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S1050.......................................by COMMERCE AND HUMAN RESOURCES
DEATH BENEFITS - PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER - Adds to, amends and repeals
existing law to provide death benefits for public safety officers who die
as the direct and proximate result of personal injuries sustained in the
line of duty; to provide that the issuance of deficiency warrants shall be
authorized after the Board of Examiners determines that certain
requirements have been met; to revise the method of benefit payments to
dependent children; to remove language providing for benefits to parents of
officers; to provide that death benefits are not dependent upon the years
of service or age of the officer; to define "public safety officer"; and to
limit application.
01/31 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/03 Rpt prt - to Com/HuRes
02/24 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/25 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/03 3rd rdg - PASSED - 33-0-2
AYES -- Andreason, Bailey, Brandt, Bunderson, Burtenshaw, Calabretta,
Cameron, Compton, Darrington, Davis, Gannon, Geddes, Hill, Ingram,
Kennedy, Keough, Little, Lodge, Malepeai, Marley, McKenzie,
McWilliams, Noble, Noh, Pearce, Richardson, Schroeder, Sorensen,
Stegner, Stennett, Sweet, Werk, Williams
NAYS -- None
Absent and excused -- Burkett, Goedde
Floor Sponsors - Cameron, Davis, Stegner
Title apvd - to House
03/04 House intro - 1st rdg - to Com/HuRes
03/06 Ref'd to St Aff
03/21 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/24 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/28 3rd rdg - PASSED - 64-4-2
AYES -- Andersen, Barraclough, Barrett, Bauer, Bedke, Bell, Bieter,
Black, Block, Boe, Bolz, Bradford, Campbell, Cannon, Clark, Collins,
Cuddy, Deal, Denney, Douglas, Eberle, Edmunson, Ellsworth, Eskridge,
Field(18), Field(23), Gagner, Garrett, Henbest(Bray), Jaquet, Jones,
Kellogg, Lake, Langford, Langhorst, Martinez, McGeachin, Meyer,
Miller, Mitchell, Moyle, Nacarrato, Nielsen, Raybould, Ridinger,
Ring, Ringo, Robison, Rydalch, Sali, Sayler, Schaefer, Shepherd,
Shirley, Skippen, Smith(30), Smith(24), Smylie, Snodgrass, Stevenson,
Tilman, Trail, Wills, Mr. Speaker
NAYS -- Crow, Harwood, Kulczyk, Wood
Absent and excused -- McKague, Roberts
Floor Sponsor - Stevenson
Title apvd - to Senate
03/31 To enrol
04/01 Rpt enrol - Pres signed
04/02 Sp signed
04/03 To Governor
04/08 Governor signed
Session Law Chapter 238
Effective: 07/01/03 Secs 1 and 2;
07/01/08 Section 3
|||| LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ||||
Fifty-seventh Legislature First Regular Session - 2003
IN THE SENATE
SENATE BILL NO. 1050
BY COMMERCE AND HUMAN RESOURCES COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO DEATH BENEFITS; AMENDING CHAPTER 13, TITLE 59, IDAHO CODE, BY THE
3 ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 59-1361A, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE DEATH BENEFITS
4 FOR PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS WHO DIE AS THE DIRECT AND PROXIMATE RESULT OF
5 PERSONAL INJURIES SUSTAINED IN THE LINE OF DUTY; AND AMENDING SECTION
6 67-2028, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE CORRECT TERMINOLOGY, TO MAKE GRAMMATICAL
7 CHANGES, TO PROVIDE THAT THE ISSUANCE OF A DEFICIENCY WARRANT SHALL BE
8 AUTHORIZED AFTER THE BOARD OF EXAMINERS DETERMINES THAT CERTAIN REQUIRE-
9 MENTS HAVE BEEN MET, TO REVISE THE METHOD OF BENEFIT PAYMENTS TO DEPENDENT
10 CHILDREN, TO REMOVE LANGUAGE PROVIDING FOR BENEFITS TO PARENTS OF OFFI-
11 CERS, TO REMOVE LANGUAGE REFERENCING THE EFFECT OF OTHER DEATH BENEFIT
12 PAYMENTS, TO PROVIDE THAT DEATH BENEFITS ARE NOT DEPENDENT ON THE YEARS OF
13 SERVICE OR AGE OF THE OFFICER, TO DEFINE "PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER," TO PRO-
14 VIDE THAT BENEFITS SHALL BE PAYABLE ONLY UPON CERTAIN DETERMINATIONS BY
15 THE BOARD OF EXAMINERS AND TO LIMIT APPLICATION; REPEALING SECTION
16 67-2028, IDAHO CODE; AND PROVIDING EFFECTIVE DATES.
