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(127th General Assembly)
(Substitute House Bill Number 79)
AN ACT
To amend sections 101.532, 101.82, 127.14, 4121.03,
4121.121, 4121.75, 4121.76, 4121.77, 4121.79,
4123.29,
4123.341, 4123.342, and 4123.35 of the
Revised
Code to make changes to the law governing
the
Workers' Compensation Council, to
specify
that an employer group is considered one employer
for
purposes of
workers' compensation group
rating, and to make an
appropriation.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio:
SECTION 1. That sections 101.532, 101.82, 127.14, 4121.03,
4121.121, 4121.75, 4121.76, 4121.77, 4121.79, 4123.29, 4123.341,
4123.342,
and 4123.35 of the Revised Code be amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 101.532. The main operating appropriations bill
shall
not contain
appropriations for the industrial commission, the
workers' compensation council, or
the bureau of workers'
compensation. Appropriations for these two
agencies the bureau
and
the council shall be enacted in one bill, and appropriations
for the industrial commission shall be enacted in a separate
bills bill.
Sec. 101.82. As used in sections 101.82 to 101.87 of the
Revised Code:
(A)
"Agency" means any board, commission, committee, or
council, or any other similar state public body required to be
established pursuant to state
statutes for the exercise of any
function of state government and to
which members are appointed or
elected.
"Agency" does not include the following:
(1) The general assembly, or any commission, committee, or
other
body composed entirely of members of the general assembly;
(2) Any court;
(3) Any public body created by or directly pursuant to the
constitution of this state;
(4) The board of trustees of any institution of higher
education financially supported in whole or in part by the state;
(5) Any public body that has the authority to issue bonds
or
notes or that has issued bonds or notes that have not been
fully
repaid;
(6) The public utilities commission of Ohio;
(7) The consumers' council governing board;
(8) The Ohio board of regents;
(9) Any state board or commission that has the authority
to
issue any final adjudicatory order that may be appealed to the
court of common pleas under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code;
(10) Any board of elections;
(11) The board of directors of the Ohio insurance
guaranty
association and the board of governors of the Ohio fair plan
underwriting association;
(12) The Ohio public employees deferred compensation board;
(13) The Ohio retirement study council;
(14) The board of trustees of the Ohio police and fire
pension
fund, public employees retirement board, school employees
retirement board,
state highway patrol retirement board, and state
teachers retirement
board;
(15) The industrial commission;
(16) The parole board;
(17) The board of tax appeals;
(18) The controlling board;
(19) The release authority of department of youth services;
(20) The environmental review appeals commission;
(21) The Ohio ethics commission;
(22) The Ohio public works commission;
(23) The self-insuring employers evaluation board;
(24) The state board of deposit;
(25) The state employment relations board;
(26) The workers' compensation council.
(B)
"Abolish" means to repeal the statutes creating and
empowering an agency, remove its personnel, and transfer its
records to the department of administrative services pursuant to
division (E) of section 149.331 of the Revised Code.
(C)
"Terminate" means to amend or repeal the statutes
creating and empowering an agency, remove its personnel, and
reassign its functions and records to another agency or officer
designated by the general assembly.
(D)
"Transfer" means to amend the statutes creating and
empowering an agency so that its functions, records, and
personnel
are conveyed to another agency or officer.
(E)
"Renew" means to continue an agency, and may include
amendment of the statutes creating and empowering the agency, or
recommendations for changes in agency operation or personnel.
Sec. 127.14. The controlling board may, at the request of
any state agency or the director of budget and management,
authorize, with respect to the provisions of any appropriation
act:
(A) Transfers of all or part of an appropriation within
but
not between state agencies, except such transfers as the
director
of budget and management is authorized by law to make,
provided
that no transfer shall be made by the director for the
purpose of
effecting new or changed levels of program service not
authorized
by the general assembly;
(B) Transfers of all or part of an appropriation from one
fiscal year to another;
(C) Transfers of all or part of an appropriation within or
between state agencies made necessary by administrative
reorganization or by the abolition of an agency or part of an
agency;
(D) Transfers of all or part of cash balances in excess of
needs from any fund of the state to the general revenue fund or
to
such other fund of the state to which the money would have
been
credited in the absence of the fund from which the transfers
are
authorized to be made, except that the controlling board may
not
authorize such transfers from the accrued leave liability
fund,
auto registration distribution fund, budget stabilization
fund,
development bond retirement fund, facilities establishment
fund,
gasoline excise tax fund, general revenue fund, higher
education
improvement fund, highway improvement bond retirement
fund,
highway obligations bond retirement fund, highway capital
improvement fund, highway
operating fund, horse
racing tax fund,
improvements bond retirement fund, public library fund, liquor
control fund, local
government
fund, local transportation
improvement program fund,
mental health
facilities improvement
fund, Ohio fairs fund, parks
and recreation
improvement fund,
public improvements bond
retirement fund, school
district
income
tax fund, state agency facilities improvement
fund, state
and
local government highway distribution fund, state
highway
safety
fund, state lottery fund, undivided liquor permit
fund,
Vietnam
conflict compensation bond retirement fund,
volunteer
fire
fighters' dependents fund, waterways safety fund,
wildlife
fund,
workers' compensation fund, workers' compensation council
remuneration fund, or any fund not
specified in
this
division
that the director of budget and
management
determines to
be a
bond fund or bond retirement fund;
(E) Transfers of all or part of those appropriations
included
in the emergency purposes account of the controlling
board;
(F) Temporary transfers of all or part of an appropriation
or
other moneys into and between existing funds, or new funds, as
may
be established by law when needed for capital outlays for
which
notes or bonds will be issued;
(G) Transfer or release of all or part of an appropriation
to
a state agency requiring controlling board approval of such
transfer or release as provided by law;
(H) Temporary transfer of funds included in the emergency
purposes appropriation of the controlling board. Such temporary
transfers may be made subject to conditions specified by the
controlling board at the time temporary transfers are authorized.
No transfers shall be made under this division for the purpose of
effecting new or changed levels of program service not authorized
by the general assembly.
As used in this section, "request" means an application by
a
state agency or the director of budget and management seeking
some
action by the controlling board.
When authorizing the transfer of all or part of an
appropriation under this
section, the controlling board may
authorize the transfer to an existing
appropriation item and the
creation of and transfer to a new appropriation
item.
Whenever there is a transfer of all or part of funds
included
in the emergency purposes appropriation by the
controlling board,
pursuant to division (E) of this section, the
state agency or the
director of budget and management receiving
such transfer shall
keep a detailed record of the use of the
transferred funds. At the
earliest scheduled meeting of the
controlling board following the
accomplishment of the purposes
specified in the request originally
seeking the transfer, or
following the total expenditure of the
transferred funds for the
specified purposes, the state agency or
the director of budget
and management shall submit a report on the
expenditure of such
funds to the board. The portion of any
appropriation so
transferred which is not required to accomplish
the purposes
designated in the original request to the controlling
board shall
be returned to the proper appropriation of the
controlling board
at this time.
Notwithstanding any provisions of law providing for the
deposit of revenues received by a state agency to the credit of a
particular fund in the state treasury, whenever there is a
temporary transfer of funds included in the emergency purposes
appropriation of the controlling board pursuant to division (H)
of
this section, revenues received by any state agency receiving
such
a temporary transfer of funds shall, as directed by the
controlling board, be transferred back to the emergency purposes
appropriation.
The board may delegate to the director of budget and
management authority to approve transfers among items of
appropriation under division (A) of this section.
Sec. 4121.03. (A) The governor shall appoint from among the
members of
the industrial commission the
chairperson of the
industrial commission. The chairperson shall
serve as
chairperson
at the pleasure of the governor. The chairperson is the
head of
the commission and its chief executive officer.
(B) The chairperson shall appoint, after
consultation with
other commission members and obtaining the approval of at
least
one other commission member, an executive director
of the
commission. The executive director shall serve at the pleasure of
the
chairperson. The executive director, under the direction of
the chairperson,
shall perform all of the following duties:
(1) Act as chief administrative officer for the
commission;
(2) Ensure that all commission personnel follow the rules
of
the commission;
(3) Ensure that all orders, awards, and determinations are
properly heard and signed, prior to attesting to the documents;
(4) Coordinate, to the fullest extent possible, commission
activities with the bureau of workers' compensation activities;
(5) Do all things necessary for the efficient and
effective
implementation of the duties of the commission.
The responsibilities assigned to the executive director of
the
commission do not relieve the
chairperson from final
responsibility for the proper performance of the
acts specified in
this division.
(C) The chairperson shall do all of the following:
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this division,
employ,
promote, supervise, remove, and establish
the compensation of all
employees
as needed in connection with the performance of the
commission's duties under
this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4127.,
and 4131. of the Revised
Code and may assign to them their duties
to the extent necessary
to achieve the most efficient performance
of its functions, and
to that end may establish, change, or
abolish positions, and
assign and reassign duties and
responsibilities of every employee
of the commission. The civil
service status of any person
employed by the commission prior to
November 3, 1989, is not
affected by this section. Personnel
employed by the bureau or
the commission who are subject to
Chapter 4117. of the Revised
Code shall retain all of their rights
and benefits conferred
pursuant to that chapter as it presently
exists or is hereafter
amended and nothing in this chapter or
Chapter 4123. of the
Revised Code shall be construed as
eliminating or interfering
with Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code
or the rights and benefits
conferred under that chapter to public
employees or to any
bargaining unit.
(2) Hire district and staff
hearing officers
after
consultation with other commission members and
obtaining the
approval of at least one other commission member;
(3) Fire staff and district hearing officers when the
chairperson finds
appropriate after obtaining the approval of at
least one other commission
member;
(4) Maintain the office for the commission in Columbus;
(5) To the maximum extent possible, use electronic data
processing equipment for the issuance of orders immediately
following a hearing, scheduling of hearings and medical
examinations, tracking of claims, retrieval of information, and
any other matter within the commission's jurisdiction, and shall
provide and input information into the electronic data processing
equipment as necessary to effect the success of the claims
tracking system established pursuant to division (B)(15) of
section
4121.121 of the Revised Code;
(6) Exercise all administrative and nonadjudicatory
powers
and duties conferred upon the commission by
Chapters 4121., 4123.,
4127., and 4131. of the Revised
Code;
(7) Approve all contracts for special services.
