H.J.R. 10

1

JOINT RESOLUTION OPPOSING THE ESTABLISHMENT
2 OF A FEDERAL COMMISSION ON
3 STATE WORKERS' COMPENSATION LAWS
4 2010 GENERAL SESSION
5 STATE OF UTAH
6 Chief Sponsor: Michael T. Morley
7 Senate Sponsor: Margaret Dayton
8
9 LONG TITLE
10 General Description:
11 This joint resolution of the Legislature supports the state-based workers' compensation
12 system and opposes federal efforts that would undermine the system.
13 Highlighted Provisions:
14 This resolution:
15 . expresses strong support for the current state-based workers' compensation system
16 and opposes proposed federal legislation that would lead to broadening the federal
17 role in that system; and
18 . opposes H.R. 635 of the 111th United States Congress, which would establish a
19 National Commission on State Workers' Compensation Laws, because the
20 Commission's evaluation could lead to recommendations that would erode the
21 independence of the state-based workers' compensation benefit delivery system,
22 would seek to impose federal benefit delivery system rules, which Congress would
23 be expected to approve, that inherently interfere with state benefit systems, would
24 increase system costs nationwide, and would frustrate efforts of the states to contain
25 costs.
26 Special Clauses:
27 None

28
29 Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
30 WHEREAS, state workers' compensation laws should provide an injured worker with
31 all reasonable and necessary medical treatment that promotes expeditious healing, a return to
32 work, a fair level of income benefits during disability, and protection against lost wages;
33 WHEREAS, state workers' compensation laws should assure that employees receive
34 just compensation at a cost affordable to employers;
35 WHEREAS, the state-based workers' compensation system has proven over the
36 near-century of its existence to be an effective means of protecting injured workers against the
37 costs of industrial injury, while protecting employers against the unlimited and unpredictable
38 costs of workplace liability;
39 WHEREAS, a state-based benefit delivery system reflects the nature and cost of
40 employment in individual states and is an exemplar of the federal system, in which power is
41 dispersed among the states, facilitating timely response and the ability to tailor remedies to
42 state-specific conditions;
43 WHEREAS, the imposition of federal oversight and development of federal mandates
44 on the state workers' compensation system should be opposed, including any proposed
45 legislation that would unnecessarily increase the federal bureaucracy and create federal
46 regulation in an area where states are currently providing adequate oversight;
47 WHEREAS, federal requirements on the state-based system would create unnecessary
48 imbalances and unintended consequences for a system that has been operating effectively for
49 decades;
50 WHEREAS, a state workers' compensation system, its administration, legal precedents,
51 funding, and fiscal accountability, which is intricately linked to each state's economy, is a much
52 more effective approach in dealing with workers' compensation issues;
53 WHEREAS, the state-based system provides the ability to experiment creatively and
54 borrow from experiences in other states without the burden of a rigid, nationwide,
55 one-size-fits-all federal program that is slow to change and administratively cumbersome;
56 WHEREAS, the rights of states and their respective legislatures and stakeholders to
57 review the performance of state-based workers' compensation systems should be preserved;
58 and

59 WHEREAS, it is not the province of Congress to interfere with the state administration
60 of workers' compensation:
61 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah
62 expresses strong support for the current state-based workers' compensation system and opposes
63 any proposed federal legislation that would lead to broadening the federal role in that system.
64 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah opposes H.R.
65 635, introduced in the 111th United States Congress, that would establish a National
66 Commission on State Workers' Compensation Laws, because the Commission's evaluation is
67 intended, and will assuredly lead, to recommendations that would erode the independence of
68 the state-based workers' compensation benefit delivery system, would seek to impose federal
69 benefit delivery system rules, which Congress would be expected to approve, that inherently
70 interfere with state benefit systems, would increase system costs nationwide, and would
71 frustrate efforts of the states to contain costs.
72 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the President of
73 the United States, the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United
74 States House of Representatives, and to the members of Utah's congressional delegation.




Legislative Review Note
as of 12-23-09 12:05 PM

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel