1584.E AMS HEA S2614.1

EHB 1584 - S COMM AMD

By Committee on Health & Long-Term Care

    Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

    "Sec. 1.  RCW 28A.400.270 and 1990 1st ex.s. c 11 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

    Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout RCW 28A.400.275 and 28A.400.280.

    (1) "School district employee benefit plan" means the overall plan used by the district for distributing fringe benefit subsidies to employees, including the method of determining employee coverage and the amount of employer contributions, as well as the characteristics of benefit providers and the specific benefits or coverage offered.  It shall not include coverage offered to district employees for which there is no contribution from public funds.

    (2) "Fringe benefit" does not include liability coverage, old-age survivors' insurance, workers' compensation, unemployment compensation, retirement benefits under the Washington state retirement system, or payment for unused leave for illness or injury under RCW 28A.400.210.

    (3) "Basic benefits" are determined through local bargaining and are limited to medical, dental, vision, group term life, and group long-term disability insurance coverage.  Basic benefits may be limited to one or more of the basic benefits listed in this subsection if all employee bargaining units and all nonbargaining group employees in a pooling arrangement agree to the limitation.

    (4) "Benefit providers" include insurers, third party claims administrators, direct providers of employee fringe benefits, health maintenance organizations, health care service contractors, and the Washington state health care authority or any plan offered by the authority.

    (5) "Group term life insurance coverage" means term life insurance coverage provided for, at a minimum, all full-time employees in a bargaining unit or all full-time nonbargaining group employees.

    (6) "Group long-term disability insurance coverage" means long-term disability insurance coverage provided for, at a minimum, all full-time employees in a bargaining unit or all full-time nonbargaining group employees.

    Sec. 2.  RCW 28A.400.280 and 1990 1st ex.s. c 11 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, school districts may provide employer fringe benefit contributions after October 1, 1990, only for basic benefits.  However, school districts may continue payments under contracts with employees or benefit providers in effect on April 13, 1990, until the contract expires.

    (2) School districts may provide employer contributions after October 1, 1990, for optional benefit plans, in addition to basic benefits, only for employees included in pooling arrangements under this subsection.  Optional benefit plans may not include employee beneficiary accounts that can be liquidated by the employee on termination of employment.  Optional benefit plans may be offered only if:

    (a) The school district pools benefit allocations among employees using a pooling arrangement that includes at least one employee bargaining unit and/or all nonbargaining group employees;

    (b) The employee bargaining unit does not withdraw from a pooling arrangement in order to purchase an optional benefit.

(c) Each full-time employee included in the pooling arrangement is offered basic benefits, including coverage for dependents, without a payroll deduction for premium charges;

    (((c))) (d) Each full-time employee included in the pooling arrangement, regardless of the number of dependents receiving basic coverage, receives the same additional employer contribution for other coverage or optional benefits; and

    (((d))) (e) For part-time employees included in the pooling arrangement, participation in optional benefit plans shall be governed by the same eligibility criteria and/or proration of employer contributions used for allocations for basic benefits.

    (3) Savings accruing to school districts due to limitations on benefit options under this section shall be pooled and made available by the districts to reduce out-of-pocket premium expenses for employees needing basic coverage for dependents.  School districts are not intended to divert state benefit allocations for other purposes."

EHB 1584 - S COMM AMD

By Committee on Health & Long-Term Care

    On page 1, line 1 of the title, after "benefits;" strike the remainder of the title and insert "and amending RCW 28A.400.270 and 28A.400.280."

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