8-47-101. Division of workers' compensation - creation - powers, duties, and functions - transfer of functions - change of statutory references.
Statute text
(1) There is hereby created the division of workers' compensation in the department of labor and employment. Pursuant to section 13 of article XII of the state constitution, the executive director of the department of labor and employment shall appoint the director of the division of workers' compensation, and the director shall appoint such employees as are necessary to carry out the duties and exercise the powers conferred by law upon the division of workers' compensation and the director.
(2) The director and the division of workers' compensation shall enforce and administer the provisions of the "Workers' Compensation Act of Colorado", articles 40 to 47 of this title, as provided in said articles and the provisions of article 14.5 of this title.
(3) (a) The division of workers' compensation shall, on and after July 1, 1991, execute, administer, perform, and enforce the rights, powers, duties, functions, and obligations vested in the division of labor prior to July 1, 1991, concerning the duties and functions transferred to the division of workers' compensation. On July 1, 1991, all employees of the division of labor whose principal duties are concerned with the duties and functions transferred to the division of workers' compensation and whose employment in the division of workers' compensation is deemed necessary by the executive director of the department of labor and employment to carry out the purposes of this article 47 shall be transferred to the division of workers' compensation and shall become employees thereof. The employees shall retain all rights to the state personnel system and retirement benefits under the laws of this state, and their services shall be deemed to have been continuous. All transfers and any abolishment of positions in the state personnel system shall be made and processed in accordance with state personnel system laws and rules. The division of workers' compensation and the division's director are type 2 entities, as defined in section 24-1-105.
(b) Repealed.
(c) Whenever the division of labor is referred to or designated by any contract or other document in connection with the duties and functions transferred to the division of workers' compensation, such reference or designation is deemed to apply to the division of workers' compensation. All contracts entered into by the division of labor prior to July 1, 1991, in connection with the duties and functions transferred to the division of workers' compensation, are hereby validated, with the division of workers' compensation succeeding to all the rights and obligations of such contracts. Any appropriations of funds from prior fiscal years open to satisfy obligations incurred under such contracts are hereby transferred and appropriated to the division of workers' compensation for the payment of such obligations.
(d) (I) Repealed.
(II) At the discretion of the state auditor, the state auditor may conduct or cause to be conducted a performance review of the administrative law judges in the office of administrative courts who hear cases under articles 40 to 47 of this title. The review must include, but is not limited to, the following topics: The time elapsed from the date of hearing until decisions are rendered by the administrative law judges; the time elapsed from the point at which the file is complete and the case is ready for order until the decision is rendered by the administrative law judges; the number of decisions that are reversed upon appeal to the industrial claim appeals panel and to the court of appeals respectively; the workload or number of cases assigned to each administrative law judge; and the public perception of the quality of the performance of the office of administrative courts with respect to matters arising under the "Workers' Compensation Act of Colorado".
(4) Repealed.
(5) On and after July 1, 1991, when any provision of articles 40 to 47 of this title 8 refers to the division of labor, said law shall be construed as referring to the division of workers' compensation.
(6) The revisor of statutes is authorized to change all references to the director of the division of labor standards and statistics and the division of labor standards and statistics in articles 14.5 and 40 to 47 of this title to refer to the director of the division of workers' compensation and the division of workers' compensation.
History
Source: L. 90: Entire article R&RE, p. 552, 1, effective July 1. L. 91: Entire section amended, p. 1333, 46, effective July 1. L. 93: (3)(d)(I) amended, p. 728, 1, effective May 6. L. 95: (3)(d)(I) repealed, p. 458, 1, effective May 16; (3)(d)(I) amended, p. 636, 17, effective July 1. L. 96: (4) repealed, p. 1228, 45, effective August 7. L. 2005: (3)(d)(II) amended, p. 856, 17, effective June 1. L. 2006: (3)(b) repealed, p. 141, 4, effective August 7. L. 2013: (3)(d)(II) amended, (SB 13-129), ch. 284, p. 1492, 1, effective May 24. L. 2016: (3)(a), (3)(c), (5), and (6) amended, (HB 16-1323), ch. 131, p. 379, 15, effective August 10. L. 2017: (3)(a), (3)(c), and (5) amended, (SB 17-294), ch. 264, p. 1385, 8, effective May 25. L. 2022: (3)(a) amended, (SB 22-162), ch. 469, p. 3384, 91, effective August 10.
Annotations
Editor's note: This section is similar to former 8-40-102 as it existed prior to 1990.
Annotations
Cross references: (1) For the legislative declaration contained in the 1996 act repealing subsection (4), see section 1 of chapter 237, Session Laws of Colorado 1996.
(2) For the short title (the "Debbie Haskins 'Administrative Organization Act of 1968' Modernization Act") in SB 22-162, see section 1 of chapter 469, Session Laws of Colorado 2022.
Annotations
ANNOTATION
Annotations
Annotator's note. (1) Since 8-47-101 is similar to 8-40-102 as it existed prior to the 1990 repeal and reenactment of the "Workers' Compensation Act of Colorado", articles 40 to 47 of this title, a relevant case construing that provision has been included in the annotations to this section.
(2) Cases included in the annotations to this section which refer to the industrial commission were decided prior to the 1969 amendment which vested the director of the division of labor with enforcement powers previously exercised by the industrial commission.
The industrial commission is an administrative office of the state, created by statute, and its jurisdiction, powers, duties and authority are fixed and limited by the creative statute and amendments thereto. Maryland Cas. Co. v. Indus. Comm'n, 116 Colo. 58, 178 P.2d 426 (1947).
Thus discretionary power rests solely with the commission, and a reviewing court may not interfere with the exercise of that discretion unless there is a clear showing of an abuse thereof. Cosmopolitan W. Hotel v. Henry, 172 Colo. 279, 472 P.2d 134 (1970).
The commission must positively find those facts which are necessary to be found in order to make applicable the workmen's compensation law. Resler Truck Line v. Indus. Comm'n, 113 Colo. 287, 156 P.2d 132 (1945).
Director's statutory obligation under this section is purely ministerial in character. Matthews v. Indus. Comm'n, 44 Colo. App. 159, 609 P.2d 1127 (1980).
Claims asserted against the state attorney general must be dismissed where the ground for the claim is that she is charged under Colorado law with enforcing Colorado's statutory provisions governing the business of insurance, including the enforcement of workers' compensation statutes, when in fact she is not responsible for enforcing either insurance or workers' compensation laws and may become involved in prosecuting related matters only at the request of the commissioner of insurance or the director of workers' compensation. Fuller v. Norton, 881 F. Supp. 468 (D. Colo. 1995).