner of collection of the
24surcharges. In no event shall the total amount of the surcharges
25paid by employers exceed the amounts reasonably
necessary to
26carry out the purposes of this section.
27(4) The surcharge levied by the director for the Labor
28Enforcement and Compliance Fund shall not exceed thirty-seven
29million dollars ($37,000,000) in the 2009-10 fiscal year, adjusted
30as appropriate to reconcile any over/under assessments from
31previous fiscal years, and shall not be adjusted each year thereafter
32by more than the state-local government deflator, and, as
33appropriate, to reconcile any overassessments or under assessments
34from previous fiscal years pursuant to Sections 15606 and 15609
35of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations.
36(5) The regulations adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) to (4),
37inclusive,
shall be exempt from the rulemaking provisions of the
38Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
39Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
40Code).
P7 1(g) On and after July 1, 2017, subdivision (e) and paragraphs
2(2) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (f) are inoperative, unless a
3later enacted statute, that is enacted before July 1, 2017, deletes
4or extends that date.
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