F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
HB 1171 2021
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to 911 public safety
3 telecommunicators; amending s. 112.1815, F.S.;
4 revising the definition of "first responder" to
5 include 911 public safety telecommunicators; expanding
6 eligibility for certain workers' compensation benefits
7 for first responders to include 911 public safety
8 telecommunicators; amending s. 121.0515, F.S.;
9 revising criteria in the Special Risk Class of the
10 Florida Retirement System to include members employed
11 as 911 public safety telecommunicators; specifying the
12 amount of creditable years needed to receive a full
13 retirement benefit without penalty; requiring such
14 members to have their retirement benefits calculated
15 in accordance with provisions for Regular Class
16 members; conforming cross-references; declaring that
17 the act fulfills an important state interest;
18 providing an effective date.
19
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22 Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 112.1815, Florida
23 Statutes, is amended to read:
24 112.1815 First responders Firefighters, paramedics,
25 emergency medical technicians, and law enforcement officers;
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26 special provisions for employment-related accidents and
27 injuries.—
28 (1) As used in this section, the term "first responder" as
29 used in this section means a law enforcement officer as defined
30 in s. 943.10, a firefighter as defined in s. 633.102, or an
31 emergency medical technician or paramedic as defined in s.
32 401.23, or a 911 public safety telecommunicator as defined in s.
33 401.465 employed by state or local government. The term also
34 includes first responders serving in a volunteer capacity who
35 are law enforcement officer, firefighter, or emergency medical
36 technician or paramedic engaged by the state or a local
37 government is also considered a first responder of the state or
38 local government for purposes of this section.
39 Section 2. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2), subsection
40 (3), and paragraph (d) of subsection (8) of section 121.0515,
41 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
42 121.0515 Special Risk Class.—
43 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—
44 (h) Effective August 1, 2008, "special risk member"
45 includes any member who meets the special criteria for continued
46 membership set forth in paragraph (3)(k) (3)(j).
47 (3) CRITERIA.—A member, to be designated as a special risk
48 member, must meet the following criteria:
49 (a) Effective October 1, 1978, the member must be employed
50 as a law enforcement officer and be certified, or required to be
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51 certified, in compliance with s. 943.1395, except that; however,
52 sheriffs and elected police chiefs are not required to be
53 certified excluded from meeting the certification requirements
54 of this paragraph. In addition, the member's duties and
55 responsibilities must include the pursuit, apprehension, and
56 arrest of law violators or suspected law violators; or as of
57 July 1, 1982, the member must be an active member of a bomb
58 disposal unit whose primary responsibility is the location,
59 handling, and disposal of explosive devices; or the member must
60 be the supervisor or command officer of a member or members who
61 have such responsibilities. Administrative support personnel,
62 including, but not limited to, those whose primary duties and
63 responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal, and
64 personnel, are not included;
65 (b) Effective October 1, 1978, the member must be employed
66 as a firefighter and be certified, or required to be certified,
67 in compliance with s. 633.408 and be employed solely within the
68 fire department of a local government employer or an agency of
69 state government with firefighting responsibilities. In
70 addition, the member's duties and responsibilities must include
71 on-the-scene fighting of fires; as of October 1, 2001, fire
72 prevention or firefighter training; as of October 1, 2001,
73 direct supervision of firefighting units, fire prevention, or
74 firefighter training; or as of July 1, 2001, aerial firefighting
75 surveillance performed by fixed-wing aircraft pilots employed by
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76 the Florida Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture and
77 Consumer Services; or the member must be the supervisor or
78 command officer of a member or members who have such
79 responsibilities. Administrative support personnel, including,
80 but not limited to, those whose primary duties and
81 responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal, and
82 personnel, are not included. All periods of creditable service
83 in fire prevention or firefighter training, or as the supervisor
84 or command officer of a member or members who have such
85 responsibilities, and for which the employer paid the special
86 risk contribution rate, are included;
87 (c) Effective October 1, 1978, the member must be employed
88 as a correctional officer and be certified, or required to be
89 certified, in compliance with s. 943.1395. In addition, the
90 member's primary duties and responsibilities must be the
91 custody, and physical restraint if when necessary, of prisoners
92 or inmates within a prison, jail, or other criminal detention
93 facility, or while on work detail outside the facility, or while
94 being transported; or as of July 1, 1984, the member must be the
95 supervisor or command officer of a member or members who have
96 such responsibilities. Administrative support personnel,
97 including, but not limited to, those whose primary duties and
98 responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal, and
99 personnel, are not included; however, wardens and assistant
100 wardens, as defined by rule, are included;
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101 (d) Effective October 1, 1999, the member must be employed
102 by a licensed Advance Life Support (ALS) or Basic Life Support
103 (BLS) employer as an emergency medical technician or a paramedic
104 and be certified in compliance with s. 401.27. In addition, the
105 member's primary duties and responsibilities must include on-
106 the-scene emergency medical care or as of October 1, 2001,
107 direct supervision of emergency medical technicians or
108 paramedics, or the member must be the supervisor or command
109 officer of one or more members who have such responsibility.
110 Administrative support personnel, including, but not limited to,
111 those whose primary responsibilities are in accounting,
112 purchasing, legal, and personnel, are not included;
113 (e) Effective January 1, 2001, the member must be employed
114 as a community-based correctional probation officer and be
115 certified, or required to be certified, in compliance with s.
116 943.1395. In addition, the member's primary duties and
117 responsibilities must be the supervised custody, surveillance,
118 control, investigation, and counseling of assigned inmates,
119 probationers, parolees, or community controllees within the
120 community; or the member must be the supervisor of a member or
121 members who have such responsibilities. Administrative support
122 personnel, including, but not limited to, those whose primary
123 duties and responsibilities are in accounting, purchasing, legal
124 services, and personnel management, are not included; however,
125 probation and parole circuit and deputy circuit administrators
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126 are included;
127 (f) Effective January 1, 2001, the member must be employed
128 in one of the following classes and must spend at least 75
129 percent of his or her time performing duties that which involve
130 contact with patients or inmates in a correctional or forensic
131 facility or institution:
132 1. Dietitian (class codes 5203 and 5204);
133 2. Public health nutrition consultant (class code 5224);
134 3. Psychological specialist (class codes 5230 and 5231);
135 4. Psychologist (class code 5234);
136 5. Senior psychologist (class codes 5237 and 5238);
137 6. Regional mental health consultant (class code 5240);
138 7. Psychological Services Director—DCF (class code 5242);
139 8. Pharmacist (class codes 5245 and 5246);
140 9. Senior pharmacist (class codes 5248 and 5249);
141 10. Dentist (class code 5266);
142 11. Senior dentist (class code 5269);
143 12. Registered nurse (class codes 5290 and 5291);
144 13. Senior registered nurse (class codes 5292 and 5293);
145 14. Registered nurse specialist (class codes 5294 and
146 5295);
147 15. Clinical associate (class codes 5298 and 5299);
148 16. Advanced practice registered nurse (class codes 5297
149 and 5300);
150 17. Advanced practice registered nurse specialist (class
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151 codes 5304 and 5305);
152 18. Registered nurse supervisor (class codes 5306 and
153 5307);
154 19. Senior registered nurse supervisor (class codes 5308
155 and 5309);
156 20. Registered nursing consultant (class codes 5312 and
157 5313);
158 21. Quality management program supervisor (class code
159 5314);
160 22. Executive nursing director (class codes 5320 and
161 5321);
162 23. Speech and hearing therapist (class code 5406); or
163 24. Pharmacy manager (class code 5251);
164 (g) Effective October 1, 2005, through June 30, 2008, the
165 member must be employed by a law enforcement agency or medical
166 examiner's office in a forensic discipline recognized by the
167 International Association for Identification and must qualify
168 for active membership in the International Association for
169 Identification. The member's primary duties and responsibilities
170 must include the collection, examination, preservation,
171 documentation, preparation, or analysis of physical evidence or
172 testimony, or both, or the member must be the direct supervisor,
173 quality management supervisor, or command officer of one or more
174 individuals with such responsibility. Administrative support
175 personnel, including, but not limited to, those whose primary
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176 responsibilities are clerical or in accounting, purchasing,
177 legal, and personnel, are not included;
178 (h) Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by
179 the Department of Law Enforcement in the crime laboratory or by
180 the Division of State Fire Marshal in the forensic laboratory in
181 one of the following classes:
182 1. Forensic technologist (class code 8459);
183 2. Crime laboratory technician (class code 8461);
184 3. Crime laboratory analyst (class code 8463);
185 4. Senior crime laboratory analyst (class code 8464);
186 5. Crime laboratory analyst supervisor (class code 8466);
187 6. Forensic chief (class code 9602); or
188 7. Forensic services quality manager (class code 9603);
189 (i) Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by
190 a local government law enforcement agency or medical examiner's
191 office and must spend at least 65 percent of his or her time
192 performing duties that involve the collection, examination,
193 preservation, documentation, preparation, or analysis of human
194 tissues or fluids or physical evidence having potential
195 biological, chemical, or radiological hazard or contamination,
196 or use chemicals, processes, or materials that may have
197 carcinogenic or health-damaging properties in the analysis of
198 such evidence, or the member must be the direct supervisor of
199 one or more individuals having such responsibility. If a special
200 risk member changes to another position within the same agency,
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201 he or she must submit a complete application as provided in
202 paragraph (4)(a);
203 (j) Effective July 1, 2021, the member must be employed as
204 a 911 public safety telecommunicator as defined in s. 401.465.
205 The number of creditable years for full retirement eligibility
206 for the member shall be 25 years without penalty. However, upon
207 his or her retirement, the member shall have his or her benefits
208 calculated in accordance with the Regular Class benefit
209 provisions of s. 121.091(1)(a)1.; or
210 (k)(j) The member must have already qualified for and be
211 actively participating in special risk membership under
212 paragraph (a), paragraph (b), or paragraph (c), must have
213 suffered a qualifying injury as d