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History
- Referred to local government
Companion bill
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Establishes the payment of certain volunteer firefighter death benefits shall be within ninety days of the filing of application to receive such death benefit
In Assembly Committee · Local Governments · Sponsor Kevin Cahill
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S7196
Title of bill
An act to amend the volunteer firefighters' benefit law, in relation to the payment of death benefits
Purpose or general idea of the bill
To establish the payment of certain volunteer firefighter death benefits to be paid within ninety days of the filing of application to receive such death benefits.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill establishes the payment of certain volunteer firefighter death benefits shall be within ninety days of the filing of application to receive such death benefit.
Section 2 of the bill requires the compensation board to conduct outreach and support services to persons entitled to the death benefit payable under Section 7 of the VFBL.
Justification
Section 7 of the VFBL provides a death benefit of $50,000 for volunteer firefighters who die in the line of duty. Over the years, there have been a number of instances in which payment of the VFBL death benefits were delayed. These delays only cause significant hardship (financial and otherwise) for the beneficiary of the volunteer firefighter. It has been documented that in certain cases beneficiaries have waited over 6 months to receive payment of benefit. In at least one instance, a widow had to wait two and a half years before being compensated and almost lost her house as a result. This legislation will assist surviving spouses and beneficiaries through the claims process and mandate that payment of benefits be made available within 90 days upon the filing of application.
This measure will also encourage communication and coordination among the workers' compensation board, volunteer fire service organizations, volunteer firefighters and their families. While it is clear that some period of time is required in order to determine whether a death or injury occurred in the line of duty, excessive delays in payment only create significant frustration and anguish to the family of the volunteer firefighter. By including these minor additional parameters to the VFBL, this legislation will encourage communication among the interested parties and will ensure timely payment of allowable benefits.
Legislative history
Senate: New Bill Assembly: 2009-10: A.963 Referred to Local Governments 2007-08: A.7854 Referred to Local Governments 2005-06: A.7247 Referred to Local Governments 2003-04: Referred to Local Governments
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.