BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Ted W. Lieu, Chair
Date of Hearing: June 27, 2012 2011-2012 Regular
Session
Consultant: Andrew Chen Fiscal:No
Urgency: No
Bill No: AB 2302
Author: Assembly Committee on Insurance
As Introduced/Amended: February 24, 2012
SUBJECT
Workers' Compensation: studies.
KEY ISSUE
Should the Legislature repeal three requirements that studies be
undertaken, relating to workers' compensation?
PURPOSE
To repeal obsolete statutory requirements regarding studies on
the workers' compensation system.
ANALYSIS
Existing law establishes a workers' compensation system that
provides benefits to an employee who suffers from an injury or
illness that arises out of and in the course of employment,
irrespective of fault. This system requires all employers to
secure payment of benefits by either securing the consent of the
Department of Industrial Relations to self-insure or by securing
insurance against liability from an insurance company duly
authorized by the state.
Existing law establishes requirements for the undertaking of
studies and reports relating to the health of the workers'
compensation system. Some of these studies have discrete
timeframes in which they are designated to take place.
Specifically:
Existing law requires the Commission on Health and Safety and
Workers' Compensation to conduct a study on the causes of
workers' compensation insurer insolvencies in the 1990s and
2000s. This study was completed in 2009. (Labor Code � 77.7)
Existing law also requires the Administrative Director (AD) of
the Division of Workers' Compensation to conduct a study and
report to the Legislature concerning industrial injuries. This
study was completed in 2004. (Labor Code � 127.6)
Existing law requires the AD to conduct, in consultation with
the Insurance Commissioner, a study of the impacts of the 2003
and 2004 workers' compensation reforms on workers' compensation
insurance rates. This study was completed in 2005. (Labor Code �
138.65)
This bill would repeal these three sections of the Labor Code,
relating to these three completed studies.
COMMENTS
1.Need for this bill?
In response to specific problems regarding state Departments
or other matters of immediate importance, the Legislature may
pass bills requiring Department personnel to conduct research
to gather information about a program, diagnose problems, and
propose potential solutions. Often, one of the statutory
requirements of these studies is a deadline for publication.
If there is no provision requiring the study to be conducted
again, the statute effectively becomes obsolete after the
study it requires is completed.
2. Proponent Arguments :
According to proponents, the purpose of AB 2302 is to repeal
obsolete statutory requirements governing workers'
compensation, and to be a vehicle for other non-controversial
Hearing Date: June 27, 2012 AB 2302
Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 2
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
changes to the workers' compensation laws that may arise
during this Legislative Session.
4. Prior Legislation :
SB 316 (Yee, Statutes of 2007) - Chaptered
This bill required the undertaking of the study currently
enumerated in Labor Code � 77.7.
SB 228 (Alarcon, Statutes of 2003) - Chaptered
This bill required the undertaking of the study currently
enumerated in Labor Code � 127.6.
SB 899 (Poochigian, Statutes of 2004) - Chaptered
This bill required the undertaking of the study currently
enumerated in Labor Code �138.65.
SUPPORT
None received
OPPOSITION
None received
Hearing Date: June 27, 2012 AB 2302
Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 3
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations