Although the Safety and Workers' Compensation Program has primary administrative responsibility for the workers' compensation system, many activities are carried out by other governmental entities. Given this division of responsibility, strong system oversight is needed to ensure the effective and efficient execution of the system's various functional and regulatory activities. However, several policy and programmatic issues have prevented the program from providing effective system oversight.
Program staff question their authority to make certain administrative decisions that are essential to the cost-effective and efficient operation of the system and in many instances require clarification or elimination of roles and responsibilities. (See page 8.)
The program focuses its efforts on handling individual processes rather than identifying and solving systemic problems. The program also continues to perform a number of activities that are no longer needed or are duplicative. (See page 9.)
The program continues to collect data for which the need is questionable, as it is not used for a specific purpose. The program's methods of collecting data are also costly and many of the program's various organizational units separately collect and maintain data but cannot share information across databases. (See pages 9-10.)

Division of Administrative Hearings Method of Assessing Fees Needs Significant Revision
Report 02-70 December 2002
Progress Report: The Workers' Compensation Program Makes Progress by Implementing Recommendations
Report 01-15 March 2001
PB2 Performance Report for the Safety & Workers' Compensation Program
Report 98-48 February 1999
Review of the Division of Safety, Department of Labor and Employment Security
Report 97-25 December 1997

Copies of this report in print or alternate accessible format may be obtained by email OPPAGA@oppaga.fl.gov, telephone (850) 488-0021, or mail 111 W. Madison St., Room 312 Tallahassee, FL 32399-1475.