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1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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2 1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
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3 SENATE BILL 1013 By: Daniels
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6 AS INTRODUCED
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7 An Act relating to workers' compensation; amending
7 85A O.S. 2021, Section 5, which relates to exclusive
8 liability; expanding rights and remedies granted to
8 certain persons; defining terms; establishing certain
9 requirements for certain employer; requiring certain
9 premiums to be paid; establishing certain
10 limitations; providing for codification; and
10 providing an effective date.
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13 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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14 SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 85A O.S. 2021, Section 5, is
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15 amended to read as follows:
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16 Section 5. A. The rights and remedies granted to an employee
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17 subject to the provisions of the Administrative Workers'
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18 Compensation Act shall be exclusive of all other rights and remedies
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19 of the employee, his legal representative, dependents, next of kin,
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20 or anyone else claiming rights to recovery on behalf of the employee
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21 against the employer, including a general contractor that provides
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22 workers' compensation insurance coverage to a subcontractor pursuant
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23 to Section 2 of this act, or any principal, officer, director,
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24 employee, stockholder, partner, or prime contractor of the employer
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Req. No. 327 Page 1
1 on account of injury, illness, or death. Negligent acts of a co-
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2 employee may not be imputed to the employer. No role, capacity, or
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3 persona of any employer, principal, officer, director, employee, or
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4 stockholder other than that existing in the role of employer of the
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5 employee shall be relevant for consideration for purposes of this
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6 act, and the remedies and rights provided by this act shall be
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7 exclusive regardless of the multiple roles, capacities, or personas
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8 the employer may be deemed to have.
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9 B. Exclusive remedy shall not apply if:
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10 1. An employer fails to secure the payment of compensation due
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11 to the employee as required by this act. An injured employee, or
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12 his or her legal representative in case death results from the
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13 injury, may, at his or her option, elect to claim compensation under
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14 this act or to maintain a legal action in court for damages on
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15 account of the injury or death; or
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16 2. The injury was caused by an intentional tort committed by
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17 the employer. An intentional tort shall exist only when the
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18 employee is injured as a result of willful, deliberate, specific
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19 intent of the employer to cause such injury. Allegations or proof
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20 that the employer had knowledge that the injury was substantially
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21 certain to result from the employer's conduct shall not constitute
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22 an intentional tort. The employee shall plead facts that show it is
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23 at least as likely as it is not that the employer acted with the
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1 purpose of injuring the employee. The issue of whether an act is an
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2 intentional tort shall be a question of law.
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3 C. The immunity from civil liability described in subsection A
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4 of this section shall apply regardless of whether the injured
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5 employee is denied compensation or deemed ineligible to receive
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6 compensation under this act.
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7 D. If an employer has failed to secure the payment of
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8 compensation for his or her injured employee as provided for in this
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9 act, an injured employee, or his or her legal representative if
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10 death results from the injury, may maintain an action in the
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11 district court for damages on account of such injury.
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12 E. The immunity created by the provisions of this section shall
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13 not extend to action against another employer, or its employees, on
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14 the same job as the injured or deceased worker where such other
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15 employer does not stand in the position of an intermediate or
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16 principal employer to the immediate employer of the injured or
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17 deceased worker.
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18 F. The immunity created by the provisions of this section shall
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19 not extend to action against another employer, or its employees, on
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20 the same job as the injured or deceased worker even though such
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21 other employer may be considered as standing in the position of a
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22 special master of a loaned servant where such special master neither
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23 is the immediate employer of the injured or deceased worker nor
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1 stands in the position of an intermediate or principal employer to
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2 the immediate employer of the injured or deceased worker.
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3 G. This section shall not be construed to abrogate the loaned
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4 servant doctrine in any respect other than that described in
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5 subsection F of this section. Nothing in this act shall be
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6 construed to relieve the employer from any other penalty provided
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7 for in this act for failure to secure the payment of compensation
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8 under this act.
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9 H. For the purpose of extending the immunity of this section,
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10 any architect, professional engineer, or land surveyor shall be
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11 deemed an intermediate or principal employer for services performed
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12 at or on the site of a construction project, but this immunity shall
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13 not extend to the negligent preparation of design plans and
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14 specifications.
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15 I. If the employer has failed to secure the payment of
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16 compensation as provided in this act or in the case of an
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17 intentional tort, the injured employee or his or her legal
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18 representative may maintain an action either before the Commission
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19 or in the district court, but not both.
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20 SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
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21 in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 126 of Title 85A, unless there
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22 is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
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23 A. For the purposes of this section:
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1 1. "General contractor" means a person who undertakes to
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2 procure the performance of work or a service, either separately or
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3 through the use of subcontractors. General contractor shall
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4 include, but is not limited to, a principal contractor, an original
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5 contractor, a prime contractor, and premises owners who contract all
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6 or part of the work being performed on the premises;
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7 2. "Provides workers' compensation insurance coverage" means to
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8 make available workers' compensation insurance coverage. Workers'
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9 compensation insurance coverage may be provided, even if it does not
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10 ultimately cover an incident, so long as it was made available to
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11 the subcontractor. Providing workers' compensation insurance
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12 coverage does not mean:
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13 a. timing discrepancies between the issuance of workers'
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14 compensation insurance policies and contracts between
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15 and among general contractors and subcontractors,
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16 b. factual discrepancies in secondary documentation such
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17 as certificates of insurance or enrollment forms,
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18 c. a general contractor's lack of notice of election of
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19 coverage, or
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20 d. payment of premiums, or lack thereof, by the general
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21 contractor; and
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22 3. "Subcontractor" means a person who contracts with a general
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23 contractor to perform all or part of the work or services that the
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24 general contractor has undertaken to perform.
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1 B. A general contractor and a subcontractor may enter into a
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2 written agreement under which the general contractor provides
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3 workers' compensation insurance coverage to the subcontractor and
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4 employees of the subcontractor.
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5 C. If a general contractor has workers' compensation insurance
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6 to protect the general contractor's employees and if, in the course
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7 and scope of the general contractor's business, the general
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8 contractor enters into a contract with a subcontractor who does not
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9 have employees, the general contractor shall be treated as the
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10 employer of the subcontractor for the purposes of the Administrative
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11 Workers' Compensation Act and may enter into an agreement for the
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12 deduction of premiums paid in accordance with subsection C of this
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13 section. A premises owner who acts as a general contractor shall be
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14 treated as the employer of all subcontractors for the purposes of
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15 the Administrative Workers' Compensation Act and may enter into an
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16 agreement for the deduction of premiums paid in accordance with
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17 subsection C of this section.
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18 D. If a general contractor elects to provide coverage, then the
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19 actual premiums based on payroll that are paid or incurred by the
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20 general contractor for the coverage may be deducted from the
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21 contract price or other amount owed to the subcontractor by the
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22 general contractor.
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23 E. An agreement under this section makes the general contractor
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24 the employer of the subcontractor and the subcontractor's employees
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1 for the purposes of this title. A subcontractor or subcontractor's
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2 employee's rights and remedies against the general contractor shall
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3 be subject to the limitations pursuant to Section 5 of Title 85A of
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4 the Oklahoma Statutes.
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5 F. Notwithstanding subsection B of this section, a person who
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6 performs work or provides a service for an oil or gas well operator
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7 and who is an independent contractor with employees is not entitled
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8 to coverage under the general contractor's workers' compensation
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9 insurance policy unless the independent subcontractor and the
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10 general contractor enter into an agreement under this section.
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11 SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2025.
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Req. No. 327 Page 7Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.