Debra L. Doby was quoted in the SHRM article, “High Court Strikes Down Narrowly Tailored Workers’ Compensation Law,” published online on June 21, 2022. The article discusses the U. S. Supreme Court’s unanimous decision in United States v. Washington, in which the Court concluded that a Washington state workers’ compensation law discriminated against the federal government. The U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy clause generally shields the federal government from state laws that directly regulate or discriminate against it. The state law fell outside the scope of Congress’ waiver of immunity for state workers’ compensation laws that apply to projects belonging to the federal government in the same way as if the premises were under the exclusive jurisdiction of the state.
“We see a general trend that state legislatures continue to broaden their workers’ compensation programs, focusing on increasing access, expediting treatment and easing the ability of workers to secure benefits,” said Debra. “This decision certainly serves as a reminder to state legislatures that any changes to workers’ compensation statutes must be applied fairly and equitably for all entities, including the federal government.”
The court then noted that it has said that a state law discriminated against the federal government or its contractors if it singled them out for less favorable treatment or regulated them unfavorably on some basis related to their governmental status.
In their decision, the Justices concurred “Washington’s law violates these principles by singling out the federal government for unfavorable treatment.” The court stated that waivers of intergovernmental immunity should be interpreted narrowly, “at least where a state claims that Congress has waived immunity from discriminatory state laws.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling shows that “if there is any hint of discrimination that increases the costs for the federal government, those statutes will be subject to close scrutiny,” Debra said.
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