Governor Gives to Drive for Workers’ Comp Reform

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has donated more than $1 million from his main political committee, the California Recovery Team, to the drive to put an initiative to reform workers’ compensation on the November ballot.

Marty Wilson, a consultant who handles fundraising for the team, said the money, transferred Friday, was “a down payment” on the cost of the drive to collect the 598,105 signatures needed if the measure is to qualify for the ballot. Petitions bearing those signatures must be submitted to counties by April 16. Signature gatherers -- paid at least $1.25 per signature -- were out in force this weekend, some wearing T-shirts with the all-purpose Schwarzenegger slogan, “Join Arnold;” others with messages like “Reform Workers’ Comp” and “Terminate Fraud.”

“We’re moving full speed ahead on the signature front,” Wilson said.

Steve Hopcraft, a spokesman for the coalition that opposes the initiative effort, said the money that the California Recovery Team was transferring had come from insurance companies. Hopcraft accused those companies of having an agenda of cutting benefits to injured workers. “We are not going to let that happen, no matter how much they spend,” Hopcraft said.