(D) The chairperson is responsible for all
administrative
matters and may secure for the
commission facilities,
equipment,
and supplies necessary to house the
commission, any employees,
and
files and records under the commission's control and
to discharge
any duty
imposed upon the commission by law, the expense thereof
to be
audited and
paid in the same manner as other state expenses.
For that
purpose, the chairperson, separately from the budget
prepared by
the administrator of workers' compensation and the
budget prepared by the director of the workers' compensation
council, shall prepare and
submit to the office of budget and
management a budget for each
biennium according to sections
101.532 and 107.03 of
the Revised Code. The budget submitted shall
cover the costs of the
commission and staff and district hearing
officers in the
discharge of any duty imposed upon the
chairperson, the
commission, and hearing officers by law.
(E)
A majority of the commission constitutes a quorum to
transact business. No vacancy impairs the rights of the
remaining
members to exercise all of the powers of the
commission, so long
as a majority remains. Any investigation,
inquiry, or hearing that
the commission may hold or undertake
may be held or undertaken by
or before any one member of the
commission, or before one of the
deputies of the commission,
except as otherwise provided in this
chapter and
Chapters 4123., 4127., and
4131. of the Revised
Code.
Every order made by a
member, or by a deputy, when approved and
confirmed by a
majority of the members, and so shown on its record
of
proceedings, is the order of the commission. The commission may
hold sessions at any place within the state. The commission is
responsible for all of the following:
(1) Establishing the overall adjudicatory policy and
management of the
commission under this chapter and Chapters
4123., 4127., and 4131. of the
Revised Code, except for those
administrative matters within the
jurisdiction of the chairperson,
bureau of workers'
compensation, and the administrator of workers'
compensation under
those chapters;
(2) Hearing appeals and reconsiderations under this
chapter
and chapters Chapters 4123.,
4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code;
(3) Engaging in rulemaking where required by this
chapter or
Chapter 4123.,
4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4121.121. (A) There is hereby created the bureau of
workers' compensation, which shall be administered by the
administrator of
workers' compensation. A person appointed to the
position of administrator
shall possess significant management
experience in effectively managing an
organization or
organizations of substantial size and complexity. A person
appointed to the position of administrator also shall possess a
minimum of five years of experience in the field of workers'
compensation insurance or in another insurance industry, except as
otherwise provided when the conditions specified in division (C)
of this section are satisfied. The
governor shall appoint the
administrator as provided in section 121.03 of the
Revised Code,
and the administrator shall
serve at the pleasure of the governor.
The governor shall fix the
administrator's salary
on the basis of
the administrator's experience and the administrator's
responsibilities and duties under this
chapter and Chapters 4123.,
4125., 4127., 4131., and 4167. of
the Revised Code. The governor
shall not appoint to the position of
administrator any person who
has, or whose spouse
has, given a contribution to the campaign
committee of the governor in
an amount greater than one thousand
dollars during the two-year period
immediately preceding the date
of the appointment of the administrator.
The administrator shall hold no other public office and shall
devote
full time to the duties of administrator.
Before entering
upon the duties of the office, the
administrator shall take an
oath of office as required by
sections 3.22 and 3.23 of the
Revised Code, and shall file in the office of
the secretary of
state, a bond signed by the administrator and by surety
approved
by the governor, for the sum of fifty thousand dollars payable to
the
state, conditioned upon the faithful performance of the
administrator's
duties.
(B) The administrator
is responsible for the management of
the bureau and for the discharge of all administrative duties
imposed upon the administrator in this chapter and Chapters
4123.,
4125., 4127., 4131., and 4167. of the Revised Code, and in the
discharge thereof
shall do all of the following:
(1) Perform all acts and exercise all
authorities
and powers,
discretionary and otherwise that are required
of or vested in the
bureau or any of its employees in this chapter and
Chapters 4123.,
4125., 4127., 4131., and 4167. of the Revised Code, except the
acts and the
exercise of authority and power that is required of
and
vested in the bureau of workers' compensation board of
directors or the industrial commission pursuant to
those chapters.
The treasurer
of state shall honor all warrants signed by the
administrator, or
by one or more of the administrator's employees,
authorized
by the administrator
in writing, or bearing the
facsimile signature of the
administrator or such employee under
sections 4123.42 and 4123.44
of the Revised Code.
(2) Employ, direct, and supervise all employees required
in
connection with the performance of the duties assigned to the
bureau by this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4125., 4127., 4131.,
and 4167. of
the Revised Code, including an actuary, and may
establish job classification plans and
compensation for all
employees of the bureau provided that this
grant of authority
shall not be construed as affecting any
employee for whom the
state employment relations board has
established an appropriate
bargaining unit under section 4117.06
of the Revised Code. All
positions of employment in the bureau
are in the classified civil
service except those employees the
administrator may appoint to
serve at the administrator's
pleasure in the unclassified civil
service pursuant to section
124.11 of the Revised Code. The
administrator shall fix the salaries of
employees the
administrator appoints to serve at
the administrator's pleasure,
including the chief operating
officer, staff physicians, and other
senior management personnel of the
bureau and shall establish the
compensation of staff attorneys of the
bureau's legal section and
their immediate supervisors, and take whatever
steps are necessary
to provide adequate compensation for other staff
attorneys.
The administrator may appoint a person who holds a certified
position in the classified service within the bureau to a position
in the
unclassified service within the bureau. A
person appointed
pursuant to this division to a position in the unclassified
service shall retain the right to resume the
position and status
held by the person in the classified service
immediately prior to
the person's appointment in the
unclassified service, regardless
of the
number of positions the person
held in the unclassified
service. An employee's right to resume a position in the
classified service may only be exercised when the administrator
demotes the employee to a pay range lower than the employee's
current pay range or revokes the employee's appointment to the
unclassified service. An employee forfeits the right to resume a
position in the classified service when the employee is removed
from the position in the unclassified service due to incompetence,
inefficiency, dishonesty, drunkenness, immoral conduct,
insubordination, discourteous treatment of the public, neglect of
duty, violation of this chapter or Chapter 124., 4123., 4125.,
4127., 4131., or 4167. of the Revised Code, violation of the rules
of the director of administrative services or the administrator,
any other failure of good behavior, any other acts of misfeasance,
malfeasance, or nonfeasance in office, or conviction of a felony.
An employee also forfeits the right to resume a position in the
classified service upon transfer to a different agency.
Reinstatement to a
position in the classified service shall
be to a position
substantially equal to that position in the
classified service held previously, as certified by the
department
of administrative services. If the
position the person previously
held in the classified service has been placed
in the unclassified
service or is otherwise unavailable, the person shall be appointed
to a
position in the classified service within the bureau
that the
director of administrative services certifies is comparable in
compensation to the position the person previously held in the
classified
service. Service in the position in the
unclassified
service shall be counted as service in the position in the
classified service held by the person immediately prior to the
person's appointment in the unclassified service. When a
person
is
reinstated to a position in the classified
service as provided in
this division, the person is entitled to
all rights, status, and
benefits accruing to the position during
the person's time of
service in the position in the unclassified
service.
(3) Reorganize the work of the bureau, its sections,
departments, and offices to the extent necessary to achieve the
most efficient performance of its functions and to that end may
establish, change, or abolish positions and assign and reassign
duties and responsibilities of every employee of the bureau. All
persons employed by the commission in positions that, after
November 3, 1989, are supervised and directed by the
administrator
under this section are transferred to the bureau in
their
respective classifications but subject to reassignment and
reclassification of position and compensation as the
administrator
determines to be in the interest of efficient
administration. The
civil service status of any person employed
by the commission is
not affected by this section. Personnel
employed by the bureau or
the commission who are subject to
Chapter 4117. of the Revised
Code shall retain all of their
rights and benefits conferred
pursuant to that chapter as it
presently exists or is hereafter
amended and nothing in this
chapter or Chapter 4123. of the
Revised Code shall be construed
as eliminating or interfering with
Chapter 4117. of the Revised
Code or the rights and benefits
conferred under that chapter to
public employees or to any
bargaining unit.
(4) Provide offices, equipment, supplies, and other
facilities for the bureau.
(5) Prepare and submit to the board information the
administrator considers pertinent or the board
requires, together
with the administrator's recommendations, in the form of
administrative rules, for the advice and consent of
the board, for
classifications of occupations or industries, for premium rates
and contributions, for the amount to be credited to the surplus
fund, for rules and systems of rating, rate revisions, and merit
rating. The administrator shall obtain, prepare, and submit any
other information the board requires for
the prompt and efficient
discharge of its duties.
(6) Keep the accounts required by division (A) of section
4123.34 of the Revised Code and all other accounts and records
necessary to the collection, administration, and distribution of
the workers' compensation funds and shall obtain the statistical
and other information required by section 4123.19 of the Revised
Code.
(7) Exercise the investment powers vested in the
administrator by section 4123.44 of the Revised Code in
accordance
with the investment policy approved by the board
pursuant to
section 4121.12 of the Revised Code and in consultation with the
chief investment officer of the bureau of workers' compensation.
The administrator shall not
engage in any
prohibited investment
activity specified by the board pursuant
to division (F)(9) of
section 4121.12 of the Revised Code and shall not invest in any
type of investment specified in divisions (B)(1) to (10) of
section 4123.442 of the Revised Code. All business
shall be
transacted, all funds invested, all warrants for money drawn and
payments made, and all cash and securities and other property
held, in the
name of the bureau, or in the name of its nominee,
provided that nominees are
authorized by the administrator solely
for
the purpose of facilitating the transfer of securities, and
restricted to
the administrator and designated
employees.
(8) Make contracts
for and supervise the construction of any
project or improvement
or the construction or repair of buildings
under the control of
the bureau.
(9) Purchase supplies, materials, equipment, and services;
make contracts
for, operate, and superintend the telephone, other
telecommunication,
and computer services for the use of the
bureau; and make
contracts in connection with office reproduction,
forms
management, printing, and other services. Notwithstanding
sections 125.12
to 125.14 of the Revised Code, the administrator
may transfer surplus computers and computer
equipment directly to
an accredited public school within the state. The
computers and
computer equipment may be repaired or refurbished prior to the
transfer.
(10) Prepare and submit to the board an annual budget for
internal operating purposes for the board's approval. The
administrator also shall, separately from the budget the
industrial
commission submits and from the budget the director of
the workers' compensation council submits,
prepare and submit to
the director
of budget and management a
budget for each biennium.
