Subject of Possible Rule Making: Chapter 296-15 WAC, Workers' compensation self insurance rules and regulations employers, this chapter governs employers who are permitted to self insure their workers compensation obligation pursuant to Title 51 RCW. This filing includes modifications in the following areas: Certification requirements, including both financial requirements and claims administration structure requirements, vocational reporting requirements, including ninety day employability assessment reports and vocational rehabilitation outcome reporting, reporting requirements when initiating and terminating time loss, financial information reporting requirements, submissions of protests to the department, and time frames for payment of penalties.

     Statutes Authorizing the Agency to Adopt Rules on this Subject: RCW 51.04.020, 51.14.020, 51.32.190, 51.14.090, and 51.14.095.

     Reasons Why Rules on this Subject may be Needed and What They Might Accomplish: Proposed revisions should improve the process by which employers are certified to self insure, enhance understanding of that process, streamline and improve vocational and financial reporting requirements, improve notification to injured workers regarding the status of their compensation, and clarify timeframes for both submission of protests to the department and the payment of penalties.

     Other Federal and State Agencies that Regulate this Subject and the Process Coordinating the Rule with These Agencies: No other state, local, or federal agency regulates this subject.

     Process for Developing New Rule: Labor and industries will work with representative of the labor and self insurance communities on all changes to the self insurance regulations. A public hearing will be held in Tumwater after the proposal is filed.

     Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication by contacting George Pickett, Department of Labor and Industries, Self Insurance Section, P.O. Box 44892, Olympia, WA 98504-4892, (360) 902-6907, fax (360) 902-6900.

July 24, 2002

Gary Moore

Director

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