HCS/SB 71 - This act stipulates that no workers' compensation insurance policy shall be approved by the Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions, and Professional Registration if, when determining the premium to be paid by an employer, the insurer includes as part of the employer's payroll the following: • Monetary bonuses, paid by such employer to an employee, of up to three percent of the employee's yearly compensation from such employer; or
• Contributions made by the employer to an employee's individual retirement account.
This provision is substantially similar to SB 735 (2018).
This act additionally modifies provisions of law regulating the terms of office, retention, performance audits, and salaries of administrative law judges (ALJs).
Under this act, all administrative law judges will be divided into three groups as follows:
• The 13 longest-tenured judges, in terms of months, shall serve a 2 year term and face a retention vote in September 2019 and every three years thereafter;
• The next 13 longest-tenured judges shall serve a 4 year term and face a retention vote in September 2022 and every three years thereafter; and
• The remaining judges shall serve a 6 year term and face a retention vote in September 2025 and every three years thereafter.
All judges shall serve a 6 year term after the initial 2, 4, or 6 year term provided pursuant to this act.
The act provides that any judge who has received two or more successive recommendations of no confidence under performance audits by the Administrative Law Judge Committee, performance audits by the director of the Division of Workers' Compensation, or by other operation of law, or any combination thereof, shall not receive a vote of retention.
Under current law, the Administrative Law Judge Review Committee is required to conduct a performance audit every two years of every administrative law judge. This act requires the Committee to make a recommendation of confidence or no confidence for each judge within 30 days of completing each such audit. If the Committee does not make a recommendation within the allotted time period, the Director of the Division shall make a recommendation based upon his or her own review. Failure of either party to make a recommendation shall be deemed to be a recommendation of no confidence.
Current law provides that any judge that receives three or more votes of no confidence under two successive performance audits by the Committee may have his or her appointment immediately withdrawn. This act provides that any judge that receives two or more successive recommendations of no confidence under performance audits by the committee, the Director of the Division, or by other operation of law, may have his or her appointment immediately withdrawn.
The act provides that members of the Administrative Law Judge Review Committee shall be eligible for reappointment. Furthermore, upon the expiration of a term on the Committee, the position shall be vacant until a new appointment is made.
The act provides that the salaries of all employees of the Division, including administrative law judges, shall be fixed by the Division subject to appropriation.
These provisions are identical to HCS/HBs 248 & 262 (2019) and similar to SCS/SB 248 (2019).
SCOTT SVAGERA