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| 5 | 5 | | 2025 -- S 0671 |
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| 6 | 6 | | ======== |
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| 7 | 7 | | LC000989 |
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| 8 | 8 | | ======== |
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| 9 | 9 | | S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D |
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| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025 |
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| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
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| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO MILITARY AFFAIRS AND DEFENSE -- EMERGENCY MANAGEM ENT |
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| 16 | 16 | | Introduced By: Senators Bissaillon, Britto, DiMario, and Urso |
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| 17 | 17 | | Date Introduced: March 07, 2025 |
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| 18 | 18 | | Referred To: Senate Finance |
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| 19 | 19 | | |
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| 20 | 20 | | |
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| 21 | 21 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
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| 22 | 22 | | SECTION 1. Section 30-15-15 of the General Laws in Chapter 30-15 entitled "Emergency 1 |
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| 23 | 23 | | Management" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2 |
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| 24 | 24 | | 30-15-15. Immunity from liability — Compensation for death or injury of disaster 3 |
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| 25 | 25 | | response workers. 4 |
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| 26 | 26 | | (a) All functions under this chapter, and all other activities relating to disaster response, are 5 |
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| 27 | 27 | | hereby declared to be governmental functions. Neither the state, nor any political subdivision 6 |
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| 28 | 28 | | thereof, nor other agencies of the state or political subdivision thereof, nor, except in cases of willful 7 |
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| 29 | 29 | | misconduct, gross negligence, or bad faith, any disaster response worker complying with, or 8 |
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| 30 | 30 | | reasonably attempting to comply with this chapter, or any order, rule, or regulation promulgated 9 |
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| 31 | 31 | | pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, or pursuant to any ordinance relating to precautionary 10 |
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| 32 | 32 | | measures enacted by any political subdivision of the state, shall be liable for the death of, or injury 11 |
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| 33 | 33 | | to, persons, or for damage to property, as a result of disaster response activity. The provisions of 12 |
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| 34 | 34 | | this section shall not affect the right of any person to receive benefits to which he or she would 13 |
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| 35 | 35 | | otherwise be entitled under this chapter, nor under the Workers’ Compensation Act, chapters 29 — 14 |
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| 36 | 36 | | 38 of title 28, nor under any pension law, nor the right of any person to receive any benefits or 15 |
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| 37 | 37 | | compensation under any act of Congress. 16 |
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| 38 | 38 | | (b) Any requirement for a license to practice any professional, mechanical, or other skill 17 |
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| 39 | 39 | | shall not apply to any authorized disaster response worker who shall, in the course of performing 18 |
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| 40 | 40 | | his or her duties as such, practice such professional, mechanical, or other skill during a disaster 19 |
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| 41 | 41 | | |
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| 42 | 42 | | |
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| 43 | 43 | | LC000989 - Page 2 of 3 |
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| 44 | 44 | | emergency. 1 |
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| 45 | 45 | | (c) In the absence of any other benefits as provided by law, all disaster response workers 2 |
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| 46 | 46 | | who shall be killed or sustain disability or injury while in training for or on disaster response duty 3 |
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| 47 | 47 | | shall be construed to be employees of the state, any other provisions of the law to the contrary 4 |
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| 48 | 48 | | notwithstanding, and shall be compensated in like manner as state employees are compensated 5 |
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| 49 | 49 | | under the provisions of chapters 29 — 38 of title 28. 6 |
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| 50 | 50 | | (d) In the absence of any other benefits as provided by law, any and all authorized disaster 7 |
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| 51 | 51 | | response workers who shall, in the course of performing their duties as such, practice professional, 8 |
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| 52 | 52 | | mechanical, or other skill during a disaster emergency, shall be considered a state employee and 9 |
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| 53 | 53 | | shall be entitled to all rights in like manner as state employees under the provisions of chapters 29 10 |
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| 54 | 54 | | through 38 of title 28 and under § 9-31-8. 11 |
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| 55 | 55 | | (d)(e) As used in this section, the term “disaster response worker” shall include any full- 12 |
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| 56 | 56 | | or part-time paid, volunteer, or auxiliary employee of this state, other states, territories, or 13 |
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| 57 | 57 | | possessions, the District of Columbia, the federal government, any neighboring country, or any 14 |
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| 58 | 58 | | political subdivision thereof, or any agency or organization, or any private person, firm, or 15 |
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| 59 | 59 | | corporation performing disaster response services at any place in this state subject to the order or 16 |
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| 60 | 60 | | control of, or pursuant to a request of, the state government or any political subdivision thereof. 17 |
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| 61 | 61 | | SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. 18 |
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| 62 | 62 | | ======== |
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| 63 | 63 | | LC000989 |
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| 64 | 64 | | ======== |
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| 65 | 65 | | |
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| 66 | 66 | | |
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| 67 | 67 | | LC000989 - Page 3 of 3 |
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| 68 | 68 | | EXPLANATION |
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| 69 | 69 | | BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL |
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| 70 | 70 | | OF |
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| 71 | 71 | | A N A C T |
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| 72 | 72 | | RELATING TO MILITARY AFFAIRS AND DEFENSE -- EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT |
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| 73 | 73 | | *** |
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| 74 | 74 | | This act would provide that any disaster response worker shall, in the course of their duties, 1 |
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| 75 | 75 | | be considered a state employee and be entitled to all rights in like manner as state employees under 2 |
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| 76 | 76 | | the provisions of chapters 29 through 38 of title 28 ("workers compensation") and under § 9-31-8 3 |
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| 77 | 77 | | ("defense of state employees by attorney general"). 4 |
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| 78 | 78 | | This act would take effect upon passage. 5 |
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| 79 | 79 | | ======== |
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| 80 | 80 | | LC000989 |
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| 81 | 81 | | ======== |
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| 82 | 82 | | |
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