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Committee unanimously advances bill to ensure guardians receive notice on workers' compensation for incapacitated public servants
Summary
A House committee passed a narrow bill to amend Title 34 and Title 35 to require notices about workers' compensation and indemnification be sent to legal guardians when employees are incapacitated; the bill also opens a limited one‑time application window for certain pre‑July‑1‑2024 brain‑injury claims.
A House committee unanimously approved House Bill 11 28, a targeted reform sponsors said would clarify notice requirements for workers' compensation and indemnification benefits for incapacitated public servants, particularly peace officers.
The governor's floor leader presented the bill on behalf of Governor Kemp, saying it makes three limited changes: it requires that notice of workers' compensation and indemnification eligibility be sent to legal guardians when an injured employee cannot manage their affairs; it clarifies employer responsibility to ensure proper notification; and it establishes a limited one‑time application window for officers who sustained organic brain injuries before 07/01/2024 and were medically unable to file earlier.
'When the State promises benefits to public servants injured in the line of duty, we must ensure they are actually informed of those rights,' the sponsor told the committee, describing the proposal as an administrative due‑process correction rather than an expansion of eligibility.
Committee members asked how many people would benefit; the sponsor said the do‑pass motion would open the application process for at least one identified individual and that agencies would be notified to identify any other potentially eligible officers. Chairman McDonald moved to pass the bill; after a second the committee carried it unanimously.
