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Committee backs change to assigned-risk eligibility for workers'comp coverage
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Summary
The committee voted to advance House Bill 2032, aligning statute with existing assigned-risk plan practices so employers can be removed from or excluded from the assigned-risk plan for failing certain requirements.
The Senate committee voted to give House Bill 2032 a do-pass-amended recommendation after adopting a chair's amendment that allows removal from the assigned risk plan subject to statutory requirements.
Committee staff described HB 2032 as clarifying eligibility and removal standards for Arizona's workers' compensation assigned risk plan, so employers who "knowingly do not meet reasonable health and safety requirements" or fail to cooperate with audits or pay outstanding premiums may be excluded. The staff noted a three-page amendment that "allows an employer, if placed in the assigned risk plan, to be removed from the assigned risk plan subject to statutory requirements for securing workers' compensation coverage."
Mark Kendall of CopperPoint Insurance testified in favor and explained the assigned-risk pool is administered by NCCI and that the bill aligns statute with long-standing plan-administration practices. "What this bill does is to try to maintain the status quo and make the statute and the plan consistent with one another," Kendall said. He said employers who have not paid prior premiums can often be admitted under repayment plans.
The committee adopted the amendment and reported HB 2032 as do pass, amended. The roll call produced seven ayes, zero nays; the committee reported the bill do pass, amended.
