HB 30: "An Act relating to the exclusiveness of liability of an employer in the case of death; relating to the payment of workers' compensation benefits in the case of permanent partial impairment; relating to notice of workers' compensation death benefits; relating to the payment of workers' compensation death benefits payable to a child of an employee where there is no surviving spouse; relating to the payment of workers' compensation death benefits for an employee without a surviving spouse or child; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 30 01 "An Act relating to the exclusiveness of liability of an employer in the case of death; 02 relating to the payment of workers' compensation benefits in the case of permanent 03 partial impairment; relating to notice of workers' compensation death benefits; relating 04 to the payment of workers' compensation death benefits payable to a child of an 05 employee where there is no surviving spouse; relating to the payment of workers' 06 compensation death benefits for an employee without a surviving spouse or child; and 07 providing for an effective date." 08 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 09 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 10 to read: 11 SHORT TITLE. This Act may be known as the Abigail Caudle Act. 12 * Sec. 2. AS 23.30.055 is repealed and reenacted to read: 13 Sec. 23.30.055. Exclusiveness of liability. (a) The liability of an employer
01 prescribed in AS 23.30.045 is exclusive and in place of all other liability of the 02 employer and any fellow employee to the employee, the employee's legal 03 representative, husband or wife, parents, dependents, next of kin, and anyone 04 otherwise entitled to recover damages from the employer or fellow employee at law or 05 in admiralty on account of the injury or death. The liability of the employer is 06 exclusive even if the employee's claim is barred under AS 23.30.022. 07 (b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, an injured employee, or the employee's 08 legal representative in case death results from the injury, may elect to claim 09 compensation under this chapter or to maintain an action against the employer at law 10 or in admiralty for damages on account of the injury or death, if 11 (1) an employer fails to secure payment of compensation as required 12 by this chapter; or 13 (2) the injury to the employee results in death caused by the employer's 14 wilful disregard for the life, limb, health, or bodily safety of the employee. 15 (c) In an action under (b) of this section, the defendant may not plead as a 16 defense that the injury was caused by the negligence of a fellow servant, or that the 17 employee assumed the risk of the employment, or that the injury was due to the 18 contributory negligence of the employee. 19 (d) In this section, "employer" includes, in addition to the meaning given in 20 AS 23.30.395, a person who, under AS 23.30.045(a), is liable for or potentially liable 21 for securing payment of compensation. 22 * Sec. 3. AS 23.30.190(a) is amended to read: 23 (a) In case of impairment partial in character but permanent in quality, and not 24 resulting in permanent total disability, the compensation is $255,506 [$177,000] 25 multiplied by the employee's percentage of permanent impairment of the whole 26 person. The percentage of permanent impairment of the whole person is the 27 percentage of impairment to the particular body part, system, or function converted to 28 the percentage of impairment to the whole person as provided under (b) of this section. 29 The compensation is payable in a single lump sum, except as otherwise provided in 30 AS 23.30.041, but the compensation may not be discounted for any present value 31 considerations.
01 * Sec. 4. AS 23.30.190 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 02 (e) The director shall annually increase the amount payable under (a) of this 03 section by a percentage equal to the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index 04 for urban wage earners and clerical workers for Anchorage, Alaska, during the 05 previous calendar year, as determined by the United States Department of Labor, 06 Bureau of Labor Statistics. 07 * Sec. 5. AS 23.30 is amended by adding a new section to read: 08 Sec. 23.30.212. Notice of death benefits. (a) If an injury causes death, on a 09 form prescribed by the director, the employer shall notify the personal representative 10 of the employee's estate of the compensation for death available under AS 23.30.215, 11 the statute of limitations for obtaining workers' compensation benefits, and where to 12 obtain a list of legal counsel and grief counselors who may be able to assist. 13 (b) If the identity of the personal representative of the employee's estate is not 14 known by the employer, the employer shall notify one of the following: 15 (1) the employee's surviving spouse; 16 (2) the employee's mother or father; 17 (3) the employee's dependent; 18 (4) the employee's next of kin; or 19 (5) anyone otherwise entitled to recover death benefits under 20 AS 23.30.215. 21 (c) In this section, "personal representative" has the meaning given in 22 AS 13.06.050. 23 * Sec. 6. AS 23.30.215(a) is amended to read: 24 (a) If the injury causes death, the compensation is known as a death benefit 25 and is payable in the following amounts to or for the benefit of the following persons: 26 (1) reasonable and necessary funeral expenses not exceeding $10,000; 27 (2) if there is a widow or widower or a child or children of the 28 deceased, the following percentages of the spendable weekly wages of the deceased: 29 (A) 80 percent for the widow or widower with no children; 30 (B) 50 percent for the widow or widower with one child and 40 31 percent for the child;
01 (C) 30 percent for the widow or widower with two or more 02 children and 70 percent divided equally among the children; 03 (D) 100 percent for an only child when there is no widow or 04 widower; 05 (E) 100 percent, divided equally, if there are two or more 06 children and no widow or widower; 07 (3) if the widow or widower remarries, the widow or widower is 08 entitled to be paid in one sum an amount equal to the compensation to which the 09 widow or widower would otherwise be entitled in the two years commencing on the 10 date of remarriage as full and final settlement of all sums due the widow or widower; 11 (4) if there is no widow or widower or child or children, then for the 12 support of father, mother, grandchildren, brothers, and sisters, if dependent on 13 [UPON] the deceased at the time of injury, 42 percent of the spendable weekly wage 14 of the deceased to those [SUCH] beneficiaries, share and share alike, not to exceed 15 $100,000 [$20,000] in the aggregate; 16 (5) $5,000 to a surviving widow or widower, or equally divided among 17 surviving children of the deceased if there is no widow or widower; and 18 (6) if there is no widow or widower or child or children, and the 19 father, mother, grandchildren, brothers, and sisters were not dependent on the 20 deceased at the time of injury, then the following amounts are payable in a lump 21 sum: 22 (A) $120,000 to the surviving parent, if there is only one 23 surviving parent; 24 (B) $60,000 to each surviving parent, if there are two 25 surviving parents; 26 (C) $120,000 divided equally among each surviving parent, 27 if there are more than two surviving parents; or 28 (D) $120,000 to the estate of the decedent, if there are no 29 surviving parents. 30 * Sec. 7. AS 23.30.215 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 31 (j) The death benefit payable to a person who is a child under (a)(2)(D) or (E)
01 of this section shall terminate five years after the person is no longer considered a 02 child under AS 23.30.395(8). 03 * Sec. 8. This Act takes effect January 1, 2020.