BILL REQ. #:  H-1433.1 

Read first time 02/14/2007.   Referred to Committee on Commerce & Labor.

     AN ACT Relating to the use of industrial insurance funds; amending RCW 51.44.010, 51.44.020, and 51.44.033; and adding a new section to chapter 51.44 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 51.44.010 and 1961 c 23 s 51.44.010 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) There shall be, in the office of the state treasurer, a fund to be known and designated as the "accident fund."
     (2) Expenditures from the accident fund shall be made only to the industrial insurance division at the department of labor and industries for purposes related to the payment of benefits or the administration of industrial insurance programs.
     (3) The director shall submit a written letter to the legislature by December 1st of each year attesting that the accident fund is being used only for the purposes of subsection (2) of this section.

Sec. 2   RCW 51.44.020 and 1961 c 23 s 51.44.020 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) There shall be, in the office of the state treasurer, a fund to be known and designated as the "medical aid fund."
     (2) Expenditures from the medical aid fund shall be made only to the industrial insurance division at the department of labor and industries for purposes related to the payment of benefits or the administration of industrial insurance programs.
     (3) The director shall submit a written letter to the legislature by December 1st of each year attesting that the medical aid fund is being used only for the purposes of subsection (2) of this section.

Sec. 3   RCW 51.44.033 and 1975 1st ex.s. c 224 s 16 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) There shall be, in the office of the state treasurer, a fund to be known and designated as the "supplemental pension fund(("))." The director shall be the administrator thereof. ((Said fund shall be used for the sole purpose of making the additional payments therefrom prescribed in this title.))
     (2) Expenditures from the supplemental pension fund shall be made only to the industrial insurance division at the department of labor and industries for purposes related to the payment of benefits or the administration of industrial insurance programs, or to other programs as specified in this title. Before approving an expenditure from the supplemental pension fund, the legislature must find that the expenditure is reasonably related to industrial insurance or a recognized insurance risk management activity.
     (3) The director shall submit a written letter to the legislature by December 1st of each year attesting that the supplemental pension fund is being used only for the purposes of subsection (2) of this section.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   A new section is added to chapter 51.44 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Any ratepayer or group of ratepayers, acting as a class, may file an action in superior court to protest the use of the accident fund, the medical aid fund, or the supplemental pension fund.
     (2) If a court finds that expenditures from the accident fund, the medical aid fund, or the supplemental pension fund are not related to a purpose under RCW 51.44.010, 51.44.020, or 51.44.033, the department is prohibited from making the expenditures, and the ratepayer or ratepayers must be compensated for actual attorneys' fees and an award of triple damages.