Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 2133 amends the Texas Workers' Compensation Act to create a new agency, the State Office of Risk Management, charged with administering workers' compensation insurance and risk management programs for state employees. The act abolishes the division of workers' compensation in the office of the attorney general and the risk management division of the Texas Workers' Compensation Commission and sets a deadline of December 31, 1997, for the transfer of certain employees and funding and all equipment and records of those divisions to the new agency. The act requires the office of the attorney general to provide facilities for the office of risk management but specifies that the office is independent of the attorney general's direction. The office is governed by a six-member board appointed by the governor. Board members must possess demonstrated experience in the field of workers' compensation and risk management administration. The board is required to hire the director of the office who serves as the state risk manager.

            The office is required to establish an allocation program for the payment of state workers' compensation claims costs incurred by state agencies. Agencies determined responsible by the office for 90 percent of the state's workers' compensation claims costs during the preceding biennium are required to participate in the allocation program.