HBA-CCH H.B. 1382 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1382
By: Dunnam
Business & Industry
3/22/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the process for appealing a ruling in a workers' compensation
case requires an individual to file suit in a court within 40 days of the
denial of an administrative appeal.  To file the suit, it is necessary to
serve the legal documents on the insurance carrier's registered agent for
service.  However, it can be difficult to find and serve the registered
agent for service within the time limit.  House Bill 1382 requires an
insurance carrier at a contested case hearing to file a document stating
the corporate name of the insurance carrier and the name and address of the
insurance carrier's registered agent for service of process.   

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. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1382 amends the Labor Code to require an insurance carrier at
each contested workers' compensation case hearing, to file with the hearing
officer and 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 document
is part of the contested case hearing record.  The bill requires each final
decision of the appeals panel to conclude with a separate paragraph stating
both the true corporate name of the insurance carrier and the name and
address of its registered agent for service of process in bold print.  

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.