SB 937 — AN ACT PROVIDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN CANCERS IN FIREFIGHTERS.

Senate General Assembly FileSubstitute Bill No.

100937 January Session, 2023 SubstituteAN SenateACT BillPROVIDING No.WORKERS' COMPENSATION BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN CANCERS IN FIREFIGHTERS.

937 Senate, March 16, 2023 The Committee on Labor and Public Employees reported through SEN.

KUSHNER of the 24th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT PROVIDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN CANCERS IN FIREFIGHTERS.

sSB937(b) /For Filepurposes No.of this section, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the diagnosis of cancer of a uniformed member of a paid municipal or volunteer fire department arose out of and in the course of employment as a result of exposures particular to the duties performed as a firefighter.

100Such 1presumption sSB937applies Fileto any condition of cancer affecting the brain, skin, skeletal system, digestive system, endocrine system, respiratory system, lymphatic system, reproductive LCO \\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2023SB-00937-R01 of 3 SB.docx Substitute Bill No.

100937 (b)system,urinary Forsystem purposesor ofhematologicalsystemthat thisresultsinthedeath section,or theretemporary shallor bepermanent atotal rebuttable presumption that the diagnosis of cancer of a uniformed member of a paid municipal or volunteerpartial firedisability department arose out of andsuch in the course of employment as a result of exposures particular to the duties performed as a firefighter.

Such presumption applies to any condition of cancer affecting the brain, skin, skeletal system, digestive system, endocrine system, respiratory system, lymphatic system, reproductive system,urinary system or hematologicalsystemthat resultsinthedeath or temporary or permanent total or partial disability of such firefighter.

(6) Such firefighter failed to use respiratory protection, as described in 29 CFR 1910.134 of the Occupational Safety and Health Standards, or other personal protective equipment, as described in 29 CFR 1910.134 of sSB937the /Occupational FileSafety No.and Health Standards in the course of such employment;

100or 2(7) sSB937Such Fileclaimed cancer is not known to result from the exposure to heat, radiation or a known carcinogen as determined by the InternationalAgency for ResearchonCanceror theNationalToxicology LCO {\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2023SB-00932 of 3 R02-SB.docx } Substitute Bill No.

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or (7) Such claimed cancer is not known to result from the exposure to heat, radiation or a known carcinogen as determined by the InternationalAgency for ResearchonCanceror theNationalToxicology Program of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

Section 1 October 1, 2023 Section 1 31-294j StatementLAB ofJoint LegislativeFavorable Commissioners:Subst.

In-LCO Subsec.APP Joint Favorable LCO {\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2023SB-00937- 3 of 3 R02-SB.docx }

(b)(6), "used" was changed to "use", for proper grammar.

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-LCO sSB937 / File No.

100 3 sSB937 File No.

100 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:

None Municipal Impact:

Municipalities Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Various Municipalities STATE Potential Potential MANDATE - Cost Explanation The bill results in a potential cost to municipalities beginning in FY 24, by creating a rebuttable presumption in workers’ compensation law that firefighting performed by firefighters causes numerous types of cancer.

To the extent more firefighters qualify for workers’ compensation benefits due to particular cancer diagnoses, there will be a potential cost to municipalities.

There are approximately 26,800 firefighters 2 in the State of Connecticut.

1State mandate is defined in Sec.

2-32b(2) of the Connecticut General Statutes, "state mandate" means any state initiated constitutional, statutory or executive action that requires a local government to establish, expand or modify its activities in such a way as to necessitate additional expenditures from local revenues.

2Data from the Connecticut State Firefighters Association for 2016/17.

sSB937 / File No.

100 4 sSB937 File No.

100 The Out Years The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to inflation and the number of relevant workers’ compensation claims.

Sources:Connecticut State Firefighters Association sSB937 / File No.

100 5 sSB937 File No.

100 OLR Bill Analysis SB 937 AN ACT PROVIDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN CANCERS IN FIREFIGHTERS.

SUMMARY This bill creates a rebuttable presumption in workers’ compensation law that firefighting performed by uniformed paid municipal and volunteer firefighters causes numerous types of cancer.

It makes those with the disease eligible for workers’ compensation benefits unless the presumption is rebutted with clear and convincing evidence that the firefighter does not meet the bill’s criteria.

As with any workers’ compensation claim, to qualify for benefits, the disease must result in death or the temporary or permanent total or partial disability of the employee.

The bill also permits retired firefighters to apply for the benefits within five years of their retirement.