Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Workers Compensation Cannabis topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee advances plan to ease pathway for cannabis employers to secure workers' compensation coverage
Summary
AB 1209 would authorize the administrative director of the Division of Workers' Compensation to contract third-party benefit coordinators and establish a network of insurers and service providers to expand workers' compensation availability to cannabis employers and their employees.
Assemblymember Michelle Rodriguez presented AB 1209 to create a convenient pathway for cannabis employers to obtain workers' compensation coverage for employees, including those provided through staffing agencies. The bill would authorize the administrative director of the Division of Workers' Compensation to contract with third-party agents to serve as benefit coordinators, establish a network of licensed carriers willing to underwrite workers' compensation for the cannabis industry, and maintain a provider network for banking, payroll and related services.
Proponents said the cannabis industry faces unique barriers to insurance and banking because cannabis remains illegal under federal law. Robert Mortensen of Mortensen Advisors testified that an analysis found only about 11.5% of the cannabis industry workforce could be confirmed as covered in the workers' compensation insurance database; he said the bill would give the administrative director the authority and visibility to verify coverage and help migrate the industry toward full compliance. Laurie Kramer (representing the Risk and Insurance Management Society and MedEx Healthcare) and firms offering workers' compensation services said AB 1209 would help ensure workers can access benefits and reduce the number of uninsured workers.
During the hearing, lawmakers asked whether low coverage was due to choice or to structural barriers (banking challenges, tax/accounting constraints and classification of workers as independent contractors). Supporters said both factors exist but emphasized that federal constraints and banking difficulties materially limit many employers' options; the measure is intended to facilitate compliance rather than provide blanket amnesty. Assemblymember Hadwick voiced concern the bill could create a perception of amnesty and opposed on that basis; the final recorded committee vote in the hearing summary was 15 yes, 2 no.
Votes at a glance: AB 1209 — passed out of committee, recorded final tally 15 yes, 2 no.
