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The Tennessee General Assembly has voted to delay a state law that requires workers’ compensation coverage for sole proprietors and partners in the construction business who were previously exempt.

The vote pushed back the effective date of the law until March. Lawmakers said they would work to rewrite the measure during the upcoming regular legislative session.

Larger contractors said the bill was needed to level the playing field, but smaller independent contractors complained that the cost of workers’ compensation insurance would further hurt their businesses already suffering due to the poor economy.