AN ACT relating to lump-sum line of duty death payments.

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AN ACT relating to lump-sum line of duty death payments. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 61.315 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) As used in this section: 4
(a) "Police officer" means every paid police officer, sheriff, or deputy sheriff, 5
corrections employee with the power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS 6
196.037, any metropolitan or urban-county correctional officer with the power 7
of a peace officer pursuant to KRS 446.010, any jailer or deputy jailer, any 8
auxiliary police officer appointed pursuant to KRS 95.445, any police officer 9
of a public institution of postsec ondary education appointed pursuant to KRS 10
164.950, any school resource officer as defined in KRS 158.441, or any 11
citation or safety officer appointed pursuant to KRS 83A.087 and 83A.088, 12
elected to office, or employed by any county, airport board created pursuant to 13
KRS Chapter 183, city, local board of education, or by the state; 14
(b) "Firefighter" means every paid firefighter or volunteer firefighter who is 15
employed by or volunteers his or her services to the state, airport board 16
created pursuant to KRS C hapter 183, any county, city, fire district, or any 17
other organized fire department recognized, pursuant to KRS 95A.262, as a 18
fire department operated and maintained on a nonprofit basis in the interest of 19
the health and safety of the inhabitants of the Co mmonwealth and shall 20
include qualified civilian firefighters employed at Kentucky -based military 21
installations; [and] 22
(c) "Emergency medical services personnel" means any paid or volunteer 23
emergency medical services personnel who is certified or licensed pursuant to 24
KRS Chapter 311A and who is employed directly by, or volunteering directly 25
for, any: 26
1. County; 27
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2. City; 1
3. Fire protection district created under KRS 75.010 to 75.260; or 2
4. Emergency ambulance service district created under KRS 108.080 to 3
108.180; 4
to provide emergency medical services[.]; 5
(d) "Public safety officer" means a police officer, firefighter, or emerge ncy 6
medical services personnel; 7
(e) "Public safety officer in training" means an individual attending a formal 8
training academy that provides training, certification, or licensing for the 9
individual to serve as a public safety officer, provided the trainin g academy 10
is: 11
1. Certified by the Commonwealth of Kentucky; or 12
2. Established by a local government or an agency thereof in Kentucky; 13
(f) "Retired public safety officer" means an individual who separated from 14
service in good standing as a public safety officer; and 15
(g) "Post-service act in the line of duty" means an attack on a retired public 16
safety officer following separation of service that is in retaliation for a line 17
of duty action taken by the retired public safety officer while still serving or 18
based upon the retired public safety officer's prior service as a public safety 19
officer. 20
(2) The spouse of any public safety officer, public safety officer in training [police 21
officer, sheriff, deputy sheriff, corrections employee with the power of a peace 22
officer pursuant to KRS 196.037, any metropolitan or urban -county correctional 23
officer with the power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS 446.010, any jailer or 24
deputy jailer, any auxiliary police officer appointed pursuant to KRS 95.445, any 25
police officer of a public institution of postsecondary education appointed pursuant 26
to KRS 164.950, any school resource officer as defined in KRS 158.441, or any 27
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citation or safety officer appointed pursuant to KRS 83A.087 and 83A.088, 1
firefighter], or member of the Kentuck y National Guard on state active duty 2
pursuant to KRS 38.030, or a member of a state National Guard or a Reserve 3
component on federal active duty under Title 10 or 32 of the United States Code 4
who names Kentucky as home of record for military purposes, who se death occurs[ 5
on or after July 1, 2002,] as a direct result of an act in the line of duty, or the spouse 6
of any retired public safety officer whose death occurs as a direct result of a post -7
service act in the line of duty, shall receive a lump -sum payme nt of eighty 8
thousand dollars ($80,000) if there are no surviving children, which sum shall be 9
paid by the State Treasurer from the general fund of the State Treasury. [The spouse 10
of any emergency medical services personnel whose death occurs on or after 11
November 1, 2015, as a direct result of an act in the line of duty shall receive a 12
lump-sum payment of eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) if there are no surviving 13
children, which sum shall be paid by the State Treasurer from the general fund of 14
the State Tr easury. ] If there are surviving children and a surviving spouse, the 15
payment shall be apportioned equally among the surviving children and the spouse. 16
If there is no surviving spouse, the payment shall be made to the surviving children, 17
eighteen (18) or mo re years of age. For surviving children less than eighteen (18) 18
years of age, the State Treasurer shall: 19
(a) Pay thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000) to the surviving children; and 20
(b) Hold forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in trust divided into equal accounts 21
at appropriate interest rates for each surviving child until the child reaches the 22
age of eighteen (18) years. 23
If a child dies before reaching the age of eighteen (18) years, his or her account 24
shall be paid to his or her estate. If there are n o surviving children, the payment 25
shall be made to any parents of the deceased. 26
(3) The Kentucky Fire Commission shall be authorized to promulgate administrative 27
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regulations establishing criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of 1