17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
18 SECTION 1. That Chapter 13, Title 59, Idaho Code, be, and the same is
19 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des-
20 ignated as Section 59-1361A, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:
21 59-1361A. PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER DEATH BENEFITS. (1) On and after July 1,
22 2003, in the event a public safety officer dies as the direct and proximate
23 result of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty, a death benefit in
24 the amount of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) shall be payable as pro-
25 vided in this section to the officer's surviving spouse or, in the event there
26 is no surviving spouse, divided among the officer's dependent children.
27 (2) Application for benefits under this chapter shall be made to the
28 retirement board. No benefit shall be payable unless it is established, as
29 determined by the retirement board, that:
30 (a) The officer's death occurred in the line of duty as defined in regu-
31 lations issued by the United States department of justice pursuant to 42
32 U.S.C. section 3796, except as modified by the retirement board;
33 (b) The death was not caused by the intentional misconduct of the officer
34 or by such officer's intentional infliction of injury;
35 (c) The officer was not voluntarily intoxicated at the time of death; and
36 (d) Benefit payments will not be paid to a person whose actions were a
37 substantial contributing factor to the death of the officer.
38 (3) As used in this section:
39 (a) "Dependent child" means a surviving natural or legally adopted child
40 who is under twenty-one (21) years of age at the time of the officer's
41 death. Benefits to dependent children shall be paid in accordance with the
42 provisions of the Idaho uniform transfers to minors act, as set forth in
43 chapter 8, title 68, Idaho Code; provided that when there are multiple
2
1 dependent children, the benefit shall be divided equally among them.
2 (b) "Public safety officer" means an active member of the retirement sys-
3 tem who when injured:
4 (i) Was designated as a police officer member under section
5 59-1303, Idaho Code, and had been treated as such for contribution
6 purposes;
7 (ii) Was a "firefighter" as defined in section 59-1302(16), Idaho
8 Code; or
9 (iii) Was a "paid firefighter" as defined in section 72-1403(A),
10 Idaho Code.
11 (4) Benefits payable under this section:
12 (a) Are separate from and independent of any benefits payable under sec-
13 tion 59-1361, Idaho Code;
14 (b) Are not dependent on years of service or age of the public safety
15 officer; and
16 (c) Shall not be subject to state income taxes.
17 (5) The costs of providing this benefit, as determined by the board,
18 shall be paid by the employers of public safety officers as an additional con-
19 tribution component separate and distinct from all other obligations under
20 this chapter. Such costs will be paid in a manner as determined by the board.
21 SECTION 2. That Section 67-2028, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
22 amended to read as follows:
23 67-2028. LAW ENFORCEMENT DEATH BENEFITS. (1) After January 1, 20013, in
24 the event a certified peace public safety officer, detention officer or cor-
25 rectional officer (hereinafter referred to as "officer") in the employ of the
26 state or a political subdivision of the state is killed in the performance
27 dies as the direct and proximate result of the officer's personal injuries
28 sustained in the line of duty, the board of examiners shall authorize the pay-
29 ment of funds for the purpose of distributing a death benefit to the slain
30 officer's family. After the board of examiners is satisfied that the circum-
31 stances of the death occurred in the performance requirements of the officer's
32 duty this section have been met, it shall authorize the issuance of a defi-
33 ciency warrant. In the event that the board of examiners is uncertain as to
34 the circumstances of the death, it may postpone the authorization of such pay-
35 ment until the head of the responsible investigative agency provides an offi-
36 cial report of the incident. Upon authorization of the deficiency warrant by
37 the board of examiners, the state controller shall, after notice to the state
38 treasurer, draw a deficiency warrant in the authorized amount against the gen-
39 eral fund.
40 (2) The death benefit shall be distributed as follows:
41 (a) The total amount of a death benefit to be disbursed to a surviving
42 spouse, with or without dependent children, shall be one hundred thousand
43 dollars ($100,000).
44 (b) In the event there is no surviving spouse, the total amount of the
45 death benefit to be disbursed to the slain officer's surviving dependent
46 children who are under twenty-one (21) years of age at the time of the
47 officer's death is one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), to be split
48 equally among the surviving natural and adopted children of the slain
49 officer. This disbursement shall be made to each dependent child's legal
50 guardian on behalf of the child in accordance with the provisions of the
51 Idaho uniform transfers to minors act, as set forth in chapter 8, title
52 68, Idaho Code.
