Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1492 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R7944 AAF-D
2	2	By: Wray H.B. No. 1492
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to benefits for peace officers who suffer from certain
8	8	diseases or illnesses.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. The heading to Subchapter B, Chapter 607,
11	11	Government Code, is amended to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER B. DISEASES OR ILLNESSES SUFFERED BY FIREFIGHTERS,
13	13	PEACE OFFICERS, AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS
14	14	SECTION 2. Section 607.051, Government Code, is amended by
15	15	adding Subdivision (4) to read as follows:
16	16	(4) "Peace officer" means an individual elected,
17	17	appointed, or employed to serve as a peace officer for a
18	18	governmental entity under Article 2.12, Code of Criminal Procedure,
19	19	or other law.
20	20	SECTION 3. Sections 607.052(a), (b), (e), (g), and (h),
21	21	Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
22	22	(a) Notwithstanding any other law, this subchapter applies
23	23	only to a firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
24	24	technician who:
25	25	(1) on becoming employed or during employment as a
26	26	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician,
27	27	received a physical examination that failed to reveal evidence of
28	28	the illness or disease for which benefits or compensation are
29	29	sought using a presumption established by this subchapter;
30	30	(2) is employed for five or more years as a
31	31	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician; and
32	32	(3) seeks benefits or compensation for a disease or
33	33	illness covered by this subchapter that is discovered during
34	34	employment as a firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
35	35	technician.
36	36	(b) A presumption under this subchapter does not apply:
37	37	(1) to a determination of a survivor's eligibility for
38	38	benefits under Chapter 615;
39	39	(2) in a cause of action brought in a state or federal
40	40	court except for judicial review of a proceeding in which there has
41	41	been a grant or denial of employment-related benefits or
42	42	compensation;
43	43	(3) to a determination regarding benefits or
44	44	compensation under a life or disability insurance policy purchased
45	45	by or on behalf of the firefighter, peace officer, or emergency
46	46	medical technician that provides coverage in addition to any
47	47	benefits or compensation required by law; or
48	48	(4) if the disease or illness for which benefits or
49	49	compensation is sought is known to be caused by the use of tobacco
50	50	and:
51	51	(A) the firefighter, peace officer, or emergency
52	52	medical technician is or has been a user of tobacco; or
53	53	(B) the firefighter's, peace officer's, or
54	54	emergency medical technician's spouse has, during the marriage,
55	55	been a user of tobacco that is consumed through smoking.
56	56	(e) A firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
57	57	technician who uses a presumption established under this subchapter
58	58	is entitled only to the benefits or compensation to which the
59	59	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician would
60	60	otherwise be entitled to receive at the time the claim for benefits
61	61	or compensation is filed.
62	62	(g) This subchapter applies to a firefighter, peace
63	63	officer, or emergency medical technician who provides services as
64	64	an employee of an entity created by an interlocal agreement.
65	65	(h) Subsection (b)(4) only prevents the application of the
66	66	presumption authorized by this subchapter and does not affect the
67	67	right of a firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
68	68	technician to provide proof, without the use of that presumption,
69	69	that an injury or illness occurred during the course and scope of
70	70	employment.
71	71	SECTION 4. Sections 607.053(a), (c), and (d), Government
72	72	Code, are amended to read as follows:
73	73	(a) A firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
74	74	technician is presumed to have suffered a disability or death
75	75	during the course and scope of employment if the firefighter, peace
76	76	officer, or emergency medical technician:
77	77	(1) received preventative immunization against
78	78	smallpox, or another disease to which the firefighter, peace
79	79	officer, or emergency medical technician may be exposed during the
80	80	course and scope of employment and for which immunization is
81	81	possible; and
82	82	(2) suffered death or total or partial disability as a
83	83	result of the immunization.
84	84	(c) A presumption established under Subsection (a) may not
85	85	be rebutted by evidence that the immunization was:
86	86	(1) not required by the employer;
87	87	(2) not required by law; or
88	88	(3) received voluntarily or with the consent of the
89	89	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician.
90	90	(d) A firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
91	91	technician who suffers from smallpox that results in death or total
92	92	or partial disability is presumed to have contracted the disease
93	93	during the course and scope of employment as a firefighter, peace
94	94	officer, or emergency medical technician.
95	95	SECTION 5. Section 607.054, Government Code, is amended to
96	96	read as follows:
97	97	Sec. 607.054. TUBERCULOSIS OR OTHER RESPIRATORY ILLNESS. A
98	98	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician who
99	99	suffers from tuberculosis, or any other disease or illness of the
100	100	lungs or respiratory tract that has a statistically positive
101	101	correlation with service as a firefighter, peace officer, or
102	102	emergency medical technician, that results in death or total or
103	103	partial disability is presumed to have contracted the disease or
104	104	illness during the course and scope of employment as a firefighter,
105	105	peace officer, or emergency medical technician.
106	106	SECTION 6. Section 607.056(a), Government Code, is amended
107	107	to read as follows:
108	108	(a) A firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
109	109	technician who suffers an acute myocardial infarction or stroke
110	110	resulting in disability or death is presumed to have suffered the
111	111	disability or death during the course and scope of employment as a
112	112	firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical technician if:
113	113	(1) while on duty, the firefighter, peace officer, or
114	114	emergency medical technician:
115	115	(A) was engaged in a situation that involved
116	116	nonroutine stressful or strenuous physical activity involving fire
117	117	suppression, rescue, hazardous material response, emergency
118	118	medical services, or other emergency response activity; or
119	119	(B) participated in a training exercise that
120	120	involved nonroutine stressful or strenuous physical activity; and
121	121	(2) the acute myocardial infarction or stroke occurred
122	122	while the firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
123	123	technician was engaging in the activity described under Subdivision
124	124	(1).
125	125	SECTION 7. Sections 607.057 and 607.058, Government Code,
126	126	are amended to read as follows:
127	127	Sec. 607.057. EFFECT OF PRESUMPTION. Except as provided by
128	128	Section 607.052(b), a presumption established under this
129	129	subchapter applies to a determination of whether a firefighter's,
130	130	peace officer's, or emergency medical technician's disability or
131	131	death resulted from a disease or illness contracted in the course
132	132	and scope of employment for purposes of benefits or compensation
133	133	provided under another employee benefit, law, or plan, including a
134	134	pension plan.
135	135	Sec. 607.058. PRESUMPTION REBUTTABLE. (a) A presumption
136	136	under Section 607.053, 607.054, 607.055, or 607.056 may be rebutted
137	137	through a showing by a preponderance of the evidence that a risk
138	138	factor, accident, hazard, or other cause not associated with the
139	139	individual's service as a firefighter, peace officer, or emergency
140	140	medical technician caused the individual's disease or illness.
141	141	(b) A rebuttal offered under this section must include a
142	142	statement by the person offering the rebuttal that describes, in
143	143	detail, the evidence that the person reviewed before making the
144	144	determination that a cause not associated with the individual's
145	145	service as a firefighter, peace officer, or emergency medical
146	146	technician caused the individual's disease or illness.
147	147	SECTION 8. The changes in law made by this Act apply to a
148	148	claim for benefits or compensation brought on or after the
149	149	effective date of this Act. A claim for benefits or compensation
150	150	brought before that date is covered by the law in effect on the date
151	151	the claim was made, and that law is continued in effect for that
152	152	purpose.
153	153	SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.