Committee advances reforms to Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund to lower employer assessments
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Summary
AB 13 29, authored by Assemblymember Ortega, would align eligibility and medical‑legal standards for subsequent injury fund claims with existing workers' compensation law and reduce employer assessments by an estimated 20–25%. The committee voted to send the bill to Appropriations.
Assemblymember Ortega’s AB 13 29 cleared the Assembly Committee on Insurance and was referred to Appropriations after committee debate and questions. The bill would revise how claims under the Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund (SIBTF) are adjudicated, with sponsors saying the changes will reduce litigation and medical‑legal costs and lower employer assessments by about 20–25%.
The SIBTF, created after World War II to spread employer risk for workers with prior disabilities, currently collects about less than $0.02 per $100 of premiums from employers, the bill’s sponsor said. AB 13 29 would align the fund’s qualified medical evaluator (QME) procedures and definitions of permanent disability with earlier statewide reforms and clarify statutory standards for fund eligibility.
Jason Marcus, legislative chair for the California Applicants' Attorneys Association, said the bill responds to findings in a 2024 RAND Corporation study requested by the Department of Industrial Relations and would reduce assessments while protecting employers who hire previously disabled workers. "AB 13 29 will lower the assessments paid by all employers into the subsequent injuries benefits trust fund by approximately 20 to 25% while continuing to reduce the financial risk to employers who take a chance on hiring a previously disabled worker," Marcus told the committee.
Opponents, including the California Coalition on Workers' Compensation and several insurer and public agency groups, said they opposed the bill in print but were working with the author on amendments. Jason Schmelzer of the coalition urged more careful drafting on eligibility questions and QME procedure changes, and noted historically rising SIBTF costs; he cited total payments rising from about $13.6 million in 2010 to about $232 million in 2022.
Committee members moved and seconded the measure; the committee roll later recorded the bill as passed to Appropriations. The record shows the bill ultimately proceeded out of committee with a recorded tally of 14–0 in favor.
AB 13 29 would change the administrative process for subsequent injury fund claims by: aligning QME procedures with the broader workers' compensation system, specifying eligibility standards for the fund, and updating the statutory definition of permanent disability to match reforms enacted in 2004 and 2012. Supporters characterized the changes as procedural and cost‑reducing; opponents sought amendments focused on preserving procedural fairness and clarifying adjudicative responsibility.
The bill is now set for review in the Appropriations Committee.
