Firefighter, Benefit Bills Begin to Move

Two workers’ comp bills have been placed on the General State Calendar in the House on Thursday, signaling that the full house can consider the bills for passage. In addition, one bill was received by the House Calendars Committee, one bill was reported out of the House Business & Industry Committee, and one bill was pulled from its committee calendar.

HB 1607, by Rep. Nicole Collier (D-Fort Worth) was placed on the April 23, 2015 General State Calendar. The bill raises the low-wage-earner threshold for increased TIBs benefits from $8.50 per hour to $10.00 per hour. A companion bill, SB 901, by Sen. Eltife has already passed the Senate and has been received in the House.

CSHB 1388, by Rep. Dwayne Bohac (R-Houston) has also been placed on the April 23, 2015 General State Calendar. The bill only applies to firefighters and emergency medical technicians. As substituted in committee the bill creates a presumption of compensability and eliminates the requirement that a heart attack or stroke be caused by a non-routine stressful or physical activity. The committee substitute also requires a person seeking to rebut the presumption offer a statement that describes in detail the evidence that the person reviewed before making the determination that a non-work-related factor caused the heart attack or stroke.

CSHB 2771 by Rep. Armando Martinez (D-Weslaco) was sent to the House Calendars Committee on April 21, 2015. The bill provides that the travel of a firefighter or emergency medical personnel en route to an emergency call is considered to be in the course and scope of the firefighter’s or emergency medical personnel ’s employment.

HB 1668 by Rep. Paul Workman (R-Austin) was reported favorably out of the House Business & Industry Committee on April 21, 2015. The bill provides that a subcontractor who is operating as an independent contractor and who has, pursuant to a written agreement with the general contractor, assumed the responsibilities of an employer for the performance of the work, may nevertheless enter into a written agreement whereby the general contractor provides workers’ compensation coverage to the subcontractor and the employees of the subcontractor.

HB 4118 by Rep. Armando Walle (D-Houston) was pulled from the House Business & Industry hearing calendar on April 21, 2015. That bill would have required non-subscribing employers to offer qualified benefit plans to their employees. It is unclear why the bill was pulled from the committee’s agenda or whether the bill will be placed on a later calendar.