BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                            Senator Kevin de León, Chair


          SB 36 (Hueso) - Workers' Compensation Data
          
          Amended: April 30, 2013         Policy Vote: Ins 8-1
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: No
          Hearing Date: May 13, 2013      Consultant: Maureen Ortiz
          
          This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the  
          Suspense File.


          Bill Summary: SB 36 requires the Department of Insurance (CDI)  
          to compile various workers' compensation data, statistics, and  
          reports on an Internet Web page.

          Fiscal Impact: 
          
              First year costs of $128,000 and annual ongoing of $40,000  
              (Insurance Fund)

          The above costs will result if the department is required to  
          post the actual reports on the CDI webpage.  If the intent is to  
          only provide a link to the reports, costs would be $65,000 for  
          first year, and ongoing of $24,000.  The department has  
          indicated that in either scenario these costs would not be  
          absorbable.

          Background:  Existing law requires every insurer doing business  
          in this state to file annual and quarterly financial statements  
          with the Insurance Commissioner. These reports are submitted on  
          forms promulgated by the National Association of Insurance  
          Commissioners.  Annual and quarterly statements include a  
          multitude of schedules and lists covering a variety of subjects  
          including organizational information; assets; liabilities,  
          surplus, and other funds; income; cash flow; losses and loss  
          expenses; ceded reinsurance; holding companies; statements of  
          premium written by line of business; information concerning  
          activities of insurer members; and other financial and  
          operational information.

          Proposed Law:  SB 36 requires the Department of Insurance to  
          include on its Internet Web site a dedicated Web page that  
          includes workers' compensation data, statistics, and reports  








          SB 36 (Hueso)
          Page 1



          covering both insurers and self-insurers, including, but not  
          limited to, claims loss data, expenses, and financial reports.

          The department is to use only data that is already collected by  
          both CDI and the Department of Industrial Relations.  Any  
          information that is already protected by law will not be  
          released.

          Staff Comments:  It appears that the information required for  
          CDI to post is already available through various sources.  For  
          instance, the California Workers' Compensation Institute  
          publishes an annual report that specifies the financial  
          experience of insurers in California.  The Workers' Compensation  
          Insurance Rating Bureau and the Department of Insurance publish  
          detailed information as well.  Available on the Department's web  
          site are annual market share reports that break down each  
          workers' compensation insurer's premium volume, market share,  
          earned premium, losses paid and loss ratio.  Additional reports  
          and studies are available from the Commission on Health, Safety  
          and Workers' Compensation, National Association of Insurance  
          Commissioners and the Department of Insurance from public  
          hearings relative to workers' compensation pure premium filings.

          It should be noted that the bill requires CDI to include  
          information on self-insurers, however, CDI does not currently  
          regulate or have jurisdiction over self-insurers.