BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2397
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 5, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON INSURANCE
Jose Solorio, Chair
AB 2397 (Solorio) - As Introduced: February 19, 2010
SUBJECT : Workers' compensation: safety employees: leave of
absences
SUMMARY : Authorizes a public agency and a public safety
officer to mutually agree to extend a leave of absence with full
pay applicable to the public safety officer injured on the job
beyond the one year period authorized by law for up to one
additional year.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes a comprehensive system of benefits for workers
injured on the job, including medical care, temporary
disability benefits to replace wages during recovery from an
injury, permanent disability benefits for those whose injuries
have a lasting impact, and death benefits for dependents,
among other benefits.
2)Provides that temporary disability (TD) benefits are
calculated based on 2/3 of the injured worker's wages, subject
to a cap (currently approximately $1,000/week), and last up to
two years.
3)Provides that for pubic safety officers (generally police
officers, deputy sheriffs, firefighters), a leave of absence
of up to one year with full pay is to be provided if one of
these officers is injured on the job and temporarily unable to
work. This special benefit for public safety officers is
contained in Labor Code Section 4850, and is commonly referred
to as "4850 time."
4)Authorizes establishment of a "salary continuation plan" that
satisfies the requirements to pay temporary disability
benefits.
5)Defines "salary continuation plan" as a plan that is paid by
the employer pursuant to statute, collective bargaining
agreement, memorandum of understanding, or established
employer policy, and that provides salary on the employee's
AB 2397
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regular payday that is not less than the salary to which the
employee is otherwise entitled, and not less than the
temporary disability benefits would be.
FISCAL EFFECT : Undetermined.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose . This bill is intended to clarify the law so that a
public agency employing a qualified public safety officer can
exercise its discretion to extend 4850 time beyond the
one-year limit contained in current law. The intent is to
enable the employing agency to provide a continued benefit to
a valued employee who has been injured, but is not quite ready
to return to work at the end of one year.
2)Support . The Peace Officers Research Association of
California (PORAC) argues in support of the bill that this is
a simple measure that provides flexibility for both employers
and employees, and addresses the fact that few agencies or
employees think about this issue until circumstances present
an employee not quite ready to return to work.
3)Is the bill needed ? The opposition points out that employers
of public safety officers are authorized to establish salary
continuation plans to accomplish the same purposes of the
bill, and that the bill is therefore not necessary. PORAC
responds that very few agencies have actually adopted a salary
continuation plan, and the result is that this potential
extension is available to few public safety officers. Thus,
in the case of most injured public safety officers, when the
need arises to discuss an extension with the employing agency,
there will not be an available option as proposed by the bill.
Further, PORAC argues that employing agencies in some cases
have specifically responded to injured public safety officers
that the law precludes agreeing to an extension.
4)Opposition . The California Coalition on Workers' Compensation
(CCWC), the CSAC Excess Insurance Authority (CSAC-EIA), and
the California Association of Joint Powers Authorities (CAJPA)
raise additional issues in opposition. CCWC argues that a
negotiated rule is preferable because an employer is placed in
the untenable position of risking the appearance of favoritism
if it is required to respond to individual requests. CCWC
also points out that the bill is less favorable to the
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employee than the current law because the salary continuation
plan law does not have a one-year cap. CSAC-EIA points out
that regular 4850 time, plus AB 2397 time, plus the two years
of regular TD that public safety officers are entitled to
means that an officer can be paid for four years after an
injury without returning to work, at substantial cost to the
local government employer. CAJPA is additionally concerned
that the bill may provide an additional toll for a public
safety officer with "chief's disease" - a term commonly used
to describe a public safety officer, often a higher ranking
officer, who is attempting to spike his or her retirement by
turning a regular retirement into a disability retirement.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Applicants' Attorneys Association (CAAA)
California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing
Committee
Peace Officers Research Association of California
Opposition
California Coalition on Workers Compensation
CSAC Excess Insurance Authority
California Association of Joint Powers Authorities
Analysis Prepared by : Mark Rakich / INS. / (916) 319-2086