H-1431 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL NO. 941
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 50th Legislature 1987 Regular Session
By Representatives Lux, Chandler, B. Williams, Patrick, Appelwick, J. Williams, Wang, Cole, L. Smith and Betrozoff
Read first time 2/16/87 and referred to Committee on Commerce & Labor.
AN ACT Relating to workers' compensation benefits; amending RCW 51.32.050 and 51.32.090; reenacting and amending RCW 51.32.060 and 51.32.090; repealing RCW 51.32.220 and 51.32.225; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. Section 51.32.060, chapter 23, Laws of 1961 as last amended by section 5, chapter 58, Laws of 1986 and by section 1, chapter 59, Laws of 1986 and RCW 51.32.060 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
(1)
When the supervisor of industrial insurance shall determine that permanent
total disability results from the injury, the worker shall receive monthly ((during
the period of such disability:
(1) If
married at the time of injury, sixty-five percent of his or her wages but not
less than two hundred fifteen dollars per month.
(2) If
married with one child at the time of injury, sixty-seven percent of his or her
wages but not less than two hundred fifty-two dollars per month.
(3) If
married with two children at the time of injury, sixty-nine percent of his or
her wages but not less than two hundred eighty-three dollars.
(4) If
married with three children at the time of injury, seventy-one percent of his
or her wages but not less than three hundred six dollars per month.
(5) If
married with four children at the time of injury, seventy-three percent of his
or her wages but not less than three hundred twenty-nine dollars per month.
(6) If
married with five or more children at the time of injury, seventy-five percent
of his or her wages but not less than three hundred fifty-two dollars per
month.
(7) If
unmarried at the time of the injury, sixty percent of his or her wages but not
less than one hundred eighty-five dollars per month.
(8) If
unmarried with one child at the time of injury, sixty-two percent of his or her
wages but not less than two hundred twenty-two dollars per month.
(9) If
unmarried with two children at the time of injury, sixty-four percent of his or
her wages but not less than two hundred fifty-three dollars per month.
(10) If unmarried
with three children at the time of injury, sixty-six percent of his or her
wages but not less than two hundred seventy-six dollars per month.
(11) If
unmarried with four children at the time of injury, sixty-eight percent of his
or her wages but not less than two hundred ninety-nine dollars per month.
(12) If
unmarried with five or more children at the time of injury, seventy percent of
his or her wages but not less than three hundred twenty-two dollars per month.
(13) For
any period of time where both husband and wife are entitled to compensation as
temporarily or totally disabled workers, only that spouse having the higher
wages of the two shall be entitled to claim their child or children for
compensation purposes)) seventy-five percent of his or her wages at the time of injury
during the period of such disability, but not less than the equivalent of nine
thousand five hundred dollars annually.
(((14)))
(2) In case of permanent total disability, if the character of the
injury is such as to render the worker so physically helpless as to require the
hiring of the services of an attendant, the department shall make monthly
payments to such attendant for such services as long as such requirement
continues, but such payments shall not obtain or be operative while the worker
is receiving care under or pursuant to the provisions of chapter 51.36 RCW and
RCW 51.04.105.
(((15)))
(3) Should any further accident result in the permanent total disability
of an injured worker, he or she shall receive the pension to which he or she
would be entitled, notwithstanding the payment of a lump sum for his or her
prior injury.
(((16)
In no event shall the monthly payments provided in this section exceed
seventy-five percent of the average monthly wage in the state as computed under
the provisions of RCW 51.08.018, except that this limitation shall not apply to
the payments provided for in subsection (14) of this section.
(17))) (4) In the case of new or reopened claims, if
the supervisor of industrial insurance determines that, at the time of filing
or reopening, the worker is voluntarily retired and is no longer attached to
the work force, benefits shall not be paid under this section.
(((18)))
(5) The benefits provided by this section are subject to modification
under RCW 51.32.067.
Sec. 2. Section 51.32.050, chapter 23, Laws of 1961 as last amended by section 3, chapter 58, Laws of 1986 and RCW 51.32.050 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) Where death results from the injury the expenses of burial not to exceed two thousand dollars shall be paid.