The budgets
submitted to the board and the director shall include
estimates of
the costs and necessary expenditures of the bureau
in the
discharge of any duty imposed by law.
(11) As promptly as possible in the course of efficient
administration, decentralize and relocate such of the personnel
and activities of the bureau as is appropriate to the end that
the
receipt, investigation, determination, and payment of claims
may
be undertaken at or near the place of injury or the residence
of
the claimant and for that purpose establish regional offices,
in
such places as the administrator considers proper, capable
of
discharging as
many of the functions of the bureau as is
practicable so as to
promote prompt and efficient administration
in the processing of
claims. All active and inactive lost-time
claims files shall be
held at the service office responsible for
the claim. A
claimant, at the claimant's request, shall be
provided with
information by
telephone as to the location of the
file pertaining to the claimant's claim. The
administrator shall
ensure that all service office employees
report directly to the
director for their service office.
(12) Provide a written binder on new coverage where the
administrator considers it to be in the best interest of the risk.
The
administrator, or any other person authorized by the
administrator, shall grant
the binder upon submission of a request
for coverage by the
employer. A binder is effective for a period
of thirty days from
date of issuance and is nonrenewable. Payroll
reports and
premium charges shall coincide with the effective date
of the
binder.
(13) Set standards for the reasonable and maximum handling
time of claims payment functions, ensure, by rules, the impartial
and prompt treatment of all claims and employer risk accounts,
and
establish a secure, accurate method of time stamping all
incoming
mail and documents hand delivered to bureau employees.
(14) Ensure that all employees of the bureau follow the
orders and rules of the commission as such orders and rules
relate
to the commission's overall adjudicatory policy-making and
management duties under this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4127.,
and 4131. of the Revised Code.
(15) Manage and operate a data processing system with a
common data base for the use of both the bureau and the
commission
and, in consultation with the commission, using
electronic data
processing equipment, shall develop a claims
tracking system that
is sufficient to monitor the status of a
claim at any time and
that lists appeals that have been filed and
orders or
determinations that have been issued pursuant to
section 4123.511
or 4123.512 of the Revised Code, including the
dates of such
filings and issuances.
(16) Establish and maintain a medical section within the
bureau. The medical section shall do all of the following:
(a) Assist the administrator in establishing standard
medical
fees, approving medical procedures, and determining
eligibility
and reasonableness of the compensation payments for
medical,
hospital, and nursing services, and in establishing
guidelines for
payment policies which recognize usual, customary,
and reasonable
methods of payment for covered services;
(b) Provide a resource to respond to questions from claims
examiners for employees of the bureau;
(c) Audit fee bill payments;
(d) Implement a program to utilize, to the maximum extent
possible, electronic data processing equipment for storage of
information to facilitate authorizations of compensation payments
for medical, hospital, drug, and nursing services;
(e) Perform other duties assigned to it by the
administrator.
(17) Appoint, as the administrator determines necessary,
panels to review
and advise the administrator on disputes arising
over a
determination that a health care service or supply provided
to a
claimant is not covered under this chapter or Chapter 4123.,
4127., or 4131. of
the Revised Code or is medically unnecessary.
If an individual
health care provider is involved in the dispute,
the panel shall
consist of individuals licensed pursuant to the
same section of
the Revised Code as such health care provider.
(18) Pursuant to section 4123.65 of the Revised Code,
approve
applications for the final settlement of claims for
compensation
or benefits under this chapter and Chapters 4123.,
4127., and
4131. of the Revised Code as the administrator
determines
appropriate, except in regard to the
applications of
self-insuring
employers and their employees.
(19) Comply with section 3517.13 of the Revised Code, and
except in regard to contracts entered into pursuant to
the
authority contained in section 4121.44 of the Revised Code,
comply
with the competitive bidding
procedures set forth in the Revised
Code for all contracts into
which the administrator enters
provided that those contracts
fall within the type of contracts
and dollar amounts specified in the Revised
Code for competitive
bidding and further provided that those contracts are not
otherwise specifically exempt from the competitive bidding
procedures
contained in the Revised Code.
(20) Adopt, with the advice and consent of the board, rules
for the operation of the bureau.
(21) Prepare and submit to the board information the
administrator considers pertinent or the board requires,
together
with the administrator's recommendations, in the form of
administrative rules, for the advice and consent of the board,
for
the health partnership program and the qualified health plan
system, as
provided in sections 4121.44, 4121.441, and 4121.442 of
the Revised Code.
(C) The administrator, with the advice and consent of the
senate,
shall appoint a chief operating officer who
has a minimum
of five years of experience in the field of workers'
compensation
insurance or in another similar insurance industry if the
administrator does not possess such experience. The chief
operating officer
shall not commence the chief operating officer's
duties
until after the senate consents to the chief
operating
officer's appointment. The chief operating officer
shall serve in
the unclassified civil service of the state.
Sec. 4121.75. (A) There is hereby created in the legislative
branch of government the workers'
compensation council, which is
created for the purpose of
reviewing the soundness of the
workers' compensation system and
legislation involving or
affecting the workers' compensation
system. The council shall not
be involved in the daily operations
and oversight of the bureau
of workers' compensation or the
industrial commission. Members of
the council shall be appointed
as follows:
(1) Three members of the senate, appointed by the president
of the senate, not more than two of whom may be members of the
same political party;
(2) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed
by the speaker of the house of representatives, not more than two
of whom may be members of the same political party;
(3) Five members jointly appointed by the president of the
senate and the speaker of the house of representatives, not more
than three of whom shall be members of the same political party,
one of whom shall represent employers who employ one hundred or
more employees, one of whom shall represent employers who employ
less than one hundred employees, one of whom shall represent
employees, one of whom shall represent injured workers, and one of
whom shall represent the public and also be an individual who, on
account of the individual's previous vocation, employment, or
affiliations, cannot be classed as either predominantly
representative of employees or of employers. Of these five
members, at least one shall be a person with investment expertise.
(B) The council also shall consist of the chairperson of the
industrial commission and the administrator of workers'
compensation, who shall be nonvoting ex officio members of the
council.
(C) The president of the senate and the speaker of the house
of representatives shall make the initial appointments required
under divisions (A)(1) and (2) of this section not later than
thirty days after the effective date of this section September 10,
2007. The members
of the council who are appointed from the
membership of the senate
and the house of representatives shall
serve during their terms as
members of the general assembly.
Notwithstanding the adjournment
of the general assembly of which
the member is a member or the
expiration of the member's term as
a member of such general
assembly, a member shall continue in
office subsequent to the
expiration date of the member's term on
the council until the
member's successor takes office or until a
period of sixty days
has elapsed, whichever occurs first.
(D) The president of the senate and the speaker of the house
of representatives shall make the initial appointments required
under division (A)(3) of this section not later than ninety days
after the effective date of this section September 10, 2007. Of
these initial
appointments to the council, one member shall be
appointed for a
term ending one year after the effective date of
this section September 10, 2007, two
members shall be appointed
for terms ending two years after the
effective date of this
section September 10, 2007, and two members shall be appointed
for terms ending three years after the effective date of this
section September 10, 2007. Thereafter, terms shall be for three
years, with each
term ending on the same day of the same month as
did the term that
it succeeds. Each member appointed under
division (A)(3) of this
section shall hold office from the date
of appointment until the
end of the term for which the
appointment was made. Members may be
reappointed. Any member
appointed pursuant to division (A)(3) of
this section to fill a
vacancy occurring prior to the expiration
of the term for which
the member's predecessor was appointed shall
hold office for the
remainder of that term. Each member appointed
pursuant to
division (A)(3) of this section shall continue in
office
subsequent to the expiration date of the member's term
until the
member's successor takes office or until a period of
sixty days
has elapsed, whichever occurs first.
(E) Vacancies shall be filled in the manner prescribed for
original appointments.
Sec. 4121.76. Meetings of the workers' compensation council
shall be called in the manner and at the times prescribed by rules
adopted by the council. A majority of the voting members of the
council constitutes a quorum and no action shall be taken by the
council unless approved by at least five six voting members. The
council shall organize by selecting a chairperson,
vice-chairperson, and any other officers as it determines are
necessary. The council shall select the chairperson and
vice-chairperson from the members of the council who also are
members of the general assembly, and each of those members shall
serve as chairperson or vice-chairperson during their terms as
members of the general assembly. The council shall rotate the
selection of the chairperson and vice-chairperson between the two
houses. The council shall adopt rules for the conduct of its
business and the election of its officers. Each member of the
council, before entering upon the member's official duties shall
take and subscribe to an oath of office, to uphold the
Constitution and laws of the United States and this state and to
perform the duties of the office honestly, faithfully, and
impartially. Members of the council appointed pursuant to division
(A)(3) of section 4121.75 of the Revised Code shall serve without
compensation but shall be reimbursed for their actual and
necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their official
duties. Legislative members shall not receive compensation or
expenses.
Sec. 4121.77. The workers' compensation council may do any
of the following:
(A) Appoint shall appoint a director to manage and direct the
duties of the staff of the council. The director shall
serve at
the pleasure of the council. The director shall be a
person who
has had
training and experience in areas related to
the duties
of the
council.
(B) Appoint The council may authorize the director to employ
professional, technical, and clerical employees staff
as
necessary, and employ or hire on a consulting basis persons to
provide actuarial, legal, investment, or other technical services
required for the performance of the council's duties. All
employees of the council are in the unclassified civil service as
described in section 124.11 of the Revised Code and the staff
serve at the
pleasure of the director. For purposes
of section
sections 718.04
and 4117.01 of the Revised Code, employees of the
council
shall
be considered employees of the general assembly.
(C) Fix The council shall fix the compensation of the
director and. The director shall fix the compensation of all other
employees of the council;
(D) and, notwithstanding section 124.18 of
the Revised Code,
shall adopt policies relating to payment for
overtime, granting
of compensatory time off, utilizing flexible
hours, and working
on holidays and compensation for holiday work.
