Bill Text: IA SF454 | 2025-2026 | 91st General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to standards for determination of loss or permanent impairment for purposes of permanent partial disability under workers' compensation and including applicability provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-27 - Subcommittee: Driscoll, Taylor, and Townsend. S.J. 381. [SF454 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2025-SF454-Introduced.html
Senate
File
454
-
Introduced
SENATE
FILE
454
BY
TOWNSEND
,
TRONE
GARRIOTT
,
DONAHUE
,
DOTZLER
,
WINCKLER
,
ZIMMER
,
BLAKE
,
WAHLS
,
and
BISIGNANO
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
relating
to
standards
for
determination
of
loss
or
1
permanent
impairment
for
purposes
of
permanent
partial
2
disability
under
workers’
compensation
and
including
3
applicability
provisions.
4
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
5
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454
Section
1.
Section
85.34,
subsection
2,
unnumbered
1
paragraph
1,
Code
2025,
is
amended
to
read
as
follows:
2
Compensation
for
permanent
partial
disability
shall
begin
3
when
it
is
medically
indicated
that
maximum
medical
improvement
4
from
the
injury
has
been
reached
and
that
the
extent
of
loss
or
5
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
can
be
determined
by
use
of
6
the
most
recent
annual
update
to
the
most
recent
edition
of
the
7
guides
to
the
evaluation
of
permanent
impairment
,
published
by
8
the
American
medical
association
,
as
adopted
by
the
workers’
9
compensation
commissioner
by
rule
pursuant
to
chapter
17A
.
The
10
compensation
shall
be
in
addition
to
the
benefits
provided
by
11
sections
85.27
and
85.28
.
The
compensation
shall
be
based
12
upon
the
extent
of
the
disability
and
upon
the
basis
of
eighty
13
percent
per
week
of
the
employee’s
average
spendable
weekly
14
earnings,
but
not
more
than
a
weekly
benefit
amount,
rounded
to
15
the
nearest
dollar,
equal
to
one
hundred
eighty-four
percent
of
16
the
statewide
average
weekly
wage
paid
employees
as
determined
17
by
the
department
of
workforce
development
under
section
96.1A,
18
subsection
35
,
and
in
effect
at
the
time
of
the
injury.
The
19
minimum
weekly
benefit
amount
shall
be
equal
to
the
weekly
20
benefit
amount
of
a
person
whose
gross
weekly
earnings
are
21
thirty-five
percent
of
the
statewide
average
weekly
wage.
For
22
all
cases
of
permanent
partial
disability
,
compensation
shall
23
be
paid
as
follows:
24
Sec.
2.
Section
85.34,
subsection
2,
paragraph
x,
Code
2025,
25
is
amended
to
read
as
follows:
26
x.
In
all
cases
of
permanent
partial
disability
described
in
27
paragraphs
“a”
through
“u”
,
or
paragraph
“v”
when
determining
28
functional
disability
and
not
loss
of
earning
capacity,
the
29
extent
of
loss
or
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
shall
30
be
determined
solely
by
utilizing
the
most
recent
annual
31
update
to
the
most
recent
edition
of
the
guides
to
the
32
evaluation
of
permanent
impairment
,
published
by
the
American
33
medical
association
,
as
adopted
by
the
workers’
compensation
34
commissioner
by
rule
pursuant
to
chapter
17A
.
Lay
testimony
35
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454
or
agency
expertise
shall
not
be
utilized
in
determining
loss
1
or
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
pursuant
to
paragraphs
2
“a”
through
“u”
,
or
paragraph
“v”
when
determining
functional
3
disability
and
not
loss
of
earning
capacity.
4
Sec.
3.
APPLICABILITY.
This
Act
applies
to
determinations
5
of
extent
of
loss
or
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
for
6
purposes
of
section
85.34,
subsection
2,
occurring
on
or
after
7
the
effective
date
of
this
Act.
8
EXPLANATION
9
The
inclusion
of
this
explanation
does
not
constitute
agreement
with
10
the
explanation’s
substance
by
the
members
of
the
general
assembly.
11
Under
current
law,
determinations
of
extent
of
loss
or
12
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
for
purposes
of
permanent
13
partial
disability
under
workers’
compensation
use
the
guides
14
to
the
evaluation
of
permanent
impairment
published
by
the
15
American
medical
association,
as
adopted
by
the
workers’
16
compensation
commissioner
by
rule.
This
bill
specifies
that
17
the
most
recent
annual
update
to
the
most
recent
edition
of
18
the
guides
shall
be
used.
The
bill
strikes
the
requirement
19
that
the
workers’
compensation
commissioner
adopt
the
guides
20
by
rule.
21
The
workers’
compensation
commissioner
has
adopted
the
fifth
22
edition
of
the
guides,
published
in
2001,
by
rule.
The
most
23
recent
annual
update
to
the
most
recent
edition
of
the
guides
24
is
currently
the
2024
update
to
the
sixth
edition.
25
The
bill
applies
to
determinations
of
extent
of
loss
or
26
percentage
of
permanent
impairment
for
purposes
of
permanent
27
partial
disability
under
workers’
compensation
occurring
on
or
28
after
the
effective
date
of
the
bill.
29
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