Oklahoma sends comp bill to governor

Oklahoma lawmakers sent the governor a bill that would increase the state’s cap on permanent partial disability benefits by a little more than 4% and allow general contractors to provide comp coverage to subcontractors.

Senate Bill 642 would increase the maximum permanent partial disability benefit to $375 from $360 on July 1.

The bill would also allow a general contractor to enter a written agreement to provide workers compensation coverage to a subcontractor and its employees. If a subcontractor does not have employees, the subcontractor itself would be treated as an employee of the contractor under the state’s workers compensation laws.

The bill would allow general contractors to deduct the cost of work comp premiums from payments owed to a subcontractor.

The bill was sent to the governor on Wednesday.

Work Comp Central is a sister publication of Business Insurance. More stories here.