The council may do any of the following:
(A) Require the members of the industrial commission, bureau
of workers' compensation board of directors, workers' compensation
audit committee, workers' compensation actuarial committee, and
workers' compensation investment committee, the administrator of
workers' compensation, and employees of the industrial commission
and the bureau of workers' compensation, and any agency or
official of this state or its political subdivisions to provide
the council with any information necessary to carry out its
duties;
(E)(B) Administer oaths and hold public hearings at times and
places within the state as necessary to accomplish the purposes of
sections 4121.75 to 4121.79 of the Revised Code;
(F)(C) Establish regular reporting requirements for any
report
that the chairperson of the industrial commission,
chairperson of
the board, members of the committees specified in
division (D)(A) of
this section, and the administrator are
required to submit to the
council;
(G)(D) Request that the auditor of state perform or contract
for
the performance of a financial or special audit of the
bureau;
(H)(E) Request that the auditor of state perform or contract
for
the performance of a special or fiduciary audit of the
workers'
compensation system.
Sec. 4121.79. (A) The compensation of all employees director
of the
workers' compensation council and other expenses of the
council
shall be paid upon vouchers approved by the director and
the
chairperson of the council.
The administrator of workers' compensation shall pay the
annual expenses of the council. The council shall prepare and
submit to the administrator on or before the thirtieth day of June
of each year council, for its approval, a biennial budget that
includes an itemized
estimate of the amounts necessary to pay
the expenses of the
council during the following year succeeding
biennium. The director may request and the council may approve,
anytime during that biennium, additional amounts to cover costs
for audits or other necessary expenses that were not included in
that budget.
After the budget is approved, the director of the
council shall separate from the budget the portion covering the
costs of
compensation and benefits for the
employees of the
council and submit only that portion to the director of budget and
management as the council's budget request for purposes of section
126.02 of the Revised Code.
(B) The council shall establish policies and procedures for
purchasing goods and services on a competitive basis and
maintaining tangible personal property. The policies and
procedures shall be designed to safeguard the use of funds
received by the council. An audit performed under Chapter 117. of
the Revised Code shall include a determination of the council's
compliance with those policies and procedures.
The council is not subject to the requirements specified in
Chapter 123., 124., or 125., 126.,
or 127. of the Revised Code
and those chapters do not apply to the council. However, the
council may request the department of administrative services, and
the department may agree, to
perform for the council any of the
services the department is
authorized to perform under those
chapters. The council
may enter into an agreement with the
director of administrative
services for the performance of those
requested services.
(C) There is hereby created the workers' compensation council
fund, which shall be in the custody of the treasurer of state but
shall not be a part of the state treasury. The fund shall consist
of all moneys transferred into it by the administrator of workers'
compensation pursuant to
section 4123.342 of the Revised Code.
The council
shall use the fund to pay
the expenses incurred by
the council.
Except as otherwise provided
in division (D) of
this section, the
treasurer of state shall
disburse moneys from
the fund upon
instruments authorized by the council
and signed
by the
director.
The council is the trustee of the workers' compensation
council fund. At the request of the director of the council, the
treasurer of state shall select and contract with one or more
investment managers to invest all money credited to the fund that
is not currently needed for carrying out the functions of the
council. The treasurer of state shall contract with an investment
manager for whom the administrator requested a criminal records
check pursuant to section 4123.444 of the Revised Code and who has
not been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a financial or
investment crime as defined in that section. The eligible list of
investments shall be the same as those specified in the investment
policy for the state insurance fund approved by the bureau of
workers' compensation board of directors pursuant to section
4121.12 of the Revised Code. All investments are subject to the
same limitations and requirements as specified for the state
insurance fund under sections 4121.12, 4121.126, 4121.127,
4123.44, and 4123.442 of the Revised Code. All investment earnings
of the fund shall be credited to the fund.
(D) There is hereby created in the state treasury the
workers' compensation council remuneration fund. The treasurer of
state periodically shall pay into that fund, from the workers'
compensation council fund created in division (C) of this section,
amounts requested by the director of the council to pay the
compensation and benefits of the employees of the council. Amounts
credited to the remuneration fund shall be used by the director
of the council solely to pay the compensation and benefits of all
employees of the council. All investment earnings of the
remuneration fund shall be credited to that fund.
Sec. 4123.29. (A) The administrator of workers'
compensation, subject to the approval of the bureau of workers'
compensation board of directors, shall do all of the
following:
(1) Classify occupations or industries with respect to
their
degree of hazard and determine the risks of the different
classes
according to the categories the national council on
compensation
insurance establishes that are applicable to
employers in this
state;
(2)(a) Fix the rates of premium of the risks of the classes
based upon the total payroll in each of the classes of occupation
or industry sufficiently large to provide a fund for the
compensation provided for in this chapter and to maintain a state
insurance fund from year to year. The administrator shall set
the
rates at a level that assures the solvency of the fund.
Where the
payroll cannot be obtained or, in the opinion of the
administrator, is not an adequate measure for determining the
premium to be paid for the degree of hazard, the administrator
may determine the rates of premium upon such other basis,
consistent with insurance principles, as is equitable in view of
the degree of hazard, and whenever in this chapter reference is
made to payroll or expenditure of wages with reference to fixing
premiums, the reference shall be construed to have been made also
to such other basis for fixing the rates of premium as the
administrator may determine under this section.
(b) If an employer elects to obtain other-states' coverage
pursuant to section 4123.292 of the Revised Code
through either
the administrator, if the administrator elects to
offer such
coverage, or an other-states' insurer, calculate the employer's
premium for the state insurance fund in the same manner as
otherwise required under division (A) of this section and section
4123.34 of the Revised Code, except that when the administrator
determines the expenditure of wages, payroll, or both upon which
to base the employer's premium, the administrator shall use only
the expenditure of wages, payroll, or both attributable to the
labor performed and services provided by that employer's employees
when those employees performed labor and provided services in this
state only and to which the other-states' coverage does not
apply.
(c) The administrator in setting or revising rates shall
furnish
to employers an adequate explanation of the basis for the
rates
set.
(3) Develop and make available to employers who are paying
premiums to the state insurance fund alternative premium plans.
Alternative premium plans shall include retrospective rating
plans. The administrator may make available plans under which an
advanced deposit may be applied against a specified deductible
amount per claim.
(4)(a) Offer to insure the obligations of employers under
this chapter under a plan that groups, for rating purposes,
employers, and pools the risk of the employers within the group
provided that the employers meet all of the following conditions:
(i) All of the employers within the group are members of
an
organization that has been in existence for at least two years
prior to the date of application for group coverage;
(ii) The organization was formed for purposes other than
that
of obtaining group workers' compensation under this
division;
(iii) The employers' business in the organization is
substantially similar such that the risks which are grouped are
substantially homogeneous;
(iv) The group of employers consists of at least one
hundred
members or the aggregate workers' compensation premiums
of the
members, as determined by the administrator,
are expected
to
exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars during the coverage
period;
(v) The formation and operation of the group program in
the
organization will substantially improve accident prevention
and
claims handling for the employers in the group;
(vi) Each employer seeking to enroll in a group for
workers'
compensation coverage has an industrial insurance
account in good
standing with the bureau of workers' compensation
such that at the
time the agreement is processed no outstanding
premiums,
penalties, or assessments are due from any of the
employers.
(b) If an organization sponsors more than one employer group
to participate in group plans established under this section, that
organization may submit a single application that supplies all of
the information necessary for each group of employers that the
organization wishes to sponsor.
(c) In providing employer group plans under division (A)(4)
of
this section, the administrator shall consider an employer
group
as a single employing entity for purposes of retrospective
group
rating. No employer may be a member of more than one
group
for
the
purpose of obtaining workers' compensation coverage
under
this
division.
(d) At the time the administrator revises premium rates
pursuant to this section and section 4123.34 of the Revised Code,
if the premium rate of an employer who participates in a group
plan established under this section changes from the rate
established for the previous year, the administrator, in addition
to sending the invoice with the rate revision to that employer,
shall send a copy of that invoice to the third-party administrator
that administers the group plan for that employer's group.
(e) In providing employer group plans under division (A)(4)
of this section, the administrator shall establish a program
designed to mitigate the impact of a significant claim that would
come into the experience of a private, state fund group-rated
employer for the first time and be a contributing factor in that
employer being excluded from a group-rated plan. The administrator
shall establish eligibility criteria and requirements that such
employers must satisfy in order to participate in this program.
For purposes of this program, the administrator shall establish a
discount on premium rates applicable to employers who qualify for
the program.
(f) In no event shall division (A)(4) of this section be
construed as granting to an employer status as a self-insuring
employer.
(g) The administrator shall develop classifications of
occupations or industries that are sufficiently distinct so as
not
to group employers in classifications that unfairly represent
the
risks of employment with the employer.
(5) Generally promote employer participation in the state
insurance fund through the regular dissemination of information
to
all classes of employers describing the advantages and
benefits of
opting to make premium payments to the fund. To that
end, the
administrator shall regularly make employers aware of
the various
workers' compensation premium packages developed and
offered
pursuant to this section.
(6) Make available to every employer who is paying
premiums
to the state insurance fund a program whereby the
employer or the
employer's agent pays to the claimant or on
behalf of the
claimant
the first fifteen thousand dollars of a compensable workers'
compensation medical-only claim filed by that claimant that is
related to the same injury or occupational disease. No formal
application is required; however, an employer must elect to
participate by telephoning the bureau after July 1, 1995. Once an
employer has elected to participate in the program, the employer
will be responsible for all bills in all medical-only claims with
a date of injury the same or later than the election date, unless
the employer notifies the bureau within fourteen days of receipt
of the notification of a claim being filed that it does not wish
to pay the bills in that claim, or the employer notifies the
bureau that the fifteen thousand dollar maximum has been paid, or
the employer notifies the bureau of the last day of service on
which it will be responsible for the bills in a particular
medical-only claim. If an
employer elects to enter the program,
the administrator shall not
reimburse the employer for such
amounts paid and shall not charge
the first fifteen thousand
dollars of any medical-only claim paid by
an employer to the
employer's experience or otherwise use it in
merit rating or
determining the risks of any employer for the
purpose of payment
of premiums under this chapter. If an employer elects to enter the
program and the employer fails to pay a bill for a medical-only
claim included in the program, the employer shall be liable for
that bill and the employee for whom the employer failed to pay the
bill shall not be liable for that bill. The
administrator shall
adopt rules to implement and administer
division (A)(6) of this
section. Upon written request from the bureau, the employer shall
provide documentation to the bureau of all medical-only bills that
they are paying directly. Such requests from the bureau may not be
made more frequently than on a semiannual basis. Failure to
provide such documentation to the bureau within thirty days of
receipt of the request may result in the employer's forfeiture of
participation in the program for such injury. The provisions of
this section shall not apply to claims in which an employer with
knowledge of a claimed compensable injury or occupational disease,
has paid wages in lieu of compensation or total disability.
