Survivor benefits eligibility expanded to include when a public safety officer dies in the line of duty from an exposure-related cancer.

A bill for an act

relating to public safety; expanding eligibility for survivor benefits to include when

a public safety officer dies in the line of duty from an exposure-related cancer;

amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 299A.41, subdivision 3, by adding

subdivisions; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 299A.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 299A.41, is amended by adding a subdivision

to read:

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Subd. 1a.

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Carcinogen.

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"Carcinogen" means an agent that is: (1) classified by the

International Agency for Research on Cancer under Group 1 or Group 2A; and (2) reasonably

linked to an exposure-related cancer.

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Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 299A.41, is amended by adding a subdivision to

read:

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Subd. 2a.

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Exposure-related cancer.

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"Exposure-related cancer" means:

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(1) bladder cancer;

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(2) brain cancer;

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(3) breast cancer;

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(4) cervical cancer;

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(5) colon cancer;

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(6) colorectal cancer;

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(7) esophageal cancer;

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(8) kidney cancer;

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(9) leukemia;

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(10) lung cancer;

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(11) malignant melanoma;

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(12) mesothelioma;

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(13) multiple myeloma;

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(14) non-Hodgkin lymphoma;

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(15) ovarian cancer;

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(16) prostate cancer;

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(17) skin cancer;

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(18) stomach cancer;

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(19) testicular cancer;

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(20) thyroid cancer; and

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(21) any form of cancer added to this definition pursuant to an update in accordance

with section 299A.412.

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Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 299A.41, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Killed in the line of duty.

(a) "Killed in the line of duty" does not include

deaths from natural causes, except as provided in this subdivision. In the case of a public

safety officer, killed in the line of duty includes the death of a public safety officer caused

by accidental means while the public safety officer is acting in the course and scope of

duties as a public safety officer. Killed in the line of duty also means if a public safety officer

dies as the direct and proximate result of a heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture, that

officer shall be presumed to have died as the direct and proximate result of a personal injury

sustained in the line of duty if:

(1) that officer, while on duty:

(i) engaged in a situation, and that engagement involved nonroutine stressful or strenuous

physical law enforcement, fire suppression, rescue, hazardous material response, emergency

medical services, prison security, disaster relief, or other emergency response activity; or

(ii) participated in a training exercise, and that participation involved nonroutine stressful

or strenuous physical activity;

(2) that officer died as a result of a heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture suffered:

(i) while engaging or participating under clause (1);

(ii) while still on duty after engaging or participating under clause (1); or

(iii) not later than 24 hours after engaging or participating under clause (1); and

(3) the presumption is not overcome by competent medical evidence to the contrary.

(b)
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"
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Killed in the line of duty
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" also means that the officer
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includes an officer who
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died

due to suicide:

(1) secondary to a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder as described in the most

recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by

the American Psychiatric Association; or

(2) within 45 days of the end of exposure, while on duty, to a traumatic event.

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(c) Killed in the line of duty includes an officer who died from an exposure-related

cancer that was a result of exposure to a carcinogen when:

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(1) the exposure occurred while the public safety officer was acting in the course and

scope of duties as a public safety officer;

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(2) the public safety officer began serving as a public safety officer not fewer than five

years before the date of the public safety officer's diagnosis of exposure-related cancer;

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(3) the public safety officer was diagnosed with exposure-related cancer not more than

15 years after the public safety officer's last date of active service as a public safety officer;

and

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(4) the exposure-related cancer directly and proximately results in the death of the public

safety officer.

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(d) The presumption under paragraph (c) shall not apply if competent medical evidence

establishes that the exposure of the public safety officer to the carcinogen was not a

substantial contributing factor in the death of the public safety officer.

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Sec. 4.

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[299A.412] UPDATES TO COVERED EXPOSURE-RELATED CANCERS.

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Subdivision 1.

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Commissioner review; updates.

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(a) From time to time but not less than

once every three years, the commissioner shall:

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(1) review the definition of exposure-related cancer in section 299A.41, subdivision 2a;

and

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(2) if appropriate, update the definition in accordance with this paragraph by rule.

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(b) The commissioner shall make an update under paragraph (a) when the commissioner

finds an update to be appropriate based on competent medical evidence of significant risk

to public safety officers of developing the form of exposure-related cancer that is the subject

of the update from engagement in the officer's public safety activities.

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(c) The competent medical evidence described in paragraph (b) may include

recommendations, risk assessments, and scientific studies by:

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(1) the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health;

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(2) the National Toxicology Program;

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(3) the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; or

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(4) the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

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Subd. 2.

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Petitions to add to the list of exposure-related cancers.

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(a) Any person may

petition the commissioner to add a form of cancer to the definition of exposure-related

cancer in section 299A.41, subdivision 2a.

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(b) A petition shall provide information to demonstrate that there is sufficient competent

medical evidence of significant risk to public safety officers of developing the cancer from

engagement in the officer's public safety activities.

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(c) Not later than 180 days after receipt of a petition under paragraph (b), the

commissioner shall refer the petition to appropriate medical experts for review; analysis,

including risk assessment and scientific study; and recommendation.

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(d) The commissioner shall consider each recommendation under paragraph (c) and

promptly take appropriate action in connection with the recommendation pursuant to

subdivision 1.

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(e) Not later than 30 days after taking any substantive action in connection with a

recommendation under paragraph (d), the commissioner shall notify the chairs and ranking

minority members of the house of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction

over public safety policy and finance.

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Sec. 5.

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[299A.413] EXPOSURE-RELATED CANCER CLAIMS.

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(a) An individual may file a claim that is predicated upon a public safety officer's line

of duty death that is the direct and proximate result of an exposure-related cancer if the

death occurred on or after January 1, 2020.

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(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a person eligible to file a claim for an

exposure-related cancer line of duty death of a public safety officer that occurred after

January 1, 2020, but before final enactment of this act, has three years from the date of final

enactment of this act to file the claim.

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