this section as it pertains to both paid and volunteer firefighters, including but not 2
limited to defining when a firefighter has died in line of duty. Administrative 3
hearings promulgated by administrative regulation under authority of this 4
subsection shall be conducted in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B. 5
(4) The Justice and Public Safety Cabinet may promulgate administrative regulations 6
establishing criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of this section 7
as it pertains to police officers, any metr opolitan or urban -county correctional 8
officers with the power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS 446.010, any school 9
resource officer as defined in KRS 158.441, or any jailers or deputy jailers, 10
including but not limited to defining when one has died in li ne of duty. 11
Administrative hearings promulgated by administrative regulation under authority 12
of this subsection shall be conducted in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B. 13
(5) The Department of Corrections shall promulgate administrative regulations 14
establishing the criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of this 15
section as it pertains to correctional employees, including but not limited to 16
defining which employees qualify for coverage and which circumstances constitute 17
death in the line of duty. 18
(6) The Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services shall promulgate 19
administrative regulations establishing the criteria and procedures applicable to the 20
administration of this section as it pertains to emergency medical services 21
personnel, including b ut not limited to which employees or volunteers qualify for 22
coverage and which circumstances constitute death in the line of duty. 23
(7) The Department of Military Affairs shall promulgate administrative regulations 24
establishing the criteria and procedures a pplicable to the administration of this 25
section as it pertains to National Guard or Reserve component members, including 26
but not limited to defining which National Guard or Reserve component members 27
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qualify for coverage and which circumstances constitute death in the line of duty. 1
(8) The estate of anyone whose spouse or surviving children would be eligible for 2
benefits under subsection (2) of this section, and the estate of any regular member 3
of the United States Armed Forces who names Kentucky as home of record for 4
military purposes whose death occurs as a direct result of an act in the line of duty, 5
shall be exempt from all probate fees, including but not limited to those established 6
by the Supreme Court of Kentucky pursuant to KRS 23A.200 and 24A.170, or 7
imposed under KRS 24A.185, 64.012, and 172.180. 8
(9) The benefits payable under this section shall be in addition to any benefits now or 9
hereafter prescribed under any police, sheriff, firefighter's, volunteer firefighter's, 10
emergency medical services pers onnel, or National Guard or Reserve retirement or 11
benefit fund established by the federal government or by any state, county, or any 12
municipality. 13
(10) Any funds appropriated for the purpose of paying the death benefits described in 14
subsection (2) of this section shall be allotted to a self -insuring account. These 15
funds shall not be used for the purpose of purchasing insurance. 16
(11) (a) For the purposes of this section, if a firefighter dies as a result of cancer, the 17
death shall be a direct result of an act in the line of duty if the firefighter: 18
1. Was a firefighter for at least five (5) consecutive years; 19
2. Developed one (1) or more of the cancers listed in paragraph (b) of this 20
subsection which caused the firefighter's death within ten (10) years of 21
separation from service as a firefighter; 22
3. Did not use tobacco products for a period of ten (10) years prior to the 23
diagnosis of cancer; 24
4. Was under the age of sixty-five (65) at the time of death; 25
5. Was not diagnosed with any cancer prior to employment as a firefighter; 26
and 27
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6. Was exposed while in the course of firefighting to a known carcinogen 1
as defined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer or the 2
National Toxicology Program, and the carcinogen is reasonably 3
associated with one (1) or more of the cancers listed in paragraph (b) of 4
this subsection. 5
(b) This section shall apply to the following cancers: 6
1. Bladder cancer; 7
2. Brain cancer; 8
3. Colon cancer; 9
4. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; 10
5. Kidney cancer; 11
6. Liver cancer; 12
7. Lymphatic or haematopoietic cancer; 13
8. Prostate cancer; 14
9. Testicular cancer; 15
10. Skin cancer; 16
11. Cervical cancer; and 17
12. Breast cancer. 18
(c) 1. The provisions of this subsection creating an entitlement to the line of 19
duty death benefits shall apply exclusively to this section and shall not 20
be interpreted or otherwise construed to create either an express or 21
implied presumption of w ork-relatedness for any type of claim filed 22
pursuant to KRS Chapter 342. 23
2. This paragraph is intended to provide clarification regarding the sole and 24
exclusive application of this subsection to only the benefits available 25
under this section and shall not be used as a bar or other type of 26
limitation to impair or alter the rights and ability of a claimant to prove 27
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work-relatedness under KRS Chapter 342 or other laws. 1
Section 2. The amendments to Section 1 of this Act shall apply to line of duty 2
deaths occurring on or after the effective date of this Act, except that the amendments to 3
Section 1 of this Act pertaining to a: 4
(1) A retired public safety officer whose death occurs as a direct result of a post -5
service act in the line of duty as defined in Section 1 of this Act shall be retroactive to 6
deaths occurring on or after August 1, 2012; and 7
(2) Public safety officer in training whose death occurs as a direct result of an act 8
in line of duty shall be retroactive to deaths occurring on or after November 1, 2024. 9