HBA-EVB, ATS C.S.H.B. 3493 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 3493
By: Dunnam
Business & Industry
4/8/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The Labor Code provides a formal dispute resolution process to resolve
benefit-related disagreements between injured employees and their
employer's workers' compensation insurance carrier.  A contested case
hearing is a part of that process.  The hearing is conducted by an employee
of the Texas Workers' Compensation Commission (commission).  During the
contested case hearing, each party presents its side of the dispute and may
question witnesses and introduce evidence to support its case.  After
examining the evidence and testimony, if any, the hearing officer issues a
decision on the dispute. 

If either party disagrees with the hearing officer's decision, the decision
may be appealed to the commissions' Appeals Panel (panel) within 15 days
after the decision of the hearing officer is handed down. The panel reviews
the decision and the record from the contested case hearing.  The panel
issues its decision, either upholding the hearing officer's decision,
overturning the decision and rendering its judgment, or ordering that a
second contested case hearing be held on the dispute. A party who is
aggrieved by a final decision of the panel may seek judicial review not
later than the 40th day after the date on which the decision of the appeals
panel was filed with the commission's division of hearings.  A party who
sues must simultaneously file a copy of the petition with the court and the
commission and serve it on any opposing party.  If the party does not know
the true name of the opposing party (usually it is an employee who does not
know an insurer's true name because a different one may have been used
throughout the dispute resolution process), it may not be possible to serve
that party within 40 days. 

C.S.H.B. 3493 requires the insurance carrier to file with the hearing
officer, at each contested hearing, as applicable, and to deliver to the
claimant a single document stating the true corporate name of the insurance
carrier and the name and address of the insurance carrier's registered
agent for service of process. This substitute also provides that the
document is part of the record of the contested hearing.  

C.S.H.B. 3493 also provides that each final decision of the appeals panel
hearing a workers' compensation claim conclude with a separate paragraph
that states: "The true corporate name of the insurance carrier is (NAME IN
BOLD PRINT) and the name and address of its registered agent for service of
process is (NAME AND ADDRESS IN BOLD PRINT)." 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 410.164, Labor Code, by adding Subsection (c),
as follows: 

(c) Requires the insurance carrier to file with the hearing officer, at
each contested hearing, as applicable, and requires the insurance carrier
to deliver to the claimant a single document stating the true corporate
name of the insurance carrier and the name and address of the insurance
carrier's registered agent for service of process. Provides that the
document is part of the record of the contested hearing. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 410.204, Labor Code, by adding Subsection (d),
as follows: 
 
(d) Requires that each final decision of the appeals panel hearing a
workers' compensation claim conclude with a separate paragraph that states:
"The true corporate name of the insurance carrier is (NAME IN BOLD PRINT)
and the name and address of its registered agent for service of process is
(NAME AND ADDRESS IN BOLD PRINT)." 

SECTION 3.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.
            Makes application of this Act prospective.
SECTION 4.  Emergency clause.



COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The substitute differs from the original bill in SECTION 1, which amends
Section 410.164, Labor Code, by adding Subsection (c), as follows: 

(c) Requires the insurance carrier to file with the hearing officer, at
each contested hearing, as applicable, and requires the insurance carrier
to deliver to the claimant, a single document stating the true corporate
name of the insurance carrier and the name and address of the insurance
carrier's registered agent for service of process. Provides that the
document is part of the record of the contested hearing. 

SECTION 2 of the substitute is redesignated from SECTION 1 of the original
bill. 

SECTION 3 of the substitute is redesignated from SECTION 2 of the original
bill, and makes application of this Act prospective to a workers'
compensation hearing, rather than a claim for workers' compensation
benefits. 

SECTION 4 of the substitute is redesignated from SECTION 3 of the original
bill.