(2) (a)
Where death results from the injury, a surviving spouse of a deceased worker
eligible for benefits under this title shall receive monthly for life or until
remarriage ((payments according to the following schedule:
(i) If
there are no children of the deceased worker, sixty percent of the wages of
the deceased worker but not less than one hundred eighty-five dollars;
(ii) If
there is one child of the deceased worker and in the legal custody of such
spouse, sixty-two percent of the wages of the deceased worker but not less
than two hundred twenty-two dollars;
(iii) If
there are two children of the deceased worker and in the legal custody of such
spouse, sixty-four percent of the wages of the deceased worker but not less
than two hundred fifty-three dollars;
(iv) If
there are three children of the deceased worker and in the legal custody of
such spouse, sixty-six percent of the wages of the deceased worker but not
less than two hundred seventy-six dollars;
(v) If
there are four children of the deceased worker and in the legal custody of such
spouse, sixty-eight percent of the wages of the deceased worker but not less
than two hundred ninety-nine dollars; or
(vi) If
there are five or more children of the deceased worker and in the legal
custody of such spouse, seventy percent of the wages of the deceased worker but
not less than three hundred twenty-two dollars.
(b) Where
the surviving spouse does not have legal custody of any child or children of
the deceased worker or where after the death of the worker legal custody of
such child or children passes from such surviving spouse to another, any
payment on account of such child or children not in the legal custody of the
surviving spouse shall be made to the person or persons having legal custody of
such child or children. The amount of such payments shall be five percent of
the monthly benefits payable as a result of the worker's death for each such
child but such payments shall not exceed twenty-five percent. Such payments on
account of such child or children shall be subtracted from the amount to which
such surviving spouse would have been entitled had such surviving spouse had
legal custody of all of the children and the surviving spouse shall receive the
remainder after such payments on account of such child or children have been
subtracted. Such payments on account of a child or children not in the legal
custody of such surviving spouse shall be apportioned equally among such
children)) seventy-five
percent of the worker's wage at the time of injury, but not less than the
equivalent of nine thousand five hundred dollars annually.
(((c)
Payments to the surviving spouse of the deceased worker shall cease at the end
of the month in which remarriage occurs: PROVIDED, That the monthly payment
made to the child or children of the deceased worker shall from the month
following such remarriage be a sum equal to five percent of the wages of the deceased
worker for one child and a sum equal to five percent for each additional child
up to a maximum of five such children. Payments to such child or children
shall be apportioned equally among such children. Such sum shall be in place
of any payments theretofore made for the benefit of or on account of any such
child or children.
(d) In no
event shall the monthly payments provided in subsection (2) of this section
exceed seventy-five percent of the average monthly wage in the state as
computed under RCW 51.08.018.
(e))) (b) In addition to the monthly payments
provided for in (2)(a) ((through (2)(c))) of this section, a surviving
spouse or child or children of such worker if there is no surviving spouse, or
dependent parent or parents, if there is no surviving spouse or child or
children of any such deceased worker shall be forthwith paid the sum of one
thousand six hundred dollars, any such children, or parents to share and share
alike in said sum.
(((f)
Upon remarriage of a surviving spouse the monthly payments for the child or
children shall continue as provided in this section, but the monthly payments
to such surviving spouse shall cease at the end of the month during which
remarriage occurs. However, after September 8, 1975, an otherwise eligible
surviving spouse of a worker who died at any time prior to or after September
8, 1975, shall have an option of:
(i)
Receiving, once and for all, a lump sum of seventy-five hundred dollars or
fifty percent of the then remaining annuity value of his or her pension,
whichever is the lesser: PROVIDED, That if the injury occurred prior to July
1, 1971, the remarriage benefit lump sum available shall be as provided in the
remarriage benefit schedules then in effect; or
(ii) If a
surviving spouse does not choose the option specified in (2)(f)(i) of this
section to accept the lump sum payment, the remarriage of the surviving spouse
of a worker shall not bar him or her from claiming the lump sum payment
authorized in (2)(f)(i) of this section during the life of the remarriage, or
shall not prevent subsequent monthly payments to him or to her if the
remarriage has been terminated by death or has been dissolved or annulled by
valid court decree provided he or she has not previously accepted the lump sum
payment.
(g) If the
surviving spouse during the remarriage should die without having previously
received the lump sum payment provided in (2)(f)(i) of this section, his or her
estate shall be entitled to receive the sum of seventy-five hundred dollars or
fifty percent of the then remaining annuity value of his or her pension
whichever is the lesser.
(h) The
effective date of resumption of payments under (2)(f)(ii) of this section to a
surviving spouse based upon termination of a remarriage by death, annulment, or
dissolution shall be the date of the death or the date the judicial decree of
annulment or dissolution becomes final and when application for the payments
has been received.
(i))) (c) If it should be necessary to increase the
reserves in the reserve fund or to create a new pension reserve fund as a
result of the amendments in chapter 45, Laws of 1975-'76 2nd ex. sess., the
amount of such increase in pension reserve in any such case shall be
transferred to the reserve fund from the supplemental pension fund.
