California Issues Notice Of Rulemaking And Public Hearings For Electronic Adjudication Management System Regulations

Oakland, CA  (CompNewsNetwork) - The Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC) has proposed three sets of regulations to implement the Electronic Adjudication Management System (EAMS): court administrator regulations, Disability Evaluation Unit (DEU) regulations and Retraining and Return to Work Unit (RRTW) regulations.

The proposed regulations are posted on the DWC Web site at http:/ /www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/DWCPropRegs/EAMS_regulations/EAMS_regulations.htm and have been forwarded to the Office of Administrative Law for publication in the California Notice Registry. Public hearings on the regulations have been scheduled for:

Date: Monday, July 14, 2008
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or until conclusion of business
Place: Ronald Reagan State Office Building – auditorium
300 South Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

Date: Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or until conclusion of business
Place: Elihu Harris State Office Building – auditorium
1515 Clay Street
Oakland, CA 94612

Members of the public may comment on the proposed regulations until 5 p.m. on July 15, 2008.

EAMS is a computer based program that will improve the workers' compensation system by replacing the division's outdated court technology and supporting infrastructure with a modern case management application.

The court administrator regulations are contained within Title 8, California Code of Regulations, sections 10210 – 10297 and:

Set forth uniform rules for district office procedures, including conferences, hearings and continuances
Define and explain how adjudication files will be stored and maintained in EAMS
Provide forms, that can be scanned and routed into EAMS, to be used at all trial level proceedings
Establish a priority calendar for issues requiring an expedited hearing and decision and a priority calendar
Set forth the rules regarding access to records and files
Set forth the procedure for filing a review of administrative orders.
The Disability Evaluation Unit (DEU) regulations are contained in Title 8, California Code of Regulations, sections 10150 – 10168. The purpose of these amendments is to update the Disability Evaluation Unit regulations in light of the technological changes required by EAMS.  The amendments explain that the required documents will be filed in EAMS and revise forms so that the data provided can be scanned can be routed to EAMS.

The Retraining and Return to Work Unit (RRTW) regulations are contained in Title 8, California Code of Regulations, sections 10116 - 10133.58. The purpose of these amendments is to update the vocational rehabilitation regulations, the supplemental job displacement regulations and the return-to-work regulations in light of the technological changes required by EAMS. The amendments explain that the required documents will be filed in EAMS and revise forms so that the data provided can be scanned can be routed to EAMS. 

These regulations were previously posted to the DWC's online forum for public comment in March 2008.

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