53 (3) In the event there is neither a surviving spouse, nor surviving
3
1 dependent children under the age of twenty-one (21) years, the total amount to
2 be disbursed to the surviving parent or parents of the slain officer shall be
3 forty thousand dollars ($40,000), to be split equally between the natural or
4 adopted parents of the slain officer.
5 (4) The death benefit provided in this section shall not be subject to
6 state income taxes, and shall not affect, nor be affected by, any death bene-
7 fit payments as may be provided under chapter 13, title 59, Idaho Code is not
8 dependent on the years of service or age of the public safety officer.
9 (4) As used in this section, the term "public safety officer" includes
10 only persons, who when injured, were employed as:
11 (a) County sheriffs;
12 (b) Deputy county sheriffs:
13 (i) Holding positions for which current POST certification is nec-
14 essary to continue in employment in the position, the principal
15 duties of which are active law enforcement service; provided however,
16 that even though POST certified or required to be POST certified,
17 deputy county sheriffs holding positions whose principal full-time
18 duties are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer, animal
19 control officer, records specialist, or other duties not within the
20 scope of active law enforcement are not "public safety officers"
21 under this section;
22 (ii) Holding positions which require accountability for the safety
23 and safekeeping of persons confined in a city or county confinement
24 facility; or
25 (iii) Whose duties require active participation in county law
26 enforcement activities pertaining to crime prevention or reduction;
27 (c) City police chiefs; and
28 (d) City police officers:
29 (i) Holding positions for which current POST certification is nec-
30 essary to continue in employment in the position, the principal
31 duties of which are active law enforcement service; provided however,
32 that even though POST certified or required to be POST certified,
33 police officers holding positions whose principal full-time duties
34 are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer, animal con-
35 trol officer, records specialist, or other duties not within the
36 scope of active law enforcement are not "public safety officers"
37 under this section;
38 (ii) Holding positions which require accountability for the safety
39 and safekeeping of persons confined in a city or county confinement
40 facility; or
41 (iii) Whose duties require active participation in city law enforce-
42 ment activities pertaining to crime prevention or reduction.
43 (5) No benefit shall be payable unless it is established, as determined
44 by the board of examiners, that:
45 (a) The officer's death occurred in the line of duty as defined in regu-
46 lations issued by the United States department of justice pursuant to 42
47 U.S.C. section 3796;
48 (b) The death was not caused by intentional misconduct of the officer or
49 by such officer's intentional infliction of injury;
50 (c) The officer was not voluntarily intoxicated at the time of death; and
51 (d) Benefit payments will not be made to a person whose actions were a
52 substantial contributing factor to the death of the officer.
53 (6) This section shall not apply to any public safety officer, or the
54 family of any such officer, who is eligible for benefits under section
55 59-1361A, Idaho Code.
4
1 SECTION 3. That Section 67-2028, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
2 repealed.
3 SECTION 4. Sections 1 and 2 of this act shall be in full force and effect
4 on and after July 1, 2003. Section 3 of this act shall be in full force and
5 effect on and after July 1, 2008.
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STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 12727
In 2001, the legislature added section 67-2028, Idaho Code, which
provided a death benefit to family members of certain peace
officers killed in the line of duty, payable out of state general
funds by means of deficiency warrants.
This bill:
1. Adds a new section, 59-1361A, Idaho Code, which provides
essentially the same benefit to peace officers who are active
police officer members of PERSI, and extends the benefit to
active firefighters under the PERSI plan and active paid
firefighters under the FRF plan. Benefits payable under this
section are funded by additional employer contributions and paid
out of the PERSI trust.
2. Amends section 67-2028, Idaho Code, to modify the definition
of police officer, to exclude anyone who qualifies for a benefit
under the new section 59-1361A, Idaho Code, and to modify other
language to make the benefit consistent with the benefit provided
under the new section 59-1361A, Idaho Code. Benefits under this
section will continue to be payable out of state general funds by
means of deficiency warrants. This section will be repealed
effective July 1, 2008, and benefits will cease to be available
under this section.
FISCAL IMPACT
The PERSI actuary estimates the additional cost of the public
safety officer death benefit to PERSI in Idaho Code 59-1316A at
0.10% of the compensation paid to the members covered by the
benefit. According to the legislation this is to be paid by
the employer which would represent a total annual cost to all
employers of public safety officers to be $237,500. The annual
cost to the general fund for state employers is estimated at
$50,700. However, there is a potential savings in general funds
since the potential risk of payments from the general fund is
reduced. Since the 2001 enactment the general fund has paid out
$100,000 for each of three (3) death benefits (total $300,000).
Contact
Name: Michael Kane - Idaho Sheriffs Association
Phone: 208/342-4545
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE Bill No. S1050