BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 2396
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 19, 2010

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                    AB 2396 (Solorio) - As Amended:  May 12, 2010 

          Policy Committee:                               
          InsuranceVote:12-0
                       Governmental Organization              21-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill prohibits the California Department of Insurance from  
          designating a rating organization as a statistical agent unless  
          the designated organization complies with the Bagley-Keene Open  
          Meeting Act. This bill addresses the relationship between CDI  
          and the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau with  
          respect to the availability of public information. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Absorbable workload to the California Department of Insurance  
          (CDI) to continue oversight of the Workers' Compensation  
          Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) as the statistical agent per  
          requirements of this bill. 

           COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  .  This bill requires CDI to ensure the WCIRB  
            complies with open records laws. 
          The WCIRB is a nonprofit association comprised of more than 400  
            companies licensed to transact California workers'  
            compensation insurance in California. The WCIRB is a licensed  
            rating organization and the designated statistical agent for  
            CDI. The author indicates WCIRB performs public functions on  
            behalf of CDI and should provide information accordingly. 

           2)Recent amendments  clarify that CDI is not responsible for  
            funding legal representation for WCIRB. This amendment  
            addresses cost pressures identified in an earlier version of  
            the bill.  








                                                                 AB 2396
                                                                  Page  2

           
           3)Open Meetings  . The Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act covers all  
            state boards and commissions. The Act requires these bodies to  
            publicly notice their meetings, prepare agendas, accept public  
            testimony and conduct their meetings in public unless  
            specifically authorized by the Act to meet in closed session.

           4)Related Legislation  . SB 1145 (Machado), Statutes of 2008,  
            Chapter 322, required the State Compensation Insurance Fund  
            comply with the Bagley-Keene Act. 

          SB 1467 (Machado), Chapter 407, Statutes of 2008, required the  
            California Insurance Guarantee Association comply with the  
            Bagley-Keene Act. 


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Mary Ader / APPR. / (916) 319-2081