AN ACT CONCERNING HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR SURVIVORS OF UNPAID VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND STATE MARSHALS.

House of Representatives
sHB5403 / File No. 266 1

General Assembly File No. 266
February Session, 2026 Substitute House Bill No. 5403

House of Representatives, March 31, 2026

The Committee on Public Safety and Security reported through
REP. BOYD of the 50th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on
the part of the House, that the substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR
SURVIVORS OF UNPAID VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND STATE
MARSHALS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (i) of section 3 -123bbb of the 2026 supplement 1
to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 2
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 3
(i) (1) A nonstate public employer that provides coverage pursuant to 4
a partnership plan to a first responder or unpaid volunteer firefighter 5
who is killed in the line of duty shall continue to provide such coverage 6
to the survivors of such first responder or unpaid volunteer firefighter 7
who were covered under such plan at the time of such first responder's 8
or unpaid volunteer firefighter's death. Such coverage shall continue 9
without break for a period of one year after such first responder's or 10
unpaid volunteer firefighter's death, and may be renewed annually for 11
up to five years. Such nonstate public employer shall facilitate 12
continuation and renewal of such coverage. For purposes of this 13
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 2

subsection, "unpaid volunteer firefighter" means a uniformed member 14
of a fire department who performs firefighting duties for the fire 15
department but is unpaid for performing such firefighting duties. 16
(2) (A) A nonstate public employer that did not provide coverage 17
pursuant to a partnership plan to a first responder or unpaid volunteer 18
firefighter who is killed in the line of duty shall apply for coverage 19
pursuant to a partnership plan for those survivors of such first 20
responder or unpaid volunteer firefighter who were receiving health 21
care benefit coverage through a plan offered to such first responder or 22
unpaid volunteer firefighter at the time of such first responder's or 23
unpaid volunteer firefighter's death, at the request of such survivors. 24
(B) A nonstate public employer shall apply for such coverage 25
pursuant to a partnership plan (i) regardless of whether such first 26
responder was an employee of the nonstate public employer at the time 27
of such first responder's death, and (ii) despite such unpaid volunteer 28
firefighter not having been an employee of the nonstate public employer 29
at the time of such unpaid volunteer firefighter's death. For any first 30
responder who was not an employee of a nonstate public employer at 31
the time of such first responder's death, and for any unpaid volunteer 32
firefighter, the nonstate public employer to which the first responder or 33
unpaid volunteer firefighter provided services in the capacity of a first 34
responder or unpaid volunteer firefighter at the time of such first 35
responder's or unpaid volunteer firefighter's death shall apply for such 36
coverage. 37
(C) The Comptroller shall accept such application upon the terms and 38
conditions applicable to the partnership plan for enrollment and 39
provision of coverage to such survivors for one year. Such enrollment 40
and coverage may be renewed annually for up to five years. Such 41
nonstate public employer shall facilitate initiation and renewal of such 42
enrollment and coverage. 43
(3) In accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of section 3 -44
122a and subdivision (2) of subsection (c) of section 3 -123eee, the 45
Comptroller shall reimburse a nonstate public employer making 46
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 3

payments pursuant to this subsection for the total cost of such payments 47
from the Fallen Hero Fund established pursuant to subsection (b) of 48
section 3-122a. 49
Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 5 -259 of the 2026 supplement to the 50
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 51
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 52
(a) The Comptroller, with the approval of the Attorney General and 53
of the Insurance Commissioner, shall arrange and procure a group 54
hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan or plans for (1) 55
state employees, (2) members of the General Assembly who elect 56
coverage under such plan or plans, (3) participants in an alternate 57
retirement program who meet the service requirements of section 5-162 58
or subsection (a) of section 5 -166, (4) anyone receiving benefits under 59
section 5-144 or from any state-sponsored retirement system, except the 60
teachers' retirement system and the municipal employees retirement 61
system, (5) judges of probate and Probate Court employees, (6) the 62
surviving spouse, and any dependent children of a state police officer, a 63
member of an organized local police department, a firefighter or a 64
constable who performs criminal law enforcement duties who dies 65
before, on or after June 26, 2003, as the result of injuries received while 66
acting within the scope of such officer's or firefighter's or constable's 67
employment and not as the result of illness or natural causes, and whose 68
surviving spouse and dependent children are not otherwise eligible for 69
a group hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan. 70
Coverage for a dependent child pursuant to this subdivision shall 71
terminate no earlier than the end of the calendar year during whichever 72
of the following occurs first, the date on which the child: Becomes 73
covered under a group health plan through the dependent's own 74
employment; or attains the age of twenty -six, (7) employees of the 75
Capital Region Development Authority established by section 32 -601, 76
(8) the surviving spouse and dependent children of any employee of a 77
municipality who dies on or after October 1, 2000, as the result of 78
injuries received while acting within the scope of such employee's 79
employment and not as the result of illness or natural causes, and whose 80
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 4

