Lawmakers Reject Cooper's Appointment to Industrial Commission

Monday, December 17, 2018 | 0

A week after a court ruled that lawmakers had usurped the governor's authority in stacking the state's workers' compensation board, the Republican legislature appears to be flexing its muscle again.

Commissioner Robby Hassell

The North Carolina House voted 34-59 Thursday against confirmation of one of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper's nominations to the Industrial Commission, which oversees workers' comp claims disputes and regulations, according to news reports. Cooper had nominated Robby Hassell, of Greensboro, a Superior Court judge and former District Court judge, in August. 

Hassell was the second name Cooper submitted after lawmakers rejected another nominee. The six-member commission by law must have three representatives from employer interests and three from the employee side. Legislators in North Carolina's majority-Republican General Assembly rejected both nominees because they said the men appeared to favor employee interests too often.

Earlier this month, Cooper also elevated two of his previously appointed commission members to be chair and vice-chair of the Industrial Commission. The move came just hours after a Wake County judge held that actions by the lame-duck legislature in 2016 were unconstitutional.

In the final hours of former Republican Gov. Pat McCrory's term in office, the legislature in late 2016 changed the rules for the Industrial Commission and allowed McCrory, not the incoming governor, to appoint the chair. The chair is considered a key position because he oversees the hiring and firing of 20 deputy commissioners who act as judges to decide disputed claims by injured workers. 

The lame-duck legislature also allowed another commissioner, the wife of McCrory's chief of staff, to serve an unusually long term, thus blocking Cooper from filling that spot. The court held that, too, was not allowed by the state Constitution.

It's not clear if Republicans will appeal the Wake County court ruling, or if Cooper will try again to fill Hassell's position on the commission. Cooper appointed Hassell on an "urgent basis," which meant he could serve at least until the legislature rejected him.