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Conferees appointed to workers compensation issue
The Senate on Tuesday appointed five members to negotiate with House members on legislation that would change the workers compensation law.
Those senators are Todd Staples, R-Palestine and chairman of the Senate Bill 5 conference committee; Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock; Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay; Frank Madla, D-San Antonio; and Jane Nelson, R-Lewisville.
House negotiators have not been named.
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By Randy McNeel
May 22, 2005 1:33 PM | Link to this
Since this article appeared, the House appointed its 5 conferees on the 2 workers' compensation bills, SB 5 and HB 7.
There are major differences in the 2 bills but the focus is not on how best to deliver health care and return injured workers to gainful employment, but on the agency that will administer the system.
The House bill, from Sunset review of the TWCC, would abolish the current agency (TWCC) and transfer most of the control to the TDI. The Senate bill, from a select interim committee, would retain the agency with a name change. Even this difference is not as significent as it would appear since either way, the number of commissioners would be reduced from 6 to 1.
This week the Conference Committees should agree to retain the agency and the Governor appoint a single commissioner from outside the existing agency.
The work of implementing health care networks could then proceed and the State would benefit from better care for injured workers at a cost that is no longer the 2nd highest in the country.
Maybe then Texas could attract a GM or Union Tank Car expansion instead of losing out to Indiana and Louisiana.