Amends existing law to increase maximum allowable burial expenses and to revise provisions regarding transportation expenses.
Summary
House Bill 67 amends Idaho’s workers’ compensation law governing death benefits to increase the maximum amount payable for funeral, burial, or cremation expenses from $6,000 to $10,000. The bill also revises the related transportation provision so that the covered payment is included within the new $10,000 cap, rather than being listed separately as an additional actual expense.
The measure applies when a worker dies as a result of a compensable injury within four years, and it directs the employer to pay the specified amount to the person entitled to compensation, or to the deceased employee’s personal representative if no beneficiary exists. The bill declares an emergency and takes effect on July 1, 2025, making the change effective for claims arising after that date.
Impact
The bill updates Section 72-436 of the Idaho Code, increasing the statutory cap on burial-related workers’ compensation benefits and consolidating transportation expenses into the same maximum benefit amount. This affects employers, workers’ compensation insurers, and surviving beneficiaries by raising the amount available for end-of-life expenses associated with a workplace fatality. It does not create a new benefit category, but it increases the financial obligation under existing law.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests broad bipartisan support and little controversy around the measure. The bill passed the House 68-0 and the Senate 34-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. No committee transcript is available, but the unanimous votes suggest the proposal was viewed as a routine benefit update rather than a contentious policy change.
Contention
There is no recorded opposition in the voting history, and no committee discussion is available to identify specific objections. The only likely point of policy interest is the size and structure of the benefit increase—particularly the shift from a separate transportation expense provision to a single combined cap—but the unanimous votes indicate that any such issue did not generate significant disagreement. The bill appears to have been treated as a straightforward adjustment to keep burial benefits aligned with current costs.