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The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA)
By granting an exemption from the LHWCA to persons engaged in the repair of any recreation
vessel, regardless of its size, this amendment limits the scope of the LHWCA and increases the
types of workers excluded from coverage.
Extensions of Coverage Under the LHWCA
The LHWCA has been amended four times to extend coverage to occupations outside the original
scope of the law. In 1928, coverage was extended to employees of the District of Columbia.'14 This
provision was repealed, effective for all injuries occurring on or after July 26, 1982, with the
enactment by the District of Columbia government of the District of Columbia Workers'
Compensation Act of 1982.15 Benefits for injuries that occurred prior to July 26, 1982, continue to
be paid under the LHWCA.
Coverage was extended to overseas military and public works contractors in 1941 with the
enactment of the Defense Base Act.'16 In 1952, coverage was extended to civilian employees of
nonappropriated fund instrumentalities of the armed forces such as service clubs and post
exchanges.'17 Coverage was extended in 1953 to employees working on the Outer Continental
Shelf in the exploration and the development of natural resources, such as workers on offshore oil
platforms. 18
Insurance and Financing
Employers required by the LHWCA to provide workers' compensation coverage to their
employees may either purchase private insurance or self-insure. The DOL is responsible for
authorizing insurance carriers to provide coverage under the LHWCA program and for
authorizing companies to self-insure. However, the DOL does not set or regulate insurance
premiums. These insurance arrangements are the primary means of providing LHWCA benefits
to injured, sick, and deceased workers and their families. General revenue is not used to pay any
LHWCA benefits.
Special Fund
The DOL operates the Special Fund to provide LHWCA benefits in cases in which the
responsible employer or insurance carrier cannot pay or in which benefits must be paid for a
second injury under Section 8(f) of the LHWCA. '9 The Special Fund is financed through an
14 District of Columbia Workmen's Compensation Act of 1928, P.L. 70-4 19.
15 D.C. Code 36-50 1 et seq.
16 P .L. 77-208. For additional information on the Defense Base Act see CRS Report RL34670, The Defense Base Act
(DBA): The Federally Mandated Workers' Compensation System for Overseas Government Contractors, by Valerie
Bailey Grasso, Baird Webel, and Scott D. Szymendera.
17 Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act, P.L. 82-397.
18 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, P.L. 83-2 12.
19 33 U.S.C. 908(f). A second injury is covered by Section 8(f) if an employee who was previously partially disabled
on the job incurs a subsequent injury that renders him or her totally disabled. The use of special funds for second
injuries is designed to lessen the risks associated with hiring partially disabled employees who may become totally
disabled from injuries that would not normally totally disable other employees. Recently, states have been closing their
second injury funds, in part because of the employment discrimination protections provided by the Americans with
Disabilities Act [142 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.] and difficulties in administering and financing the funds. For additional
information on second injury funds see Robert K. Briscoe and Robert J. Mayer, "The Rise and Fall of Second Injury
Funds," Risk and Insurance, vol. 18, no. 11 (2007).
Congressional Research Service 4
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