(3) If
there is a child or children and no surviving spouse of the deceased worker or
the surviving spouse is not eligible for benefits under this title, a sum equal
to thirty-five percent of the wages of the deceased worker shall be paid
monthly for one child and a sum equivalent to fifteen percent of such wage
shall be paid monthly for each additional child, the total of such sum to be
divided among such children, share and share alike: PROVIDED, That benefits
under this subsection or subsection (4) shall not exceed ((sixty-five)) seventy-five
percent of the wages of the deceased worker at the time of his or her death
((or seventy-five percent of the average monthly wage in the state as
defined in RCW 51.08.018, whichever is the lesser of the two sums)), but
not less than the equivalent of nine thousand five hundred dollars annually.
(4) In the event a surviving spouse receiving monthly payments dies, the child or children of the deceased worker shall receive the same payment as provided in subsection (3) of this section.
(5) If the
worker leaves no surviving spouse or child, but leaves a dependent or
dependents, a monthly payment shall be made to each dependent equal to fifty
percent of the average monthly support actually received by such dependent from
the worker during the twelve months next preceding the occurrence of the
injury, but the total payment to all dependents in any case shall not exceed ((sixty-five))
seventy-five percent of the wages of the deceased worker at the time
of the death ((or seventy-five percent of the average monthly wage in the
state as defined in RCW 51.08.018, whichever is the lesser of the two sums)).
If any dependent is under the age of eighteen years at the time of the
occurrence of the injury, the payment to such dependent shall cease when such
dependent reaches the age of eighteen years except such payments shall continue
until the dependent reaches age twenty-three while permanently enrolled at a
full time course in an accredited school. The payment to any dependent shall
cease if and when, under the same circumstances, the necessity creating the
dependency would have ceased if the injury had not happened.
(6) For claims filed prior to July 1, 1986, if the injured worker dies during the period of permanent total disability, whatever the cause of death, leaving a surviving spouse, or child, or children, the surviving spouse or child or children shall receive benefits as if death resulted from the injury as provided in subsections (2) through (4) of this section. Upon remarriage or death of such surviving spouse, the payments to such child or children shall be made as provided in subsection (2) of this section when the surviving spouse of a deceased worker remarries.
(7) For claims filed on or after July 1, 1986, every worker who becomes eligible for permanent total disability benefits shall elect an option as provided in RCW 51.32.067.
Sec. 3. Section 2, chapter 59, Laws of 1986 and RCW 51.32.090 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) When
the total disability is only temporary, ((the schedule of payments contained
in subsections (1) through (13) of RCW 51.32.060 as amended shall apply,)) the
worker shall receive seventy-five percent of his or her wages at the time of
the injury so long as the total disability continues, but not less than
the equivalent of nine thousand five hundred dollars annually.
(2) ((Any
compensation payable under this section for children not in the custody of the
injured worker as of the date of injury shall be payable only to such person as
actually is providing the support for such child or children pursuant to the
order of a court of record providing for support of such child or children.
(3))) As soon as recovery is so complete that the present
earning power of the worker, at any kind of work, is restored to that existing
at the time of the occurrence of the injury, the payments shall cease. For
workers who have received benefits under subsection (1) of this section for
sixty days or more, the department shall provide at least sixty days' notice
prior to the cessation of benefits. If and so long as the present earning
power is only partially restored, the payments shall continue in the proportion
which the new earning power shall bear to the old. No compensation shall be
payable unless the loss of earning power shall exceed five percent. However,
during the period a worker returns to light-duty work, receives disability
leave supplement payments pursuant to RCW 41.04.500 through 41.04.530, and is
otherwise eligible for compensation under this section, the worker shall
continue to receive such compensation at the rate provided under RCW 51.32.060
(((1) through (13))).
(((4)))
(3) Whenever an employer requests that a worker who is entitled to
temporary total disability under this chapter be certified by a physician as
able to perform available work other than his or her usual work, the employer
shall furnish to the physician, with a copy to the worker, a statement
describing the available work in terms that will enable the physician to relate
the physical activities of the job to the worker's disability. The physician
shall then determine whether the worker is physically able to perform the work
described. If the worker is released by his or her physician for said work,
and the work thereafter comes to an end before the worker's recovery is
sufficient in the judgment of his or her physician to permit him or her to return
to his or her usual job, or to perform other available work, the worker's
temporary total disability payments shall be resumed. Should the available
work described, once undertaken by the worker, impede his or her recovery to
the extent that in the judgment of his or her physician he or she should not
continue to work, the worker's temporary total disability payments shall be
resumed when the worker ceases such work.
Once the worker returns to work under the terms of this subsection, he or she shall not be assigned by the employer to work other than the available work described without the worker's written consent, or without prior review and approval by the worker's physician.
