House rejects bill to require workers' compensation for most home-based disability services

Representative Edwards presented House Bill 94 to modify the Workers' Compensation Act so that most employees providing home- and community-based services under the state's DSPD (Division of Services for People with Disabilities) programs would be covered by workers' compensation. Edwards said the self-administered services program now serves nearly 1,500 individuals with disabilities on a combined budget of more than $23,000,000 and that the statutory exemption for those family‑employers had not been removed since it was first created.

During floor questioning Representative Dunnegan and others asked whether the five‑hour threshold for mandatory coverage was too low, warning that a single worker who assists multiple families could force each family to purchase separate workers' compensation policies. Dunnegan said the law's designation of families as employers meant multiple, duplicative policies could be required and called the five‑hour cutoff "inefficient." Edwards replied that statute already designates such families as employers and that the lack of coverage was driving employees away from home‑based work into institutional settings.

Representative Edwards moved for final passage, and Representative Edwards requested a call of the House to secure the vote. After the call and lifting it, the House recorded a final tally of 32 yes and 40 no; HB94 failed and will be filed. The sponsor said the bill aimed to reduce liability gaps and protect workers; opponents cited administrative burdens and the risk that families and small providers would face multiple policies or higher costs.