Bill Text: IL HB2421 | 2015-2016 | 99th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Workers' Compensation Act. Defines the terms "accident" and "injury". Provides that "injury" includes the aggravation of a pre-existing condition by an accident arising out of and in the course of the employment, but only for so long as the aggravation of the pre-existing condition continues to be the major contributing cause of the disability. Provides that an injury resulting directly or indirectly from idiopathic causes is not compensable.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 5)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-03-27 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB2421 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2015-HB2421-Introduced.html

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99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2015 and 2016 HB2421 Introduced , by Rep. Dwight Kay SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
820 ILCS 305/1 from Ch. 48, par. 138.1
Amends the Workers' Compensation Act. Defines the terms "accident" and "injury". Provides that "injury" includes the aggravation of a pre-existing condition by an accident arising out of and in the course of the employment, but only for so long as the aggravation of the pre-existing condition continues to be the major contributing cause of the disability. Provides that an injury resulting directly or indirectly from idiopathic causes is not compensable.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning employment.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Workers' Compensation Act is amended by
changing Section 1 as follows:
(820 ILCS 305/1) (from Ch. 48, par. 138.1)
Sec. 1. This Act may be cited as the Workers' Compensation
Act.
(a) The term "employer" as used in this Act means:
1. The State and each county, city, town, township,
incorporated village, school district, body politic, or
municipal corporation therein.
2. Every person, firm, public or private corporation,
including hospitals, public service, eleemosynary, religious
or charitable corporations or associations who has any person
in service or under any contract for hire, express or implied,
oral or written, and who is engaged in any of the enterprises
or businesses enumerated in Section 3 of this Act, or who at or
prior to the time of the accident to the employee for which
compensation under this Act may be claimed, has in the manner
provided in this Act elected to become subject to the
provisions of this Act, and who has not, prior to such
accident, effected a withdrawal of such election in the manner

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provided in this Act.
3. Any one engaging in any business or enterprise referred
to in subsections 1 and 2 of Section 3 of this Act who
undertakes to do any work enumerated therein, is liable to pay
compensation to his own immediate employees in accordance with
the provisions of this Act, and in addition thereto if he
directly or indirectly engages any contractor whether
principal or sub-contractor to do any such work, he is liable
to pay compensation to the employees of any such contractor or
sub-contractor unless such contractor or sub-contractor has
insured, in any company or association authorized under the
laws of this State to insure the liability to pay compensation
under this Act, or guaranteed his liability to pay such
compensation. With respect to any time limitation on the filing
of claims provided by this Act, the timely filing of a claim
against a contractor or subcontractor, as the case may be,
shall be deemed to be a timely filing with respect to all
persons upon whom liability is imposed by this paragraph.
In the event any such person pays compensation under this
subsection he may recover the amount thereof from the
contractor or sub-contractor, if any, and in the event the
contractor pays compensation under this subsection he may
recover the amount thereof from the sub-contractor, if any.
This subsection does not apply in any case where the
accident occurs elsewhere than on, in or about the immediate
premises on which the principal has contracted that the work be

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done.
4. Where an employer operating under and subject to the
provisions of this Act loans an employee to another such
employer and such loaned employee sustains a compensable
accidental injury in the employment of such borrowing employer
and where such borrowing employer does not provide or pay the
benefits or payments due such injured employee, such loaning
employer is liable to provide or pay all benefits or payments
due such employee under this Act and as to such employee the
liability of such loaning and borrowing employers is joint and
several, provided that such loaning employer is in the absence
of agreement to the contrary entitled to receive from such
borrowing employer full reimbursement for all sums paid or
incurred pursuant to this paragraph together with reasonable
attorneys' fees and expenses in any hearings before the
Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or in any action to
secure such reimbursement. Where any benefit is provided or
paid by such loaning employer the employee has the duty of
rendering reasonable cooperation in any hearings, trials or
proceedings in the case, including such proceedings for
reimbursement.
Where an employee files an Application for Adjustment of
Claim with the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission
alleging that his claim is covered by the provisions of the
preceding paragraph, and joining both the alleged loaning and
borrowing employers, they and each of them, upon written demand

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by the employee and within 7 days after receipt of such demand,
shall have the duty of filing with the Illinois Workers'
Compensation Commission a written admission or denial of the
allegation that the claim is covered by the provisions of the
preceding paragraph and in default of such filing or if any
such denial be ultimately determined not to have been bona fide
then the provisions of Paragraph K of Section 19 of this Act
shall apply.
An employer whose business or enterprise or a substantial
part thereof consists of hiring, procuring or furnishing
employees to or for other employers operating under and subject
to the provisions of this Act for the performance of the work
of such other employers and who pays such employees their
salary or wages notwithstanding that they are doing the work of
such other employers shall be deemed a loaning employer within
the meaning and provisions of this Section.
(b) The term "employee" as used in this Act means:
1. Every person in the service of the State, including
members of the General Assembly, members of the Commerce
Commission, members of the Illinois Workers' Compensation
Commission, and all persons in the service of the University of
Illinois, county, including deputy sheriffs and assistant
state's attorneys, city, town, township, incorporated village
or school district, body politic, or municipal corporation
therein, whether by election, under appointment or contract of
hire, express or implied, oral or written, including all

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members of the Illinois National Guard while on active duty in
the service of the State, and all probation personnel of the
Juvenile Court appointed pursuant to Article VI of the Juvenile
Court Act of 1987, and including any official of the State, any
county, city, town, township, incorporated village, school
district, body politic or municipal corporation therein except
any duly appointed member of a police department in any city
whose population exceeds 500,000 according to the last Federal
or State census, and except any member of a fire insurance
patrol maintained by a board of underwriters in this State. A
duly appointed member of a fire department in any city, the
population of which exceeds 500,000 according to the last
federal or State census, is an employee under this Act only
with respect to claims brought under paragraph (c) of Section
8.
One employed by a contractor who has contracted with the
State, or a county, city, town, township, incorporated village,
school district, body politic or municipal corporation
therein, through its representatives, is not considered as an
employee of the State, county, city, town, township,
incorporated village, school district, body politic or
municipal corporation which made the contract.
2. Every person in the service of another under any
contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written,
including persons whose employment is outside of the State of
Illinois where the contract of hire is made within the State of

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Illinois, persons whose employment results in fatal or
non-fatal injuries within the State of Illinois where the
contract of hire is made outside of the State of Illinois, and
persons whose employment is principally localized within the
State of Illinois, regardless of the place of the accident or
the place where the contract of hire was made, and including
aliens, and minors who, for the purpose of this Act are
considered the same and have the same power to contract,
receive payments and give quittances therefor, as adult
employees.
3. Every sole proprietor and every partner of a business
may elect to be covered by this Act.
An employee or his dependents under this Act who shall have
a cause of action by reason of any injury, disablement or death
arising out of and in the course of his employment may elect to
pursue his remedy in the State where injured or disabled, or in
the State where the contract of hire is made, or in the State
where the employment is principally localized.
However, any employer may elect to provide and pay
compensation to any employee other than those engaged in the
usual course of the trade, business, profession or occupation
of the employer by complying with Sections 2 and 4 of this Act.
Employees are not included within the provisions of this Act
when excluded by the laws of the United States relating to
liability of employers to their employees for personal injuries
where such laws are held to be exclusive.

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The term "employee" does not include persons performing
services as real estate broker, broker-salesman, or salesman
when such persons are paid by commission only.
(c) "Commission" means the Industrial Commission created
by Section 5 of "The Civil Administrative Code of Illinois",
approved March 7, 1917, as amended, or the Illinois Workers'
Compensation Commission created by Section 13 of this Act.
(d) To obtain compensation under this Act, an employee
bears the burden of showing, by a preponderance of the
evidence, that he or she has sustained accidental injuries
arising out of and in the course of the employment.
(e) The term "accident" as used in this Act means an
occurrence arising out of the employment, resulting from a risk
incidental to the employment, and in the course of the
employment at a time and place and under circumstances
reasonably required by the employment.
(f) The term "injury" as used in this Act means a medical
condition or impairment that arises out of and in the course of
employment. An injury, its occupational cause, and any
resulting manifestations or disability must be established to a
reasonable degree of medical certainty, based on objective
relevant medical findings, and the accidental compensable
injury must be the major contributing cause of any resulting
injuries. For the purposes of this Section, "major contributing
cause" means the cause which is more than 50% responsible for
the injury as compared to all other causes combined for which

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treatment or benefits are sought. "Injury" includes the
aggravation of a pre-existing condition by an accident arising
out of and in the course of the employment, but only for so
long as the aggravation of the pre-existing condition continues
to be the major contributing cause of the disability.
(1) An injury is deemed to arise out of and in the
course of the employment only if:
(A) it is reasonably apparent, upon consideration
of all circumstances, that the accident is the major
contributing cause of the injury; and
(B) it does not come from a hazard or risk
unrelated to the employment to which employees would
have been equally exposed outside of the employment.
(2) An injury resulting directly or indirectly from
idiopathic causes is not compensable.
(Source: P.A. 97-18, eff. 6-28-11; 97-268, eff. 8-8-11; 97-813,
eff. 7-13-12.)