CSSB 323(JUD) am: "An Act relating to a subcontractor's, contractor's, and project owner's liability for workers' compensation, to sole proprietors and partnerships without employees, and managers or managing members of limited liability companies, and to the exclusiveness of liability for workers' compensation."
00 CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 323(JUD) am 01 "An Act relating to a subcontractor's, contractor's, and project owner's liability for 02 workers' compensation, to sole proprietors and partnerships without employees, and 03 managers or managing members of limited liability companies, and to the exclusiveness 04 of liability for workers' compensation." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 23.30.045(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) An employer is liable for and shall secure the payment to employees of the 08 compensation payable under AS 23.30.041, 23.30.050, 23.30.095, 23.30.145, and 09 23.30.180 - 23.30.215. If the employer is a subcontractor and fails to secure the 10 payment of compensation to its employees, the contractor is liable for and shall 11 secure the payment of the compensation to employees of the subcontractor. If the 12 employer is a contractor and fails to secure the payment of compensation to its 13 employees or the employees of a subcontractor, the project owner is liable for 14 and shall secure the payment of the compensation to employees of the contractor
01 and employees of a subcontractor, as applicable [UNLESS THE 02 SUBCONTRACTOR SECURES THE PAYMENT]. 03 * Sec. 2. AS 23.30.045(f)(1) is amended to read: 04 (1) "contractor" means a person who undertakes by contract 05 performance of certain work for another but does not include a vendor whose 06 primary business is the sale or leasing of tools, equipment, other goods, or 07 property; and 08 * Sec. 3. AS 23.30.045(f) is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 09 (3) "project owner" means a person who, in the course of the person's 10 business, engages the services of a contractor and who enjoys the beneficial use of the 11 work. 12 * Sec. 4. AS 23.30.045 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 13 (g) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a project owner, contractor, or 14 subcontractor is not liable for and is not obligated to secure the payment of 15 compensation to a sole proprietor, member of a partnership, or manager or managing 16 member of a limited liability company, if the sole proprietor, member of a partnership, 17 or manager or managing member of a limited liability company agrees in writing that 18 the project owner, contractor, and subcontractor do not, in regard to the sole 19 proprietor, member of a partnership, or manager or managing member of a limited 20 liability company, have 21 (1) an obligation to secure compensation; and 22 (2) liability for compensation payable under AS 23.30.041, 23.30.050, 23 23.30.095, 23.30.145, and 23.30.180 - 23.30.215. 24 (h) A sole proprietor, member of a partnership, or manager or managing 25 member of a limited liability company who has agreed under (g) of this section may 26 not maintain an action against the project owner, contractor, or subcontractor, or an 27 insurer of the project owner, contractor, or subcontractor, at law or in admiralty for 28 damages on account of injury or death. 29 * Sec. 5. AS 23.30.055 is amended to read: 30 Sec. 23.30.055. Exclusiveness of liability. The liability of an employer 31 prescribed in AS 23.30.045 is exclusive and in place of all other liability of the
01 employer and any fellow employee to the employee, the employee's legal 02 representative, husband or wife, parents, dependents, next of kin, and anyone 03 otherwise entitled to recover damages from the employer or fellow employee at law or 04 in admiralty on account of the injury or death. The liability of the employer is 05 exclusive even if the employee's claim is barred under AS 23.30.022. However, if an 06 employer fails to secure payment of compensation as required by this chapter, an 07 injured employee or the employee's legal representative in case death results from the 08 injury may elect to claim compensation under this chapter, or to maintain an action 09 against the employer at law or in admiralty for damages on account of the injury or 10 death. In that action the defendant may not plead as a defense that the injury was 11 caused by the negligence of a fellow servant, or that the employee assumed the risk of 12 the employment, or that the injury was due to the contributory negligence of the 13 employee. In this section, "employer" includes, in addition to the meaning given 14 in AS 23.30.395, a person who, under AS 23.30.045(a), is liable for or potentially 15 liable for securing payment of compensation.