(B) The administrator, with the
advice and consent of the
board, by
rule, may do both of the following:
(1) Grant an employer who makes the employer's semiannual
premium
payment at least one month prior to the last day on which
the
payment may be made without penalty, a discount as the
administrator fixes from time to time;
(2) Levy a minimum annual administrative charge upon risks
where semiannual premium reports develop a charge less than the
administrator
considers adequate to offset administrative costs of
processing.
Sec. 4123.341. The administrative costs of the industrial
commission, the workers' compensation council, the bureau of
workers' compensation board of
directors, and
the bureau of
workers' compensation shall be those
costs and expenses that are
incident to the discharge of the
duties and performance of the
activities of
the industrial
commission, the council, the board,
and the bureau under this chapter and
Chapters 4121., 4125.,
4127., 4131., and 4167. of the Revised
Code, and all such costs
shall be
borne by the state and by other
employers amenable to
this chapter as follows:
(A) In addition to the contribution required of the state
under sections 4123.39 and 4123.40 of the Revised Code, the state
shall contribute the sum determined to be necessary under section
4123.342 of the Revised Code.
(B) The director of budget and management may allocate the
state's share of contributions in the manner the director
finds
most equitably apportions the costs.
(C) The counties and taxing districts therein shall
contribute such sum as may be required under section 4123.342 of
the Revised Code.
(D) The private employers shall contribute the sum
required
under section 4123.342 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4123.342. (A) The administrator of workers'
compensation shall allocate among counties and taxing districts
therein as a class, the state and its instrumentalities as a
class, private employers who are insured under the private fund
as
a class, and self-insuring employers as a class their fair
shares
of the administrative costs which are to be borne by such
employers under division (D) of section 4123.341 of the Revised
Code, separately allocating to each class those costs solely
attributable to
the activities of the industrial commission, those
costs solely attributable to the activities of the workers'
compensation council, and
those costs solely attributable to the
activities of the bureau of
workers'
compensation board of
directors, and the bureau of
workers' compensation in
respect of
the class, allocating to any
combination of classes those costs
attributable to the activities
of the industrial commission,
council, board, or bureau in respect of the
classes, and
allocating to all four
classes those costs
attributable to the
activities of the industrial
commission, council,
board, and
bureau in respect of all classes. The
administrator
shall
separately calculate each employer's assessment in the
class,
except self-insuring employers, on the basis of the
following
three
factors: payroll, paid compensation, and paid
medical costs
of the employer for those costs solely attributable
to the
activities of the board and the bureau. The administrator
shall
separately calculate each employer's assessment in the
class,
except self-insuring employers, on the basis of the
following
three factors: payroll, paid compensation, and paid
medical costs
of the employer for those costs solely attributable
to the
activities of the industrial commission. The administrator shall
separately calculate each employer's assessment in the class,
except self-insuring employers, on the basis of the following
three factors: payroll, paid compensation, and paid medical costs
of the employer for those costs solely attributable to the
activities of the council.
The administrator
shall separately
calculate each self-insuring
employer's
assessment in accordance
with section 4123.35 of the
Revised Code
for those costs solely
attributable to the activities of the board
and the bureau. The
administrator shall separately calculate each
self-insuring
employer's assessment in accordance with section
4123.35 of the
Revised Code for those costs solely attributable to
the
activities of the industrial commission. The administrator shall
separately calculate each self-insuring employer's
assessment in
accordance with section 4123.35 of the Revised Code
for those
costs solely attributable to the activities of the
council. In a
timely manner,
the industrial commission shall
provide to the
administrator, the
information necessary for the
administrator
to allocate and
calculate, with the approval of the
chairperson
of the industrial
commission, for each class of
employer as
described in this
division, the costs solely
attributable to the
activities of the
industrial commission.
In a
timely manner, the
director of the workers' compensation council shall submit to the
administrator the information necessary for the administrator to
allocate and calculate, with the approval of the director, for
each class of employer as described in this division,
the costs
solely attributable to the activities of the council.
(B) The administrator shall divide the administrative cost
assessments collected by the administrator into two three
administrative
assessment accounts within the state insurance
fund. One of the
administrative assessment accounts shall consist
of the
administrative cost assessment collected by the
administrator for
the industrial commission. The other One of the
administrative assessment accounts shall consist of the
administrative cost assessment collected by the administrator for
the council. One of the administrative assessment
account
accounts shall consist of the administrative cost assessments
collected by the administrator for the bureau and the board. The
administrator may invest the administrative cost assessments in
these accounts on behalf of the bureau, the council, and the
industrial
commission as authorized in section 4123.44 of the
Revised Code.
In a timely manner, the administrator shall provide
to the
industrial commission and the council the information and
reports the commission or council, as applicable,
deems necessary
for the commission or the council, as applicable, to monitor the
receipts and the
disbursements from the administrative assessment
account for the
industrial commission or the administrative
assessment account for the council, as applicable.
(C) The administrator or the administrator's designee shall
transfer moneys as necessary from the administrative assessment
account identified for the bureau and the board to the workers'
compensation fund for the use of the bureau and the board. As
necessary and upon the authorization of the industrial commission,
the administrator or the administrator's designee shall transfer
moneys from the administrative assessment account identified for
the industrial commission to the industrial commission operating
fund created under section 4121.021 of the Revised Code. To the
extent that the moneys collected by the
administrator in any
fiscal biennium of the state
equal the sum
appropriated by the
general assembly for
administrative costs of
the industrial
commission, board, and
bureau for
the biennium and the
administrative costs approved by the workers' compensation
council, the moneys shall
be paid into the
workers' compensation
fund and, the industrial
commission
operating fund of
the state,
the workers' compensation council fund, and the workers'
compensation council remuneration fund, as appropriate, and
any
remainder shall be
retained
in the state insurance fund those
funds
and
applied to reduce the
amount
collected during the
next
biennium.
Sections
(D) As necessary and upon authorization of the director of
the council, the administrator or the administrator's designee
shall transfer moneys from the administrative assessment account
identified
for the council to the workers' compensation council
fund created
in division (C) of section 4121.79 of the Revised
Code.
(E) Sections 4123.41,
4123.35, and 4123.37 of the Revised
Code apply to the collection
of assessments from public and
private employers respectively,
except that for boards of county
hospital trustees that are
self-insuring employers, only those
provisions applicable to the
collection of assessments for
private employers apply.
Sec. 4123.35. (A) Except as provided in this section,
every
employer mentioned in division (B)(2) of section 4123.01 of
the
Revised Code, and every publicly owned utility shall pay
semiannually in the months of January and July into the state
insurance fund the amount of annual premium the administrator of
workers' compensation fixes for the employment or occupation of
the employer, the amount of which premium to be paid by each
employer to be determined by the classifications, rules, and rates
made and published by the administrator. The employer shall pay
semiannually a further sum of money into the state insurance fund
as may be ascertained to be due from the employer by applying the
rules of the administrator, and a receipt or certificate
certifying that payment has been made, along with a written notice
as is required in section 4123.54 of the Revised Code, shall be
mailed immediately
to the employer by the bureau of workers'
compensation. The
receipt or certificate is prima-facie evidence
of the payment of
the premium, and the proper posting of the
notice constitutes the employer's compliance with the notice
requirement mandated in section 4123.54 of the Revised Code.
The bureau of workers' compensation shall verify with the
secretary of state the existence of all corporations and
organizations making application for workers' compensation
coverage and shall require every such application to include the
employer's federal identification number.
An employer as defined in division (B)(2) of section 4123.01
of the Revised Code who has contracted with a subcontractor is
liable for the unpaid premium due from any subcontractor with
respect to that part of the payroll of the subcontractor that is
for work performed pursuant to the contract with the employer.
Division (A) of this section providing for the payment of
premiums semiannually does not apply to any employer who was a
subscriber to the state insurance fund prior to January 1, 1914,
or who may first become a subscriber to the fund in any month
other than January or July. Instead, the semiannual premiums
shall
be paid by those employers from time to time upon the
expiration
of the respective periods for which payments into the
fund have
been made by them.
The administrator shall adopt rules to permit employers to
make periodic payments of the semiannual premium due under this
division. The rules shall include provisions for the assessment
of
interest charges, where appropriate, and for the assessment of
penalties when an employer fails to make timely premium payments.
An employer who timely pays the amounts due under this division is
entitled to all of the benefits and protections of this chapter.
Upon receipt of payment, the bureau immediately shall mail a
receipt or certificate to the employer certifying that payment has
been made, which receipt is prima-facie evidence of payment.
Workers' compensation coverage under this chapter continues
uninterrupted upon timely receipt of payment under this division.
Every public employer, except public employers that are
self-insuring employers under this section, shall comply with
sections 4123.38 to 4123.41, and 4123.48 of the Revised Code in
regard to the contribution of moneys to the public insurance fund.
(B) Employers who will abide by the rules of the
administrator and who may be of sufficient financial ability to
render certain the payment of compensation to injured employees or
the dependents of killed employees, and the furnishing of medical,
surgical, nursing, and hospital attention and services and
medicines, and funeral expenses, equal to or greater than is
provided for in sections 4123.52, 4123.55 to 4123.62, and 4123.64
to 4123.67 of the Revised Code, and who do not desire to insure
the payment thereof or indemnify themselves against loss sustained
by the direct payment thereof, upon a finding of such facts by the
administrator, may be granted the privilege to pay individually
compensation, and furnish medical, surgical, nursing, and hospital
services and attention and funeral expenses directly to injured
employees or the dependents of killed employees, thereby being
granted status as a self-insuring employer. The administrator may
charge employers who apply for the status as a self-insuring
employer a reasonable application fee to cover the bureau's costs
in connection with processing and making a determination with
respect to an application.
All employers granted
status
as self-insuring employers
shall
demonstrate
sufficient financial and administrative ability
to
assure that all
obligations under this section are promptly
met.
The
administrator shall deny the privilege where the
employer is
unable to demonstrate the employer's ability to
promptly meet all
the obligations imposed on the employer by this
section.
(1) The administrator shall consider, but is not limited to,
the following factors, where applicable, in determining the
employer's ability to meet all of the obligations imposed on the
employer by this section:
(a) The employer employs a minimum of five hundred employees
in this state;
(b) The employer has operated in this state for a minimum of
two years, provided that an employer who has purchased, acquired,
or otherwise succeeded to the operation of a business, or any part
thereof, situated in this state that has operated for at least two
years in this state, also shall qualify;
(c) Where the employer previously contributed to the state
insurance fund or is a successor employer as defined by bureau
rules, the amount of the buyout, as defined by bureau rules;
(d) The sufficiency of the employer's assets located in this
state to insure the employer's solvency in paying compensation
directly;
(e) The financial records, documents, and data, certified by
a certified public accountant, necessary to provide the employer's
full financial disclosure. The records, documents, and data
include, but are not limited to, balance sheets and profit and
loss history for the current year and previous four years.
(f) The employer's organizational plan for the
administration
of the workers' compensation law;
(g) The employer's proposed plan to inform employees of the
change from a state fund insurer to a self-insuring employer, the
procedures the employer will follow as a self-insuring employer,
and the employees' rights to compensation and benefits; and
(h) The employer has either an account in a financial
institution in this state, or if the employer maintains an account
with a financial institution outside this state, ensures that
workers' compensation checks are drawn from the same account as
payroll checks or the employer clearly indicates that payment will
be honored by a financial institution in this state.
The administrator may waive the requirements of divisions
(B)(1)(a) and (b) of this section and the requirement of division
(B)(1)(e) of this section that the financial records, documents,
and data be certified by a certified public accountant. The
administrator shall adopt rules establishing the criteria that an
employer shall meet in order for the administrator to waive the
requirement of division (B)(1)(e) of this section. Such rules may
require additional security of that employer pursuant to division
(E) of section 4123.351 of the Revised Code.
The administrator shall not grant the status of self-insuring
employer to the state, except that the administrator may grant the
status of self-insuring employer to a state institution of higher
education, excluding its hospitals, that meets the requirements of
division (B)(2) of this section.
(2) When considering the application of a public employer,
except for a board of county commissioners described in division
(G) of section 4123.01 of the Revised Code, a board of a county
hospital, or a publicly owned utility, the administrator shall
verify that the public employer satisfies all of the following
requirements as the requirements apply to that public employer:
(a) For the two-year period preceding application under this
section, the public employer has maintained an unvoted debt
capacity equal to at least two times the amount of the current
annual premium established by the administrator under this chapter
for that public employer for the year immediately preceding the
year in which the public employer makes application under this
section.
(b) For each of the two fiscal years preceding application
under this section, the unreserved and undesignated year-end fund
balance in the public employer's general fund is equal to at least
five per cent of the public employer's general fund revenues for
the fiscal year computed in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles.
(c) For the five-year period preceding application under
this
section, the public employer, to the extent applicable, has
complied fully with the continuing disclosure requirements
established in rules adopted by the United States securities and
exchange commission under 17 C.F.R. 240.15c 2-12.
(d) For the five-year period preceding application under
this
section, the public employer has not had its local government
fund
distribution withheld on account of the public employer being
indebted or otherwise obligated to the state.
(e) For the five-year period preceding application under
this
section, the public employer has not been under a fiscal
watch or
fiscal emergency pursuant to section 118.023, 118.04, or
3316.03
of the Revised Code.
(f) For the public employer's fiscal year preceding
application under this section, the public employer has obtained
an annual financial audit as required under section 117.10 of the
Revised Code, which has been released by the auditor of state
within seven months after the end of the public employer's fiscal
year.
(g) On the date of application, the public employer holds a
debt rating of Aa3 or higher according to Moody's investors
service, inc., or a comparable rating by an independent rating
agency similar to Moody's investors service, inc.
(h) The public employer agrees to generate an annual
accumulating book reserve in its financial statements reflecting
an actuarially generated reserve adequate to pay projected claims
under this chapter for the applicable period of time, as
determined by the administrator.
(i) For a public employer that is a hospital, the public
employer shall submit audited financial statements showing the
hospital's overall liquidity characteristics, and the
administrator shall determine, on an individual basis, whether the
public employer satisfies liquidity standards equivalent to the
liquidity standards of other public employers.
(j) Any additional criteria that the administrator adopts by
rule pursuant to division (E) of this section.
The administrator shall not approve the application of a
public employer, except for a board of county commissioners
described in division (G) of section 4123.01 of the Revised Code,
a board of a county hospital, or publicly owned utility, who does
not satisfy all of the requirements listed in division (B)(2) of
this section.
(C) A board of county commissioners described in division
(G)
of section 4123.01 of the Revised Code, as an employer, that
will
abide by the rules of the administrator and that may be of
sufficient financial ability to render certain the payment of
compensation to injured employees or the dependents of killed
employees, and the furnishing of medical, surgical, nursing, and
hospital attention and services and medicines, and funeral
expenses, equal to or greater than is provided for in sections
4123.52, 4123.55 to 4123.62, and 4123.64 to 4123.67 of the Revised
Code, and that does not desire to insure the payment thereof or
indemnify itself against loss sustained by the direct payment
thereof, upon a finding of such facts by the administrator, may be
granted the privilege to pay individually compensation, and
furnish medical, surgical, nursing, and hospital services and
attention and funeral expenses directly to injured employees or
the dependents of killed employees, thereby being granted status
as a self-insuring employer. The administrator may charge a board
of county commissioners described in division (G) of section
4123.01 of the Revised Code that applies for the status as a
self-insuring employer a reasonable application fee to cover the
bureau's costs in connection with processing and making a
determination with respect to an application. All employers
granted such status shall demonstrate sufficient financial and
administrative ability to assure that all obligations under this
section are promptly met. The administrator shall deny the
privilege where the employer is unable to demonstrate the
employer's ability to promptly meet all the obligations imposed on
the employer by this section. The administrator shall consider,
but is not limited to, the following factors, where applicable, in
determining the employer's ability to meet all of the obligations
imposed on the board as an employer by this section:
(1) The board as an employer employs a minimum of five
hundred employees in this state;
(2) The board has operated in this state for a minimum of
two
years;
(3) Where the board previously contributed to the state
insurance fund or is a successor employer as defined by bureau
rules, the amount of the buyout, as defined by bureau rules;
(4) The sufficiency of the board's assets located in this
state to insure the board's solvency in paying compensation
directly;
(5) The financial records, documents, and data, certified by
a certified public accountant, necessary to provide the board's
full financial disclosure. The records, documents, and data
include, but are not limited to, balance sheets and profit and
loss history for the current year and previous four years.
(6) The board's organizational plan for the administration
of
the workers' compensation law;
(7) The board's proposed plan to inform employees of the
proposed self-insurance, the procedures the board will follow as a
self-insuring employer, and the employees' rights to compensation
and benefits;
(8) The board has either an account in a financial
institution in this state, or if the board maintains an account
with a financial institution outside this state, ensures that
workers' compensation checks are drawn from the same account as
payroll checks or the board clearly indicates that payment will be
honored by a financial institution in this state;
(9) The board shall provide the administrator a surety bond
in an amount equal to one hundred twenty-five per cent of the
projected losses as determined by the administrator.
(D) The administrator shall require a surety bond from all
self-insuring employers, issued pursuant to section 4123.351 of
the Revised Code, that is sufficient to compel, or secure to
injured employees, or to the dependents of employees killed, the
payment of compensation and expenses, which shall in no event be
less than that paid or furnished out of the state insurance fund
in similar cases to injured employees or to dependents of killed
employees whose employers contribute to the fund, except when an
employee of the employer, who has suffered the loss of a hand,
arm, foot, leg, or eye prior to the injury for which compensation
is to be paid, and thereafter suffers the loss of any other of the
members as the result of any injury sustained in the course of and
arising out of the employee's employment, the compensation to be
paid by the self-insuring employer is limited to the disability
suffered in the subsequent injury, additional compensation, if
any, to be paid by the bureau out of the surplus created by
section 4123.34 of the Revised Code.
(E) In addition to the requirements of this section, the
administrator shall make and publish rules governing the manner of
making application and the nature and extent of the proof required
to justify a finding of fact by the administrator as to granting
the status of a self-insuring employer, which rules shall be
general in their application, one of which rules shall provide
that all self-insuring employers shall pay into the state
insurance fund such amounts as are required to be credited to the
surplus fund in division (B) of section 4123.34 of the Revised
Code. The administrator may adopt rules establishing requirements
in addition to the requirements described in division (B)(2) of
this section that a public employer shall meet in order to qualify
for self-insuring status.
Employers shall secure directly from the bureau central
offices application forms upon which the bureau shall stamp a
designating number. Prior to submission of an application, an
employer shall make available to the bureau, and the bureau shall
review, the information described in division (B)(1) of this
section, and public employers shall make available, and the bureau
shall review, the information necessary to verify whether the
public employer meets the requirements listed in division (B)(2)
of this section. An employer shall file the completed application
forms with an application fee, which shall cover the costs of
processing the application, as established by the administrator,
by rule, with the bureau at least ninety days prior to the
effective date of the employer's new status as a self-insuring
employer. The application form is not deemed complete until all
the required information is attached thereto. The bureau shall
only accept applications that contain the required information.
(F) The bureau shall review completed applications within a
reasonable time. If the bureau determines to grant an employer
the
status as a self-insuring employer, the bureau shall issue a
statement, containing its findings of fact, that is prepared by
the bureau and signed by the administrator. If the bureau
determines not to grant the status as a self-insuring employer,
the bureau shall notify the employer of the determination and
require the employer to continue to pay its full premium into the
state insurance fund. The administrator also shall adopt rules
establishing a minimum level of performance as a criterion for
granting and maintaining the status as a self-insuring employer
and fixing time limits beyond which failure of the self-insuring
employer to provide for the necessary medical examinations and
evaluations may not delay a decision on a claim.
(G) The administrator shall adopt rules setting forth
procedures for auditing the program of self-insuring employers.
The bureau shall conduct the audit upon a random basis or whenever
the bureau has grounds for believing that a self-insuring employer
is not in full compliance with bureau rules or this chapter.
The administrator shall monitor the programs conducted by
self-insuring employers, to ensure compliance with bureau
requirements and for that purpose, shall develop and issue to
self-insuring employers standardized forms for use by the
self-insuring employer in all aspects of the self-insuring
employers' direct compensation program and for reporting of
information to the bureau.
