NY State Senate Bill 2023-S7837

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to local government
Dec 27, 2023	referred to rules

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Local Government
Law Section:: Volunteer Firefighters' Benefit Law
Laws Affected:: Add §34, Vol Ffs Ben L

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a municipal group insurance technical assistance program for the purpose of assisting persons and municipalities with access to indemnity insurance and employee compensation pursuant to the volunteer firefighter's benefit law.

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S7837

SPONSOR: MANNION
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the volunteer firefighters' benefit law, in relation to
establishing a municipal group insurance technical assistance program

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

The purpose of this bill is to establish a municipal group insurance
technical assistance program.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill would establish a municipal group insurance tech-
nical assistance program, tasked with: establishing a service delivery
structure that includes a toll-free telephone hotline, an interactive
website and certain meeting options; identifying, investigating, refer-
ring and resolving complaints made by a person who is indemnified by a
by an insurance plan for a fire protection district or a fire alarm
district or a municipality that is required to provide such insurance to

such person; providing assistance to municipalities that contract or is
applying to contract for insurance indemnifying a fire protection
district or a fire alarm district; assisting eligible individuals in
filing and preparing appeals before the workers' compensation board;
and, collecting and tracking problems and inquiries encountered by indi-
viduals and municipalities.  Additionally, this section would require
notices and materials that are already required to be provided by the
Volunteer Firefighters' Benefits Law to include contact information for
the program and would create a request for proposal process for the
establishment of the program.

Section 2 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a
law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

According to the Office of the State Comptroller, as of 2017 there are
approximately eight hundred and eighty-six independent fire districts in
the State, which cover areas of towns excluding villages. Of those
districts, there are about 90,000 volunteer firefighters who spend their
free time in service to their communities. Volunteer firefighters make
up roughly 83.3% of the State's firefighting workforce. The current
structure of fire districts and fire companies form a patchwork-like
system of protection across the State. To be clear, every New Yorker
should feel safe knowing that if there is a fire in their home or place
of business, firefighters will show up to extinguish the blaze. However,
it is clear that the resources available to and support of the myriad
fire districts and companies need to be strengthened and bolstered.

In 1956, the Legislature created the Volunteer Firefighters' Benefit
Law, which is a chapter of the State Laws that is specifically, tailored
to assist volunteer firefighters.  Since the initial chapter, sixty-sev-
en years ago, the law has mostly remained the same. So completely
unchanged has this section of law been that in the half century since
enactment the language has been amended on average approximately twice a
decade.  Furthermore, other sections of State law see regular updates,
with certain sections of law seeing amendments once or even twice in the
same year. State support is difficult to procure with a system of byzan-
tine laws from a half century ago. This bill would establish an assist-
ance program to help volunteer firefighters and the municipalities that
contract for their services.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

This is a new bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

Minimal.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law.

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7837
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             December 27, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. MANNION -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the volunteer firefighters' benefit law, in relation  to
   establishing a municipal group insurance technical assistance program
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The volunteer  firefighters'  benefit  law  is  amended  by
 adding a new section 34 to read as follows:
   §  34.    MUNICIPAL  GROUP  INSURANCE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 1.
 THERE IS HEREBY ESTABLISHED BY THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD A MUNICI-
 PAL GROUP INSURANCE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  PROGRAM  FOR  THE  PURPOSE  OF
 ASSISTING  PERSONS AND MUNICIPALITIES WITH ACCESS TO INDEMNITY INSURANCE
 AND EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION AS REQUIRED BY THIS CHAPTER.
   2. SUCH PROGRAM SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING DUTIES,  INCLUDING,  BUT  NOT
 LIMITED TO:
   A.  ESTABLISHING  A SERVICE DELIVERY STRUCTURE BASED IN NEW YORK STATE
 THAT INCLUDES A TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE HOTLINE, AN INTERACTIVE WEBSITE  AND
 AVAILABILITY  OF  IN-PERSON, TELEPHONE AND EMAIL ACCESS TO PROGRAM STAFF
 OR VOLUNTEERS;
   B. IDENTIFYING, INVESTIGATING, REFERRING AND RESOLVING COMPLAINTS MADE
 BY, OR ON BEHALF OF, A PERSON WHO IS INDEMNIFIED BY  AN  INSURANCE  PLAN
 FOR  A  FIRE  PROTECTION  DISTRICT  OR  A  FIRE  ALARM DISTRICT, OR TO A
 VILLAGE, TOWN OR COUNTY, OR COMBINATION THEREOF,  THAT  IS  REQUIRED  TO
 PROVIDE INSURANCE TO SUCH PERSON, AS REQUIRED BY THIS CHAPTER;
   C.  PROVIDING  ASSISTANCE TO A VILLAGE, TOWN OR COUNTY, OR COMBINATION
 THEREOF, THAT CONTRACTS OR IS APPLYING TO CONTRACT FOR INSURANCE  INDEM-
 NIFYING  A FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT OR A FIRE ALARM DISTRICT, INCLUDING,
 BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE FINANCING OF ANY BENEFITS TO BE PAID WITH SERIAL
 BONDS OR CAPITAL NOTES, CONTRACTING AND PURCHASING SUCH INDEMNITY INSUR-
 ANCE, PARTICIPATING IN A COUNTY PLAN OR  MUNICIPAL  GROUP  PLAN,  FILING
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13287-03-3
 S. 7837                             2

