HOUSE BILL No. 5464

 

February 5, 2004, Introduced by Reps. Tobocman, Farrah, Condino, Adamini, Wojno, Sak, Minore and Accavitti and referred to the Committee on Employment Relations, Training and Safety.

        

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                 A bill to amend 1969 PA 317, entitled                                             

                                                                                

    "Worker's disability compensation act of 1969,"                             

                                                                                

    by amending section 405 (MCL 418.405), as amended by 1980 PA                

                                                                                

    457.                                                                        

                                                                                

                THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:                      

                                                                                

1       Sec. 405.  (1) In the case of a member of a  full  fully                    

                                                                                

2   paid fire department of an airport run by a county  road                    

                                                                                

3   commission in counties of 1,000,000 population or more  or a                

                                                                                

4   public airport authority, or by a state university or college;              

                                                                                

5   ,  or of a  full  fully paid fire or police department of a                

                                                                                

6   city, township, or incorporated village employed and compensated            

                                                                                

7   upon a full-time basis;  ,  a county sheriff and the deputies of            

                                                                                

8   the county sheriff;  ,  members of the state police;  ,                     

                                                                                

9   conservation officers;  ,  and officers of the motor carrier                

                                                                                

10  inspectors of the Michigan public service commission                       

                                                                                


                                                                                

1   enforcement division of the department of state police, "personal           

                                                                                

2   injury" shall be construed to include respiratory and heart                 

                                                                                

3   diseases, or illnesses resulting therefrom,  which  that develop            

                                                                                

4   or manifest themselves during a period while the member of the              

                                                                                

5   department is in the active service of the department and that              

                                                                                

6   result from the performance of duties for the department.                   

                                                                                

7       (2) For members of fully paid fire departments employed 24                  

                                                                                

8   months or more whose primary duty for 24 months or more was                 

                                                                                

9   fighting fires or inspecting fire scenes, "personal injury" shall           

                                                                                

10  be construed to include all respiratory tract, bladder, skin,               

                                                                                

11  brain, kidney, blood, and lymphatic cancers.                                

                                                                                

12      (3)  (2)  Such respiratory and heart diseases  or  and                      

                                                                                

13  illnesses resulting therefrom, and respiratory tract, bladder,              

                                                                                

14  skin, brain, kidney, blood, and lymphatic cancers are deemed to             

                                                                                

15  arise out of and in the course of employment in the absence of              

                                                                                

16  evidence to the contrary.  Respiratory tract, bladder, skin,                

                                                                                

17  brain, kidney, blood, and lymphatic cancers of a member of a                

                                                                                

18  fully paid fire department are not deemed to arise out of and in            

                                                                                

19  the course of employment if evidence is shown that the member of            

                                                                                

20  the fully paid fire department was a consistent smoker of                   

                                                                                

21  cigarettes or other tobacco products within the 5 years                     

                                                                                

22  immediately preceding the date of filing a claim under this act.            

                                                                                

23      (4)  (3)  As a condition precedent to filing an application                 

                                                                                

24  for benefits, the claimant, if he or she is one of those                    

                                                                                

25  enumerated in subsection (1) or (2), shall first make application           

                                                                                

26  for, and do all things necessary to qualify for any pension                 

                                                                                

27  benefits which he or she, or his or her decedent, may be entitled           


                                                                                

1   to.  If a final determination is made that pension benefits shall           

                                                                                

2   not be awarded, then the presumption of "personal injury" as                

                                                                                

3   provided in this section  shall apply  applies.  The employer or            

                                                                                

4   employee may request 2 copies of the determination denying                  

                                                                                

5   pension benefits, 1 copy of which may be filed with the bureau.             

                                                                                

6       (5) The bureau shall research the financial and procedural                  

                                                                                

7   implications of applying a cancer presumption to volunteer                  

                                                                                

8   firefighters.  The study shall include a description of the                 

                                                                                

9   necessary amendments to this act in order to apply a cancer                 

                                                                                

10  presumption on an equal basis to all classifications of                     

                                                                                

11  firefighters.  The report shall be provided to the chair and                

                                                                                

12  vice-chair of the senate and house committees that consider                 

                                                                                

13  worker's compensation legislation by June 30, 2004.