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S864Senate2017-2018 Session

Open Workers’ Comp Office Locally

Official title

“Directs the workers' compensation board to establish, maintain and operate a customer service center in the county of St. Lawrence”

Sponsor Patty RitchieSD-48Affects Economy
Status
In Senate Committee
Labor
Impact
3/10
Low
Passage
0%

Bill progress

Step 2 of 7

In committee · Labor

What's happening

This bill requires the establishment of a workers' compensation board customer service center in St. Lawrence County within one year.

Why it matters

  1. Improves Access to Services. Establishing a local customer service center makes it easier for St. Lawrence County residents to get help navigating the often complex workers’ compensation system, potentially reducing travel time and logistical barriers.

  2. Supports Injured Workers and Employers. A dedicated center can provide quicker responses to claims, questions, and disputes, which may lead to faster claim resolution and better support for both employees and local businesses.

  3. Promotes Regional Equity. By requiring a center in St. Lawrence County, the bill addresses potential geographic disparities in state services, ensuring that rural or underserved areas receive the same level of support as more populated regions.

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Who cares

Headline styles

Open Workers’ Comp Office Locally

Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.

Sponsors

Primary sponsor
Patty Ritchie

Senator · Senate District 48

Chair, Agriculture

No co-sponsors yet.

History

  1. Referred to labor
  2. Returned to senate
  3. Died in assembly
  4. Referred to labor
  5. Delivered to assembly
  6. Passed senateVote 60–0
  7. Ordered to third reading cal.1689
  8. Committee discharged and committed to rules
  9. Referred to labor

Full text

1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗

STATE OF NEW YORK

864

2017-2018 Regular Sessions

IN SENATE

January 5, 2017

Introduced by Sen. RITCHIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor

AN ACT in relation to establishing a workers' compensation board customer service center in the county of St. Lawrence

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:

Section 1. The workers' compensation board shall establish, maintain and operate a customer service center in the county of St. Lawrence within one year of the effective date of this act.

§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD06820-01-7

Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.

Sponsor's memo

Title of bill

An act in relation to establishing a workers' compensation board customer service center in the county of St. Lawrence

Purpose

To provide a workers' compensation board customer service center in St. Lawrence County.

Summary of provisions

Section 1 requires the workers' compensation board shall establish, maintain and operate a customer service center in the county of St. Lawrence.

Section 2 provides the effective date.

Justification

In 2013 the Workers' Compensation Board closed its Customer Service Center in Canton, in St. Lawrence County. St. Lawrence is the largest geographic county in New York State, thus the closure of this center forced hundreds of injured employees and their representatives to travel over an hour to Saranac Lake or Watertown. The closure of this office has created a huge hardship for disabled people living in Northern New York as there is no easy access for these individuals to obtain the assistance they need to secure their workers' compensation benefits when they are injured. Furthermore, the administrative judge and stenographer in Canton, who conduct the hearings, do not actually travel to Saranac Lake or Watertown. Instead, the hearings are conducted electronically using teleconference facilities.

Unlike the other communities that were chosen for closure, the North Country is served by no four-lane highways and no easy access to any neighboring centers. The Canton Customer Service Center, due to its central location in Northern New York, served people in several nearby counties, including Waster Jefferson County, Franklin County, and others who face treacherous two lane roads that are regularly hammered by lake effect snowstorms and ice storms throughout the winter months. In an effort to remedy this problem, this bill requires the Board to open a workers' compensation service office in St. Lawrence County.

The closure of the Canton office has created disproportionate hardships in this region. A decade ago, other workers' compensation offices closed in Ogdensburg, Gouverneur, and Massena. Requiring individuals to travel through the Adirondacks to Saranac Lake or through the snowbelt to Watertown is a hardship that ought to be avoided if possible. For the all of the aforementioned reasons it is imperative that this bill pass in order to provide essential serviced to the over 100,000 residents of St. Lawrence County.

Legislative history

2015-2016: S.4661

Fiscal implications

To be determined.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.

Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.