Bill Clarifies $120 Million Fund Applies only to Injuries after Jan. 1

By Greg Jones, Western Bureau ChiefA budget trailer bill sitting on the desk of California Gov. Jerry Brown says only workers injured on or after Jan. 1, 2013, are eligible for payments from a special $120 million fund created by Senate Bill 863.The budget bill, AB 76, also contains language that would allow the Department of Industrial Relations to carryover from one year to the next any unspent money in the account.Advocates for injured workers said they’re upset that anyone who received an award under the 2005 Permanent Disability Rating Schedule won’t be eligible for the fund. ...