surviving spouse and dependent children are not otherwise eligible for 81
a group hospitalization and medical and surgical insurance plan, [and] 82
(9) state marshals , and (10) the surviving spouse and any dependent 83
children of a state marshal who dies as the result of injuries received 84
while serving a temporary restraining order and not as the result of 85
illness or natural causes, and whose surviving spouse and dependent 86
children are not otherwise eligible for a group hospitalization and 87
medical and surgical insurance plan. For purposes of subdivision (8) of 88
this subsection, "employee" means any regular employee or elective 89
officer receiving pay from a municipality, "municipality" means any 90
town, city, borough, school district, taxing district, fire district, district 91
department of health, probate district, housing authority, regional 92
workforce development board established under section 31 -3k, flood 93
commission or authority established by special act or regional council 94
of governments. For purposes of subdivision (6) of this subsection, 95
"firefighter" means any person who is regularly employed and paid by 96
any municipality for the purpose of performing firefighting duties for a 97
municipality on average of not less than thirty-five hours per week. The 98
minimum benefits to be provided by such plan or plans shall be 99
substantially equal in value to the benefits that each such employee or 100
member of the General Assembly could secure in such plan or plans on 101
an individual basis on the preceding first day of July. The state shall pay 102
for each such employee and each member of the General Assembly 103
covered by such plan or plans the portion of the premium charged for 104
such member's or employee's individual coverage and seventy per cent 105
of the additional cost of the form of coverage and such amount shall be 106
credited to the total premiums owed by such employee or member of 107
the General Assembly for the form of such member's or employee's 108
coverage under such plan or plans. On and after January 1, 1989, the 109
state shall pay for anyone receiving benefits from any such state -110
sponsored retirement system one hundred per cent of the portion of the 111
premium charged for such member's or employee's individual coverage 112
and one hundred per cent of any additional cost for the form of 113
coverage. The balance of any premiums payable by an individual 114
employee or by a member of the General Assembly for the form of 115
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 5

coverage shall be deducted from the payroll by the State Comptroller. 116
The total premiums payable shall be remitted by the Comptroller to the 117
insurance company or companies or nonprofit organization or 118
organizations providing the coverage. The amount of the state's 119
contribution per employee for a health maintenance organization option 120
shall be equal, in terms of dollars and cents, to the largest amount of the 121
contribution per employee paid for any other option that is available to 122
all eligible state employees included in the health benefits plan, but shall 123
not be required to exceed the amount of the health maintenance 124
organization premium. 125
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 3-123bbb(i)
Sec. 2 October 1, 2026 5-259(a)

PS Joint Favorable Subst.

sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 6

The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
State Comptroller - Fringe
Benefits
GF - Potential
Cost
less than
40,000
less than
40,000
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill, which extends health care coverage to survivors of state
marshals who die from injuries received while serving a temporary
restraining order, results in a cost to the State Comptroller – Fringe
Benefits of less than $40,000 annually beginning in FY 27 for the cost of
medical premiums per qualifying beneficiary to the extent they elect
coverage.
The bill additionally extends health care coverage under the
partnership plan to survivors of unpaid volunteer firefighters killed in
the line of duty which results in a net neutral fiscal impact to the state
and municipalities facilitating coverage as the payments will be
reimbursed by the Fallen Officer Fund.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to in stances where state marshals and
unpaid volunteer firefighters are killed in the line of duty.

sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 7

OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 5403

AN ACT CONCERNING HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR
SURVIVORS OF UNPAID VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND STATE
MARSHALS.

