If you want political intrigue, the Democratic Convention in Los Angeles was not the place. Instead, business is keeping a closer eye on Sacramento.
Roger Soucy, HR director for Irvine-based Sonnet Technologies Inc., is closely following SB 996, a bill that would increase benefits to recipients of workers’ compensation.
“We work extremely hard to keep workers’ comp in check, yet the minor injuries we see cause the premiums to go up,” said Soucy. He said Sonnet Technologies, which employs 60, has already seen its premiums increase even without the current proposal.
“This bill concerns us because workers’ comp is getting more expensive,” he said.
Home Stretch
This time of year is the home stretch for whether bills will be enacted. Everything from an increase in unemployment insurance to more rights for unions to how companies can monitor employees’ e-mail is being debated in the halls of the Capitol.
One key deadline is Friday, when Senate and Assembly committees must approve any bill that could require state spending. It is at this juncture that many bills crash and burn.
Both houses must approve all bills by Aug. 31 and then Gov. Gray Davis has 30 days to sign or veto the bills.
Democrats overwhelmingly control both houses. Last year, there were several bills that worried business groups, but Davis vetoed the more controversial ones. This sent a signal to Democratic legislators and there are fewer bills that worry business groups this time around.
The biggest debate is over a bill to increase workers’ compensation. Negotiations among business groups, trial attorneys and unions have stalled. Business groups are betting that Davis won’t sign any bill because of the lack of agreement and that the debate will continue next year.
But supporters of the bill, trial lawyers and unions, are pushing it forward anyway, in the hope that Davis will be angered by business groups’ refusal to compromise and sign it.
“The employers are unwilling to negotiate,” said Marc Marcus, president of the California Applicant Attorneys’ Association. “They feel they have no reason to negotiate because they believe Gov. Davis will veto it.”
Marcus said the bill would increase premiums during the next five years from about 1.8 cents per every dollar of payroll to about 2 cents, an increase of 10%.
“In 1976, it was 2.3 cents and in 1993, it was over 4 cents per dollar,” he said. “This is not something that would harm the California economy.”
However, employers’ groups are estimating the increase would be more than twice Marcus’ figure. And it would come on top of steep increases in premiums this year.
Some Vetoes Expected
Davis is not expected to veto all the bills opposed by business groups, but to sign a few that he agrees with or whose sponsors he wants to appease. But which bills could be vetoed is not clear, because Davis’ practice has been to keep publicly quiet until a bill reaches his desk.
Business groups such as the Employers Group and the California Chamber of Commerce are opposing or trying to soften the effects of several bills. They include:
n SB 546 increases the top weekly salary for unemployment insurance from $230 to $380 by 2003. This is expected to drain the fund and increase by 21% the tax collections on unemployment insurance.
n AB 1889 prohibits any recipient of state funds or resources from using those funds to discourage unionization.
n AB 2509 gives far more authority to the Labor Commissioner, an appointed position, to decide issues such as wage disputes.
n AB 2222 expands the definitions of physical and mental disabilities.
n AB 2537 calls on employers to discipline employees who commit acts of domestic violence outside the workplace and grants protected leave status to employees who are victims of domestic violence.
n SB 1822 mandates that employers warn employees if the company monitors employee e-mail.
n SB 1865 raises civil and criminal penalties for anyone who violates state or local air-pollution rules, including holding managers liable for actions of their employees, regardless of whether the employees act with the manager’s knowledge. This bill is expected to be softened by the time the Legislature approves it.
n AB 2112, which is supported by the Chamber of Commerce, is intended to reduce litigation over new homes by offering a 10-year warranty and then arbitration before a homeowner can turn to litigation. n