 
 WITH  THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD AND PAYING FINANCIAL BENEFITS TO A
 PERSON COVERED BY SUCH INDEMNITY INSURANCE UNDER THIS CHAPTER;
   D.  ASSISTING  INDIVIDUALS  IN FILING AND PREPARING APPEALS BEFORE THE
 WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD AS MAY BE REQUIRED BY  THE  BOARD  OR  UNDER
 THIS CHAPTER;
   E.   COLLECTING,  TRACKING  AND  QUANTIFYING  PROBLEMS  AND  INQUIRIES
 ENCOUNTERED BY INDIVIDUALS AND MUNICIPALITIES; AND
   F. EDUCATING INDIVIDUALS OR A VILLAGE, TOWN OR COUNTY TO THEIR  RIGHTS
 AND  RESPONSIBILITIES  WITH  RESPECT  TO  INDEMNITY CONTRACTS FOR A FIRE
 PROTECTION DISTRICT OR A FIRE ALARM DISTRICT.
   3. NOTICES AND MATERIALS PROVIDED TO PERSONS BY THE  WORKERS'  COMPEN-
 SATION  BOARD  AS REQUIRED BY THIS CHAPTER SHALL INCLUDE THE NAME, PHONE
 NUMBER AND WEBSITE ADDRESS OF THE MUNICIPAL  GROUP  INSURANCE  TECHNICAL
 ASSISTANCE PROGRAM ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
   4.  FUNDS  AVAILABLE  FOR EXPENDITURE PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION FOR THE
 ESTABLISHMENT  OF  A  MUNICIPAL  GROUP  INSURANCE  TECHNICAL  ASSISTANCE
 PROGRAM  MAY  BE  ALLOCATED AND DISTRIBUTED BY THE CHAIR OF THE WORKERS'
 COMPENSATION BOARD, SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE BUDG-
 ET, BUT ONLY AFTER THE CHAIR OF THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD HOLDS  A
 REQUEST  FOR PROPOSAL PROCESS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A MUNICIPAL GROUP
 INSURANCE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  PROGRAM.  ONLY  DOMESTIC  NOT-FOR-PROFIT
 CORPORATIONS  SHALL  BE  ELIGIBLE  TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS FOR SUCH PROGRAM.
 ENTITIES AND INDIVIDUALS THAT CURRENTLY OR  HAVE  REPRESENTED  CLAIMANTS
 BEFORE  THE BOARD SHALL BE EXCLUDED FROM CONSIDERATION. THE CHAIR OF THE
 WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD SHALL  CONSIDER  ALL  COMPETITIVE  PROPOSALS
 SUBMITTED  THROUGH SUCH REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL PROCESS AND SHALL DETERMINE
 WHICH PROPOSAL SUBMITTED IS  APPROPRIATE  FOR  THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  A
 MUNICIPAL  GROUP  INSURANCE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. IN MAKING SUCH
 DETERMINATION, APPLICANTS WHO DEMONSTRATE EXPERIENCE PROVIDING  ADVOCACY
 OR  ASSISTANCE  TO  A FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT OR A FIRE ALARM DISTRICT,
 EXPERIENCE OPERATING A CALL CENTER, OR EXPERIENCE TRACKING AND REPORTING
 ON CASE ACTIVITIES WHILE  PROTECTING  INDIVIDUAL  CONFIDENTIALITY  SHALL
 RECEIVE DEFERENCE FOR THE AWARD.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law.

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Senate Bill S7837

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S7837

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Sponsored By

John W. Mannion

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S7837 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments