Allan F. Ramsaur, TBA Executive Director
(800) 899-6993 or (615) 277-3200
aramsaur@tnbar.org
April 29, 2004
Bredesen’s revised workers’ comp bill moves out of committee
Legislators in a House committee today gave their approval to Gov. Phil Bredesen’s latest proposal for changing the workers’ comp system — but not before adding a number of amendments.
The hearing before the House Consumer and Employee Affairs Committee was the first test for the revised legislation, which Bredesen unveiled Thursday.
The TBA also presented new information on the workers’ comp issue on Thursday. After reviewing Bredesen’s original proposal, the TBA’s Special Committee on Workers’ Comp presented its views of the bill to the TBA Executive Committee, which approved the committee’s recommendations saying, “The TBA believes that many of the proposed changes would increase costs, impose barriers to the effective and efficient resolution of claims, and it would likely result in more trials and fewer settlements in cases where causation is in issue.
“The TBA does note that some of our suggestions were incorporated in the legislation. Our suggestion on making case management voluntary was accepted. The TBA also believes that several of the proposals will be beneficial. The mandatory judicial training component of the package will improve the system. The workplace safety part of the proposed legislation deals with a program which has been in place since 1992, and has never been funded, and if funded should be beneficial.”
You can download the full TBA committee report at http://www.tba.org/legisflash/2004/TBA_wcviewpoint_04_29_04.doc
The latest version of Bredesen’s proposal makes a number of changes to his original bill. The new proposal:
• Provides that no benefit review conference would be required if the parties have reached an agreement. That agreement could be taken straight to court for judicial approval.
• Provides that closing out future medical payments for a fixed sum would be possible in cases where the injury entails compensation of less than 200 weeks.
• Changes the application of the multiplier limit for permanent partial disability with a return to work at the same or higher pay so that it would apply only in cases in which the injury warrants treatment under the statute as being eligible for 200 or more weeks of benefits.
The revised bill passed after considerable debate in the House committee, including comments from James Neeley, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development; Paula Flowers, commissioner of the Department of Commerce and Insurance; and M.D. Goetz Jr. commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration.
Among changes adopted were:
• Several amendments designed to induce insurance companies to reduce workers compensation premiums in light of the cost savings presumed to be a consequence of the bill.
• An amendment altering the multiplier or cap for permanent partial disability awards. Under current law, the medical impairment may be adjusted up to 2.5 times the medical impairment rating to take into account different individual circumstances. The governor proposed reducing this multiplier cap to 1.5. The committee amended the bill to set the cap at 2.0.
In the House, the bill now goes to the Finance Ways and Means Committee. In the Senate, the Commerce, Labor and Agriculture Committee is scheduled to hear the bill on Tuesday.
TBA-backed Omnibus Probate Bill
The Omnibus Probate bill (SB2599, HB2639) was passed by the House Judiciary Committee and will be heard in the Calendar and Rules Committee next week. It is on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s calendar for Tuesday.
Summons in lieu of arrest
The House Judiciary Committee this week cleared two separate bills to address concerns brought about by last year’s legislation that created a preference for a criminal summons in lieu of arrest.
Both bills give the magistrate discretion to issue a warrant when there is imminent threat of domestic violence, when a peace officer or a peace officer’s report is involved, where the risk of flight is substantial, or where there is an outstanding criminal summons or warrant.
The bill favored by the TBA makes no further exceptions. The bill brought by the bail bond industry also permits warrants, no matter the circumstances, in all felony cases. Action will now focus on the Finance Ways and Means Committee, because each bill carries substantial fiscal notes because of their impact on jails.
Immediate repossession bill
Committees in both the House and Senate took off notice the bill (SB2815, HB2740) that would have vested ownership in a secured party upon possession of the collateral that secures the loan remains in committee
Keep up to date on legislation of interest
The TBA bill tracking service lets you read abstracts of bills, check their status in both houses, find out who is sponsoring them and link to full versions of the legislation.
TBA Watch List Monitor close to 300 bills and resolutions of interest to the Tennessee legal community.
TBA Action List Monitor legislation in which the TBA has an interest of record — bills the TBA initiated, bills on which the TBA has taken a position or bills on which the TBA has policy.
Questions, comments? Contact TBA Legislative Counsel Steve Cobb at SAC@wallerlaw.com or TBA Executive Director Allan F. Ramsaur at aramsaur@tnbar.org
