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Nebraska senators spar over LB455 privacy, subrogation changes for workers' comp
Summary
On Feb. 25 in the George W. Norris chamber, senators debated LB455, a bill that would make workers' compensation first-injury reports confidential and change how subrogation recoveries are split. Proponents said confidentiality would curb attorney solicitation; opponents said it would restrict injured workers' access to legal help. The motion to indefinitely postpone was offered; no floor vote on the bill occurred before adjournment.
Lincoln — Nebraska senators spent hours debating LB455, a bill that would make employers' "first reports of injury" filed with the workers' compensation court confidential and would change how third‑party recoveries are divided.
Senator John Hallstrom, the bill's sponsor, told colleagues LB455 "is designed to provide for the confidentiality of first injury reports filed with the workers' compensation court" and argued the change would protect injured employees from an "avalanche of solicitations" by attorneys after a report is filed. He said the measure combines the original LB455 with language from LB313 addressing subrogation.
Opponents said the bill would make it harder for injured Nebraskans to find legal help. "To deprive an individual the opportunity to seek legal counsel or to make it harder for an individual to seek legal [advice]... is a problem," Senator Dungan said during floor debate. Several senators echoed that concern, noting the workers' compensation system is complex and that injured people often need help navigating it.
Senator Raybould, who moved to indefinitely postpone the bill, summarized the package's two main elements: a statutory formula for dividing subrogation proceeds and a confidentiality regime for early injury reports. Raybould described the subrogation change as replacing a judge-by-judge "fair and equitable" distribution with a predictable statutory split, saying the amendment would provide "a statutory formula...one third to the employee...the balance remaining to the employer or workers' compensation insurers...and thereafter to the employee." He framed that portion as offering certainty for parties who now face varying judicial outcomes.
Opponents characterized the package as favoring insurers and employers. "This is a wish list that insurance companies have been putting forward for years," Senator Hunt said, and Senator Conrad labeled the confidentiality language "viewpoint discrimination," arguing it denies only lawyers who represent injured workers access to public filings while leaving other parties with access.
Supporters countered that the bill contains exceptions and technical fixes. Senator Hallstrom described carve-outs allowing release of reports to the employee or the employee's attorney, to employers and insurers, to state and federal authorities for research, and redacted aggregate data for researchers or trial use. He said he was negotiating additional changes on the floor: shortening permanent confidentiality to a 60‑day "cooling off" period, adding upfront notices about rights and interpreter access, and adjusting timing for benefit relation-back in the statute.
No final vote on LB455 occurred during this session. Senator Raybould's motion (MO76) to indefinitely postpone the bill was debated on the floor but not resolved before the chamber adjourned. The legislature recessed with plans to resume discussions the following day. The clerk had earlier set the next meeting for Thursday, Feb. 26 at 9:00 a.m.
Actions and next steps recorded on the floor were procedural: Senator Raybould filed MO76 to indefinitely postpone LB455, and Senator Moser moved and the body approved adjournment until Feb. 26. The bill's sponsor said negotiations over amendments and a possible time-limited confidentiality provision will continue when the measure returns to the floor.
