A. The intent of this section is to allow the director to gather data and conduct studies to evaluate the workers' compensation and occupational disease disablement system in New Mexico. This includes evaluating the benefits structure and the costs incurred under each version of the Workers' Compensation Act [Chapter 52, Article 1 NMSA 1978] and the New Mexico Occupational Disease Disablement Law [52-3-1 NMSA 1978]. To this end, the director shall establish baseline data against which to assess the changes in the law.

B. The director shall independently evaluate insurance industry data pertaining to workers' compensation and occupational disease disablement claims and payments, as well as other information the director believes to be necessary and relevant to a thorough evaluation of the system's effectiveness. In addition to data generated by insurance industry representatives and organizations, the director shall collect data from employers, claimants and other relevant parties.

C. Unless otherwise provided by law, the director shall have access to insurance industry information that contains workers' compensation and occupational disease disablement claim data as the director determines is necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

D. The director shall have access to files and records of:

(1) the workforce solutions department that pertain to:

(a) the name and number of employees reported by employers;

(b) employers' mailing addresses;

(c) federal identification numbers; and

(d) general wage information;

(2) the office of superintendent of insurance that pertain to:

(a) historical insurance classification rates and total premiums paid during given periods of time;

(b) insurers licensed to underwrite casualty insurance; and

(c) records of group self-insurers;

(3) the human services department that include names, addresses and other identifying information of recipients of benefits and services pertaining to income support;

(4) the taxation and revenue department that identify employers paying workers' compensation assessments in accordance with Section 52-5-19 NMSA 1978; and

(5) the motor vehicle division of the taxation and revenue department that pertain to the identity of licensed drivers and the ownership of motor vehicles.

E. Information that is confidential under state law shall be accessible to the director and shall remain confidential.

F. The director shall prepare an annual report. The director shall publish in that report and in other reports as the director deems appropriate such statistical and informational reports and analyses based on reports and records available as, in the director's opinion, will be useful in increasing public understanding of the purposes, effectiveness, costs, coverage and administrative procedures of workers' compensation and in providing basic information regarding the occurrence and sources of work injuries or disablements to public and private agencies engaged in industrial injury prevention activities. The reports shall include information concerning the nature and frequency of injuries and occupational diseases sustained and the resulting benefits, costs and other factors that are important to furthering the intent of this section.

History: Laws 1986, ch. 22, § 29; 1987, ch. 342, § 32; 1989, ch. 263, § 72; 1990 (2nd S.S.), ch. 2, § 55; 2003, ch. 259, § 9; 2013, ch. 74, § 5.

The 2013 amendment, effective March 29, 2013, gave the director access to the files and records of the superintendent of insurance; and in Paragraph (2) of Subsection D, at the beginning of the sentence, after "the", added "office of superintendent of" and after "insurance", deleted "division of the public regulation commission".

The 2003 amendment, effective June 20, 2003, substituted "division of the public regulation commission" for "department" near the middle of Subsection D(2); and added Subsection D(5).

The 1990 (2nd S.S.) amendment, effective January 1, 1991, added "data gathering" to the catchline; added Subsections A to E; designated the preexisting text as Subsection F, substituting therein "shall prepare an annual report. He shall publish in that report and in other reports as he deems appropriate such statistical" for "shall prepare and publish such statistical", deleting "and vocational rehabilitation" following "compensation", inserting "or disablements", and adding the final sentence.

Law reviews. — For survey of 1990-91 workers' compensation law, see 22 N.M.L. Rev. 845 (1992).