The bureau shall receive and transmit to the self-insuring
employer all complaints concerning any self-insuring employer. In
the case of a complaint against a self-insuring employer, the
administrator shall handle the complaint through the
self-insurance division of the bureau. The bureau shall maintain
a
file by employer of all complaints received that relate to the
employer. The bureau shall evaluate each complaint and take
appropriate action.
The administrator shall adopt as a rule a prohibition against
any self-insuring employer from harassing, dismissing, or
otherwise disciplining any employee making a complaint, which rule
shall provide for a financial penalty to be levied by the
administrator payable by the offending self-insuring employer.
(H) For the purpose of making determinations as to whether
to
grant status as a self-insuring employer, the administrator may
subscribe to and pay for a credit reporting service that offers
financial and other business information about individual
employers. The costs in connection with the bureau's subscription
or individual reports from the service about an applicant may be
included in the application fee charged employers under this
section.
(I) The administrator, notwithstanding other provisions of
this chapter, may permit a self-insuring employer to resume
payment of premiums to the state insurance fund with appropriate
credit modifications to the employer's basic premium rate as such
rate is determined pursuant to section 4123.29 of the Revised
Code.
(J) On the first day of July of each year, the administrator
shall calculate separately each self-insuring employer's
assessments for the safety and hygiene fund, administrative costs
pursuant to section 4123.342 of the Revised Code, and for the
portion of the surplus fund under division (B) of section 4123.34
of the Revised Code that is not used for handicapped
reimbursement, on the basis of the paid compensation attributable
to the individual self-insuring employer according to the
following calculation:
(1) The total assessment against all self-insuring employers
as a class for each fund and for the administrative costs for the
year that the assessment is being made, as determined by the
administrator, divided by the total amount of paid compensation
for the previous calendar year attributable to all amenable
self-insuring employers;
(2) Multiply the quotient in division (J)(1) of this section
by the total amount of paid compensation for the previous calendar
year that is attributable to the individual self-insuring employer
for whom the assessment is being determined. Each self-insuring
employer shall pay the assessment that results from this
calculation, unless the assessment resulting from this calculation
falls below a minimum assessment, which minimum assessment the
administrator shall determine on the first day of July of each
year with the advice and consent of the bureau of workers'
compensation
board of directors, in which event, the self-insuring
employer
shall pay the minimum assessment.
In determining the total amount due for the total assessment
against all self-insuring employers as a class for each fund and
the administrative assessment, the administrator shall reduce
proportionately the total for each fund and assessment by the
amount of money in the self-insurance assessment fund as of the
date of the computation of the assessment.
The administrator shall calculate the assessment for the
portion of the surplus fund under division (B) of section 4123.34
of the Revised Code that is used for handicapped reimbursement in
the same manner as set forth in divisions (J)(1) and (2) of this
section except that the administrator shall calculate the total
assessment for this portion of the surplus fund only on the basis
of those self-insuring employers that retain participation in the
handicapped reimbursement program and the individual self-insuring
employer's proportion of paid compensation shall be calculated
only for those self-insuring employers who retain participation in
the handicapped reimbursement program. The administrator, as the
administrator determines appropriate, may determine the total
assessment for the handicapped portion of the surplus fund in
accordance with sound actuarial principles.
The administrator shall calculate the assessment for the
portion of the surplus fund under division (B) of section 4123.34
of the Revised Code that under division (D) of section 4121.66 of
the Revised Code is used for rehabilitation costs in the same
manner as set forth in divisions (J)(1) and (2) of this section,
except that the administrator shall calculate the total assessment
for this portion of the surplus fund only on the basis of those
self-insuring employers who have not made the election to make
payments directly under division (D) of section 4121.66 of the
Revised Code and an individual self-insuring employer's proportion
of paid compensation only for those self-insuring employers who
have not made that election.
The administrator shall calculate the assessment for the
portion of the surplus fund under division (B) of section 4123.34
of the Revised Code that is used for reimbursement to a
self-insuring employer under division (H) of section 4123.512 of
the Revised Code in the same manner as set forth in divisions
(J)(1) and (2) of this section except that the administrator shall
calculate the total assessment for this portion of the surplus
fund only on the basis of those self-insuring employers that
retain participation in reimbursement to the self-insuring
employer under division (H) of section 4123.512 of the Revised
Code and the individual self-insuring employer's proportion of
paid compensation shall be calculated only for those self-insuring
employers who retain participation in reimbursement to the
self-insuring employer under division (H) of section 4123.512 of
the Revised Code.
An employer who no longer is a self-insuring employer in this
state or who no longer is operating in this state, shall continue
to pay assessments for administrative costs and for the portion of
the surplus fund under division (B) of section 4123.34 of the
Revised Code that is not used for handicapped reimbursement, based
upon paid compensation attributable to claims that occurred while
the employer was a self-insuring employer within this state.
(K) The administrator shall deposit any moneys received from
a self-insuring employer for the self-insuring employer's
assessment to pay the costs solely attributable to the workers'
compensation council
into the administrative assessment account
described in division (B) of section 4123.342 of the Revised Code
for the administrative cost assessment collected by the
administrator for the council. There is hereby
created in the
state treasury the
self-insurance assessment fund.
All investment
earnings of the
fund shall be deposited in the
fund. The
administrator shall use
the money in the self-insurance
assessment fund only for
administrative costs as specified in
section 4123.341 of the
Revised Code.
(L) Every self-insuring employer shall certify, in affidavit
form subject to the penalty for perjury, to the bureau the amount
of the self-insuring employer's paid compensation for the previous
calendar year. In reporting paid compensation paid for the
previous year, a self-insuring employer shall exclude from the
total amount of paid compensation any reimbursement the
self-insuring employer receives in the previous calendar year from
the surplus fund pursuant to section 4123.512 of the Revised Code
for any paid compensation. The self-insuring employer also shall
exclude from the paid compensation reported any amount recovered
under section 4123.931 of the Revised Code and any amount that is
determined not to have been payable to or on behalf of a claimant
in any final administrative or judicial proceeding. The
self-insuring employer shall exclude such amounts from the paid
compensation reported in the reporting period subsequent to the
date the determination is made. The administrator shall adopt
rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code,
that
provide for all of the following:
(1) Establishing the date by which self-insuring employers
must submit
such information and the amount of the assessments
provided for in
division (J) of this section for employers who
have been granted
self-insuring status within the last calendar
year;
(2) If an employer fails to pay the assessment when due, the
administrator may add a late fee penalty of not more than five
hundred dollars to the assessment plus an additional penalty
amount as follows:
(a) For an assessment from sixty-one to ninety days past due,
the prime interest rate, multiplied by the assessment due;
(b) For an assessment from ninety-one to one hundred twenty
days past due, the prime interest rate plus two per cent,
multiplied by the assessment due;
(c) For an assessment from one hundred twenty-one to one
hundred fifty days past due, the prime interest rate plus four per
cent, multiplied by the assessment due;
(d) For an assessment from one hundred fifty-one to one
hundred eighty days past due, the prime interest rate plus six per
cent, multiplied by the assessment due;
(e) For an assessment from one hundred eighty-one to two
hundred ten days past due, the prime interest rate plus eight per
cent, multiplied by the assessment due;
(f) For each additional thirty-day period or portion thereof
that an assessment remains past due after it has remained past due
for more than two hundred ten days, the prime interest rate plus
eight per cent, multiplied by the assessment due.
(3) An employer may appeal a late fee penalty and penalty
assessment to the administrator.
For purposes of division (L)(2) of this section, "prime
interest rate" means the average bank prime rate, and the
administrator shall determine the prime interest rate in the same
manner as a county auditor determines the average bank prime rate
under section 929.02 of the Revised Code.
The administrator shall include any assessment and penalties
that
remain unpaid for previous assessment periods in the
calculation and
collection of any assessments due under this
division or division
(J) of this section.
(M) As used in this section, "paid compensation" means all
amounts paid by a self-insuring employer for living maintenance
benefits, all amounts for compensation paid pursuant to sections
4121.63, 4121.67, 4123.56, 4123.57, 4123.58, 4123.59, 4123.60, and
4123.64 of the Revised Code, all amounts paid as wages in lieu of
such compensation, all amounts paid in lieu of such compensation
under a nonoccupational accident and sickness program fully funded
by the self-insuring employer, and all amounts paid by a
self-insuring employer for a violation of a specific safety
standard pursuant to Section 35 of Article II, Ohio Constitution
and section 4121.47 of the Revised Code.
(N) Should any section of this chapter or Chapter 4121. of
the Revised Code providing for self-insuring employers'
assessments based upon compensation paid be declared
unconstitutional by a final decision of any court, then that
section of the Revised Code declared unconstitutional shall revert
back to the section in existence prior to November 3, 1989,
providing for assessments based upon payroll.
(O) The administrator may grant a self-insuring employer the
privilege to self-insure a construction project entered into by
the self-insuring employer that is scheduled for completion within
six years after the date the project begins, and the total cost of
which is estimated to exceed one hundred million dollars
or, for
employers described in division (R) of this section, if the
construction project is estimated to exceed twenty-five million
dollars. The
administrator may waive such cost and time criteria
and grant a
self-insuring employer the privilege to self-insure a
construction
project regardless of the time needed to complete the
construction
project and provided that the cost of the
construction project is
estimated to exceed fifty million dollars.
A self-insuring
employer who desires to self-insure a construction
project shall
submit to the administrator an application listing
the dates the
construction project is scheduled to begin and end,
the estimated
cost of the construction project, the contractors
and
subcontractors whose employees are to be self-insured by the
self-insuring employer, the provisions of a safety program that is
specifically designed for the construction project, and a
statement as to whether a collective bargaining agreement
governing the rights, duties, and obligations of each of the
parties to the agreement with respect to the construction project
exists between the self-insuring employer and a labor
organization.
A self-insuring employer may apply to self-insure the
employees of either of the following:
(1) All contractors and subcontractors who perform labor or
work or provide materials for the construction project;
(2) All contractors and, at the administrator's discretion,
a
substantial number of all the subcontractors who perform labor
or
work or provide materials for the construction project.