In the event of any dispute as to the worker's ability to perform the available work offered by the employer, the department shall make the final determination.
(((5)))
(4) No worker shall receive compensation for or during the day on which
injury was received or the three days following the same, unless his or her
disability shall continue for a period of fourteen consecutive calendar days
from date of injury: PROVIDED, That attempts to return to work in the first
fourteen days following the injury shall not serve to break the continuity of
the period of disability if the disability continues fourteen days after the
injury occurs.
(((6)))
(5) Should a worker suffer a temporary total disability and should his
or her employer at the time of the injury continue to pay him or her the wages
which he or she was earning at the time of such injury, such injured worker
shall not receive any payment provided in subsection (1) of this section during
the period his or her employer shall so pay such wages. This limitation does
not apply to disability leave supplement payments made pursuant to RCW
41.04.500 through 41.04.530.
(((7) In
no event shall the monthly payments provided in this section exceed
seventy-five percent of the average monthly wage in the state as computed under
the provisions of RCW 51.08.018.
(8))) (6) If the supervisor of industrial insurance
determines that the worker is voluntarily retired and is no longer attached to
the work force, benefits shall not be paid under this section.
Sec. 4. Section 51.32.090, chapter 23, Laws of 1961 as last amended by section 3, chapter 59, Laws of 1986 and by section 4 of this 1987 act and RCW 51.32.090 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
(1) When
the total disability is only temporary, the worker shall receive ((sixty-six
and two-thirds)) seventy-five percent of his or her wages at the
time of the injury so long as the total disability continues, but not less
than the equivalent of nine thousand five hundred dollars annually.
(2) As soon as recovery is so complete that the present earning power of the worker, at any kind of work, is restored to that existing at the time of the occurrence of the injury, the payments shall cease. For workers who have received benefits under subsection (1) of this section for sixty days or more, the department shall provide at least thirty days' notice prior to the cessation of benefits. If and so long as the present earning power is only partially restored, the payments shall continue in the proportion which the new earning power shall bear to the old. No compensation shall be payable unless the loss of earning power shall exceed five percent.
(3) Whenever an employer requests that a worker who is entitled to temporary total disability under this chapter be certified by a physician as able to perform available work other than his or her usual work, the employer shall furnish to the physician, with a copy to the worker, a statement describing the available work in terms that will enable the physician to relate the physical activities of the job to the worker's disability. The physician shall then determine whether the worker is physically able to perform the work described. If the worker is released by his or her physician for said work, and the work thereafter comes to an end before the worker's recovery is sufficient in the judgment of his or her physician to permit him or her to return to his or her usual job, or to perform other available work, the worker's temporary total disability payments shall be resumed. Should the available work described, once undertaken by the worker, impede his or her recovery to the extent that in the judgment of his or her physician he or she should not continue to work, the worker's temporary total disability payments shall be resumed when the worker ceases such work.
Once the worker returns to work under the terms of this subsection, he or she shall not be assigned by the employer to work other than the available work described without the worker's written consent, or without prior review and approval by the worker's physician.
In the event of any dispute as to the worker's ability to perform the available work offered by the employer, the department shall make the final determination.
(4) No worker shall receive compensation for or during the day on which injury was received or the three days following the same, unless his or her disability shall continue for a period of fourteen consecutive calendar days from date of injury: PROVIDED, That attempts to return to work in the first fourteen days following the injury shall not serve to break the continuity of the period of disability if the disability continues fourteen days after the injury occurs.
(5) Should a worker suffer a temporary total disability and should his or her employer at the time of the injury continue to pay him or her the wages which he or she was earning at the time of such injury, such injured worker shall not receive any payment provided in subsection (1) of this section during the period his or her employer shall so pay such wages.
(6) ((In
no event shall the monthly payments provided in this section exceed one hundred
percent of the average monthly wage in the state as computed under the
provisions of RCW 51.08.018.
(7))) If the supervisor of industrial insurance determines
that the worker is voluntarily retired and is no longer attached to the work
force, benefits shall not be paid under this section.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The following acts or parts of acts are each repealed:
(1) Section 3, chapter 286, Laws of 1975 1st ex. sess., section 19, chapter 323, Laws of 1977 ex. sess., section 1, chapter 151, Laws of 1979 ex. sess., section 1, chapter 231, Laws of 1979 ex. sess., section 19, chapter 63, Laws of 1982 and RCW 51.32.220; and
(2) Section 5, chapter 59, Laws of 1986 and RCW 51.32.225.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. Section 4 of this act shall take effect on June 30, 1989.