Schwarzenegger Signs Workers' Compensation Reform Into Law
By Mason Stocksill, Associated Press Writer - April 21, 2004LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) _ Capping a contentious dispute with a stroke of his pen, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed into law the workers' compensation reform package approved last week by overwhelming majority of the Legislature.
``No longer will workers' compensation be the poison of our economy,'' a jubilant Schwarzenegger said during a ceremony at a Boeing Corp. plant. Because the legislation passed by more than a two-thirds vote, it took effect the moment the Republican governor signed it Monday.
Although many Democrats opposed Schwarzenegger's original position of workers' compensation reform and the governor's opposition to regulating insurance rates, all but six voted for it. The bill was passed 77-3 by the Assembly and 33-3 by the Senate in votes on Friday.
Schwarzenegger had made reforming the state's costly workers' compensation system a centerpiece of his campaign in last year's recall election and had threatened to place an even tougher measure on the November ballot if legislators did not approve the compromise.
California's workers' compensation costs have soared in recent years, going from $6.4 billion in claims paid in 1997 to an estimated $17.9 billion last year. Schwarzenegger said those spiraling costs had hurt businesses, driving some from the state, and placed an undue burden on cities, counties and nonprofits. "With this great reform, I can say to everyone, "California is open for business,'' he said.
The actual cost savings from the new law are unknown, but supporters said they hope it will save employers several billion dollars by limiting benefits and prohibiting certain medical procedures. It lowers the state's limit on disability payments from five years to two, and requires workers who could previously pick their own doctors to choose from a list of physicians authorized by employers and insurance companies.
Also, employers are now only liable for the percentage of a worker's injury that occurred on the job, not for previous injuries.
Injured workers will benefit from the bill's requirement for immediate employer-authorized medical care and increased benefits for permanently disabled employees.
Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg, D-Los Angeles, who voted against the bill, said it doesn't guarantee any reduction in insurance rates for employers. She said she also opposed the apportionment of liability, by which employers can be determined to be responsible only for a percentage of a worker's compensation if a doctor finds that previous injuries contributed to the employee becoming disabled.
"If I was able to do my work before this accident, and now I couldn't, it really doesn't matter that it's cumulative,'' she said.
The bill's approval was another win for the Republican governor, who in six months has successfully strong-armed the Legislature into repealing a law giving driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants, won approval for more than $1 billion in midyear spending cuts and persuaded voters in March to pass a $15 billion bond deal to pay off the state deficit.
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