WSIA

It was a short but momentous legislative session with a couple major changes in the law that will reverberate. Here's a run-down of what happened in issues of concern to the workers' compensation and safety community.

Here's a run-down of what happened in issues of concern to the workers' compensation and safety community.

For workers' compensation and safety, the shift in legislative power will put an increased focus toward compromise on bills that are primarily defensive for employers. It will not be an era where systemic reform proposals of the past years, from occupational disease to structured settlements to wage simplification and benefit accuracy, will receive much attention or traction.

What would it mean for workers' compensation and workplace safety if, as threatened, Washington's state government shuts down July 1 over the failure of the Legislature to adopt a state operation budget?

Particularly in states like California and Washington, where worker advocates wield comparatively strong political clout, we may expect to see a trend of state-level safety regulation tick upward in the absence of comparable federal activity.

"At the same time, to the extent legislative budget writers feel constrained to raise taxes on business to fund education or other priorities of government, there will be a search for a countervailing area where tax or regulatory costs on employers can be reduced. And in that regard, Washington's workers' compensation system is always top of mind."

In an effort to shed greater light on the workings of the Washington Supreme Court in areas of concern to WSIA, such as cases affecting workplace safety and workers' compensation law, the association has published a brief report recapping the top cases in these areas over the last six years, and showing how the current sitting justices of the court voted in them.

Spring has sprung, cherry blossoms on the capitol campus have popped, allergies are in the air, and the Washington State Legislature, despite going into an overtime period to complete its work, has finally adjourned for the year this week. Here is our wrap-up of what went down, particularly in the areas of workers' compensation and workplace safety issues.