Upon approval of the application, the administrator shall
mail a certificate granting the privilege to self-insure the
construction project to the self-insuring employer. The
certificate shall contain the name of the self-insuring employer
and the name, address, and telephone number of the self-insuring
employer's representatives who are responsible for administering
workers' compensation claims for the construction project. The
self-insuring employer shall post the certificate in a conspicuous
place at the site of the construction project.
The administrator shall maintain a record of the contractors
and subcontractors whose employees are covered under the
certificate issued to the self-insured employer. A self-insuring
employer immediately shall notify the administrator when any
contractor or subcontractor is added or eliminated from inclusion
under the certificate.
Upon approval of the application, the self-insuring employer
is responsible for the administration and payment of all claims
under this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code for the
employees of the contractor and subcontractors covered under the
certificate who receive injuries or are killed in the course of
and arising out of employment on the construction project, or who
contract an occupational disease in the course of employment on
the construction project. For purposes of this chapter and
Chapter
4121. of the Revised Code, a claim that is administered
and paid
in accordance with this division is considered a claim
against the
self-insuring employer listed in the certificate. A
contractor or
subcontractor included under the certificate shall
report to the
self-insuring employer listed in the certificate,
all claims that
arise under this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the
Revised Code in
connection with the construction project for which
the certificate
is issued.
A self-insuring employer who complies with this division is
entitled to the protections provided under this chapter and
Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code with respect to the employees of
the contractors and subcontractors covered under a certificate
issued under this division for death or injuries that arise out
of, or death, injuries, or occupational diseases that arise in the
course of, those employees' employment on that construction
project, as if the employees were employees of the self-insuring
employer, provided that the self-insuring employer also complies
with this section. No employee of the contractors and
subcontractors covered under a certificate issued under this
division shall be considered the employee of the self-insuring
employer listed in that certificate for any purposes other than
this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code. Nothing in
this division gives a self-insuring employer authority to control
the means, manner, or method of employment of the employees of the
contractors and subcontractors covered under a certificate issued
under this division.
The contractors and subcontractors included under a
certificate issued under this division are entitled to the
protections provided under this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the
Revised Code with respect to the contractor's or subcontractor's
employees who are employed on the construction project which is
the subject of the certificate, for death or injuries that arise
out of, or death, injuries, or occupational diseases that arise in
the course of, those employees' employment on that construction
project.
The contractors and subcontractors included under a
certificate issued under this division shall identify in their
payroll records the employees who are considered the employees of
the self-insuring employer listed in that certificate for purposes
of this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code, and the
amount that those employees earned for employment on the
construction project that is the subject of that certificate.
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary under this chapter
and Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code, the administrator shall
exclude the payroll that is reported for employees who are
considered the employees of the self-insuring employer listed in
that certificate, and that the employees earned for employment on
the construction project that is the subject of that certificate,
when determining those contractors' or subcontractors' premiums or
assessments required under this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the
Revised Code. A self-insuring employer issued a certificate under
this division shall include in the amount of paid compensation it
reports pursuant to division (L) of this section, the amount of
paid compensation the self-insuring employer paid pursuant to this
division for the previous calendar year.
Nothing in this division shall be construed as altering the
rights of employees under this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the
Revised Code as those rights existed prior to September 17, 1996.
Nothing in this division shall be construed as altering the rights
devolved under sections 2305.31 and 4123.82 of the Revised Code as
those rights existed prior to September 17, 1996.
As used in this division, "privilege to self-insure a
construction project" means privilege to pay individually
compensation, and to furnish medical, surgical, nursing, and
hospital services and attention and funeral expenses directly to
injured employees or the dependents of killed employees.
(P) A self-insuring employer whose application is granted
under division (O) of this section shall designate a safety
professional to be responsible for the administration and
enforcement of the safety program that is specifically designed
for the construction project that is the subject of the
application.
A self-insuring employer whose application is granted under
division (O) of this section shall employ an ombudsperson for the
construction project that is the subject of the application. The
ombudsperson shall have experience in workers' compensation or the
construction industry, or both. The ombudsperson shall perform
all
of the following duties:
(1) Communicate with and provide information to employees
who
are injured in the course of, or whose injury arises out of
employment on the construction project, or who contract an
occupational disease in the course of employment on the
construction project;
(2) Investigate the status of a claim upon the request of an
employee to do so;
(3) Provide information to claimants, third party
administrators, employers, and other persons to assist those
persons in protecting their rights under this chapter and Chapter
4121. of the Revised Code.
A self-insuring employer whose application is granted under
division (O) of this section shall post the name of the safety
professional and the ombudsperson and instructions for contacting
the safety professional and the ombudsperson in a conspicuous
place at the site of the construction project.
(Q) The administrator may consider all of the following when
deciding whether to grant a self-insuring employer the privilege
to self-insure a construction project as provided under division
(O) of this section:
(1) Whether the self-insuring employer has an organizational
plan for the administration of the workers' compensation law;
(2) Whether the safety program that is specifically designed
for the construction project provides for the safety of employees
employed on the construction project, is applicable to all
contractors and subcontractors who perform labor or work or
provide materials for the construction project, and has
as a
component, a safety training program that complies with standards
adopted pursuant to the "Occupational Safety and Health Act of
1970," 84 Stat. 1590, 29 U.S.C.A. 651, and provides for continuing
management and employee involvement;
(3) Whether granting the privilege to self-insure the
construction project will reduce the costs of the construction
project;
(4) Whether the self-insuring employer has employed an
ombudsperson as required under division (P) of this section;
(5) Whether the self-insuring employer has sufficient surety
to secure the payment of claims for which the self-insuring
employer would be responsible pursuant to the granting of the
privilege to self-insure a construction project under division (O)
of this section.
(R)
As used in divisions (O), (P), and (Q), "self-insuring
employer" includes the following employers, whether or not they
have been granted the status of being a self-insuring employer
under division (B) of this section:
(1) A state institution of higher education;
(2) A school district;
(3) A county school financing district;
(4) An educational service center;
(5) A community school established under Chapter 3314. of
the
Revised Code.
(S) As used in this section:
(1) "Unvoted debt capacity" means the amount of money that a
public employer may borrow without voter approval of a tax levy;
(2) "State institution of higher education" means the state
universities listed in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code,
community colleges created pursuant to Chapter 3354. of the
Revised Code, university branches created pursuant to Chapter
3355. of the Revised Code, technical colleges created pursuant to
Chapter 3357. of the Revised Code, and state community colleges
created pursuant to Chapter 3358. of the Revised Code.
SECTION 2. That existing sections 101.532, 101.82, 127.14,
4121.03, 4121.121, 4121.75, 4121.76, 4121.77, 4121.79, 4123.29,
4123.341,
4123.342, and 4123.35 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.
SECTION 3. This act is not subject to division (A) of section
4121.78
of the Revised Code.
SECTION 4. All items in this section are hereby appropriated
as designated out of any moneys in the state treasury to the
credit of the Workers' Compensation Council Fund Group. For all
appropriations made in this act, those in the first column are for
fiscal year 2008 and those in the second column are for fiscal
year 2009. The appropriations made in this act are in addition to
any other appropriations made for the FY 2008-2009 biennium.
WCC WORKERS' COMPENSATION COUNCIL
Workers' Compensation Council
5FV0 |
321600 |
|
Remuneration Expenses |
|
$ |
0 |
|
$ |
315,000 |
TOTAL 5FV0 Workers' Compensation Council Remuneration Fund |
|
$ |
0 |
|
$ |
315,000 |
TOTAL ALL BUDGET FUND GROUPS |
|
$ |
0 |
|
$ |
315,000 |
WORKERS' COMPENSATION COUNCIL
The foregoing appropriation item 321600, Remuneration
Expenses, shall be used to pay for the payroll and fringe benefit
costs for employees of the Workers' Compensation Council.
Between December 15, 2008, and June 30, 2009, the
Administrator of Workers' Compensation shall direct the Treasurer
of State to transfer $475,000 cash from the Workers'
Compensation
Fund (Fund 7023) to the Workers' Compensation Council
Fund,
created in division (C) of section 4121.79 of the Revised
Code,
in three installments. The installments shall be made
according
to a schedule agreed to by the Director of the Workers'
Compensation Council and the Administrator of Workers'
Compensation.
Upon the request of the Director of the Workers' Compensation
Council, the Director of Budget and Management shall transfer a
cash amount designated by the Director of the Workers'
Compensation Council from the Workers' Compensation Council Fund
(Fund 5DR0), created by the Controlling Board in August of 2008,
to the Workers' Compensation Council Remuneration Fund (Fund
5FV0). On or before January 31, 2009, the Director of the Workers'
Compensation Council shall request that the Director of Budget and
Management transfer any remaining balance in the Workers'
Compensation Council Fund (Fund 5DR0) to the Workers' Compensation
Council Fund, created by division (C) of section 4121.79 of the
Revised Code as amended by this act. The Treasurer of State, at
the request of the Director of Budget and Management, shall
execute this transfer. After this
transfer has occurred, the
Workers' Compensation Council Fund
(Fund 5DR0) is abolished.
SECTION 5. Within the limits set forth in this act, the
Director of Budget and Management shall establish accounts
indicating the source and amount of funds for each appropriation
made in this act, and shall determine the form and manner in which
appropriation accounts shall be maintained. Expenditures from
appropriations contained in this act shall be accounted for as
though made in Am. Sub. H.B. 119 of the 127th General Assembly.
The appropriations made in this act are subject to all
provisions of Am. Sub. H.B. 119 of the 127th General Assembly
that are generally applicable to such appropriations.
SECTION 6. The Administrator of Workers' Compensation shall
examine the group rating program and make a plan to address the
equity and adequacy of workers' compensation premiums for Ohio
employers. The Administrator of Workers' Compensation shall
provide such report to the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, the President of the Senate, the minority leaders
of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the chairperson of
any standing committee of the Ohio General Assembly that regularly
considers workers' compensation bills, and the Workers'
Compensation Council by September 15, 2009.
SECTION 7. It is not the intent of the General Assembly, in
amending section 101.82 of the Revised Code in Section 1 of this
act, to supersede the repeal and delayed effective date of that
repeal established in Section 6 of Am. Sub. H.B. 516 of the 125th
General Assembly.
SECTION 8. The sections of law contained in this act are not
subject to the referendum. Therefore, under Ohio Constitution,
Article II, Section 1d and section 1.471 of the Revised Code, the
sections go into immediate effect when this act becomes law.
|