1173: COMMITTEE SUMMARY - WORKER'S COMP: CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS

WORKER'S COMP: CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS - S.B. 1173: COMMITTEE SUMMARY

Senate Bill 1173 (as introduced 3-22-00)

Date Completed: 4-4-00

CONTENT

The bill would amend the Worker's Disability Compensation Act to provide that workers' disability compensation insurance policy information submitted to the Bureau of Workers' Disability Compensation by an individual employer or group of employers under Section 615, or a notice of issuance of a policy submitted to the Bureau by an insurer under Section 625, would be confidential and exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. (Section 615 requires reports as to employees, work, and insurance coverage upon request of the Bureau Director. Section 625 requires an insurer to file with the Director a notice of issuance of a policy, effective date, and coverage.) Currently, the Worker's Disability Compensation Act provides an exemption from disclosure for records submitted by an individual employer or a group of employers in support of an application for self-insured status, and information concerning the injury of and benefits paid to an individual worker.

The Act permits the Bureau to release, disclose, or publish confidential information under certain circumstances. These include the disclosure or publication of aggregate information for statistical or research purposes, as long as it is disclosed or published in a way that protects the confidentiality of information about individual workers and the financial records of individual employers or self-insured employers. The information made confidential under the bill also would be subject to this provision.

The bill further specifies that in the case of workers' disability compensation insurance policy information, the Bureau could release, disclose, or publish information if the request pertained to a specific employer and included the employer's address and the date of the injury of the claim for which the information was requested.

MCL 418.230 - Legislative Analyst: N. Nagata

FISCAL IMPACT

The bill would have no fiscal impact on State or local government.

- Fiscal Analyst: M. TyszkiewiczS9900\s1173sa

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.