SUMMARY
This bill extends (1) nonstate public employer “partnership plan ”
health care coverage to the survivors of certain unpaid volunteer
firefighters and (2) state employee health insurance coverage to the
survivors of certain state marshals.
It also requires all nonstate public employers (for example, a
municipality or other political subdivision of the state) to apply for
partnership plan coverage for survivors of first responders or unpaid
volunteer firefighters, even if they were not employees of the nonstate
public employer at their time of death. (By law, first responders are
emergency medical technicians, paid firefighters, paramedics, or police
officers.)
By law, the state comptroller must use the Fallen Hero Fund (see
BACKGROUND) to reimburse nonstate public employers for any
payments made for partnership plan coverage for survivors of first
responders. The bill similarly requires him to use the Fallen Hero Fund
to reimburse nonstate public employers for payments made for
partnership plan coverage for survivors of unpaid volunteer
firefighters.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026
PARTNERSHIP PLAN COVERAGE
Unpaid Volunteer Firefighter Survivors
By law, the comptroller must offer partnership plan coverage to
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 8

nonstate public employers and nonprofit employers.
As required under existing law for first responders, the bill requires
a nonstate public employer that provided partnership plan coverage to
an unpaid volunteer firefighter who is killed in the line of duty to
continue to provide the coverage to the survivors who were covered
under the plan when the firefighter died. The coverage must continue
for one year after the death and may be renewed annually for up to five
years. The nonstate public employer must facilitate the coverage
continuation and renewal. Under the bill, “unpaid volunteer
firefighters” are uniformed members of a fire department who perform
firefighting duties for the department but are not paid.
Under the bill, as required under existing law for first responders, a
nonstate public employer that did not provide partnership plan
coverage to a n unpaid volunteer firefighter killed in the line of duty
must apply for partnership plan coverage for, and at the request of, the
survivors who were receiving health insurance coverage through a plan
offered to the firefighter at the time of death.
By law, the comptroller must accept the application on the terms and
conditions applicable to the partnership plan for enrolling and covering
the survivors for one year. The enrollment and coverage may be
renewed annually for up to five years. The nonstate public employer
must help with enrollment and coverage initiation and renewal.
Required Partnership Plan Application
The bill requires nonstate public employers to apply for partnership
plan coverage whether or not a first responder or unpaid volunteer
firefighter was an employee of the nonstate public employer at the time
of death. For first responders and unpaid volunteer firefighters who
were not employees of a nonstate public employer at the time of death,
the nonstate public employer they provided services to at the time of
death must apply for coverage.
Fallen Hero Fund Reimbursement
By law, nonstate public employers cannot require survivors of first
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 9

responders to pay for coverage under a partnership plan. Instead, the
employer must cover the entire amount and be reimbursed from the
Fallen Hero Fund for the total cost. The bill extends this requirement to
survivors of unpaid volunteer firefighters.
STATE EMPLOYEE PLAN COVERAGE FOR STATE MARSHAL
SURVIVORS
The bill requires the state comptroller, with approval from the
attorney general and the insurance commissioner, to allow the surviving
spouse and dependent children of a state marshal to participate in the
state employee health insurance plan. To be eligible, the (1) state
marshal must have died as the result of injuries received while serving
a temporary restraining order and not as the result of illness or natural
causes and (2) surviving spouse and dependent children cannot
otherwise be eligible for a group hospitalization and medical and
surgical insurance plan.
BACKGROUND
Fallen Hero Fund
The Fallen Hero Fund is a non-lapsing fund the comptroller may use
to pay surviving families of first responders who sustained injuries that
were the direct and proximate cause of their death a death benefit , as
well as municipalities that provide partnership plan coverage to those
survivors. Within available appropriations, families are entitled to a
lump sum death benefit payment of $100,000.
Related Bills
sHB 5003 (§§ 11 & 12 ), favorably reported by the Labor and Public
Employees Committee, similarly requires health care plan coverage to
be extended to the survivors of unpaid volunteer firefighters and state
marshals. It requires (1) nonstate public employers to continue
providing coverage to survivors of an unpaid volunteer firefighter or, if
they were not providing coverage, apply for coverage for the survivors
through a partnership plan and (2) the comptroller to let the surviving
spouse and dependent chi ldren of an unpaid volunteer firefighter or
state marshal to participate in the state employee health insurance plan.
sHB5403 File No. 266

sHB5403 / File No. 266 10

sSB 410, favorably reported by the Public Safety and Security
Committee, expands the Fallen Hero Fund to provide compensation for
firefighter cancer deaths. It also requires nonstate public employers t o
provide benefits under a partnership plan to survivors of first
responders that died due to certain cancers . These employers must be
reimbursed from the firefighters cancer relief account instead of the
Fallen Hero Fund.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Public Safety and Security Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 29 Nay 0 (03/17/2026)