Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH P. CRYAN
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Increases PFRS accidental disability and accidental death pension when disability or death is caused by weapon.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the accidental disability pension and the accidental death pension in the Police and Firemen s Retirement System and amending P.L.1944, c.255.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 7 of P.L.1944, c.255 (C.43:16A-7) is amended to read as follows:
7. a. (1) Upon the written application by a member in service, by one acting in his behalf or by his employer any member may be retired on an accidental disability retirement allowance; provided, that the medical board, after a medical examination of such member, shall certify that the member is permanently and totally disabled as a direct result of a traumatic event occurring during and as a result of the performance of his regular or assigned duties and that such disability was not the result of the member's willful negligence and that such member is mentally or physically incapacitated for the performance of his usual duty and of any other available duty in the department which his employer is willing to assign to him. The application to accomplish such retirement must be filed within five years of the original traumatic event, but the board of trustees may consider an application filed after the five-year period if it can be factually demonstrated to the satisfaction of the board of trustees that the disability is due to the accident and the filing was not accomplished within the five-year period due to a delayed manifestation of the disability or to other circumstances beyond the control of the member.
(2) Upon retirement for accidental disability, a member shall receive an accidental disability retirement allowance which shall consist of:
(a) An annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of his aggregate contributions and
(b) A pension in the amount which, when added to the member's annuity, will provide a total retirement allowance of
2/3 of the member's actual annual compensation for which contributions were being made at the time of the occurrence of the accident or at the time of the member's retirement, whichever provides the largest possible benefit to the member, or
when the disability is caused on or after the effective date of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill) by a weapon, 100 percent of the member's actual annual compensation for which contributions were being made at the time of the occurrence of the accident or at the time of the member's retirement or of the adjusted final compensation, whichever provides the largest possible benefit to the member.
As used in this paragraph, weapon shall have the same meaning as in N.J.S. 2C:39-1; and
adjusted final compensation means the amount of final compensation or final compensation as adjusted, as the case may be, increased by the same percentage increase which is applied in any adjustments of the compensation schedule of active members after the member's retirement and before the date on which the retired member would have attained the age 65 years under an assumption of continuous service, at which time the amount resulting from such increases shall become fixed and shall be the basis for adjustments, if any, pursuant to the Pension Adjustment Act, P.L.1958, c.143 (C.43:3B-1 et seq.). Any adjustments to final compensation or adjusted final compensation shall take effect at the same time as any adjustments in the compensation schedule of active members. The provisions of the Pension Adjustment Act shall not apply to any pension based upon adjusted final compensation other than the fixed pension in effect when the member attains the age of 65 years.
(3) Upon receipt of proper proofs of the death of a member who has retired on accidental disability retirement allowance, there shall be paid to such member's beneficiary, an amount equal to 3 1/2 times the compensation upon which contributions by the member to the annuity savings fund were based in the last year of creditable service; provided, however, that if such death shall occur after the member shall have attained 55 years of age the amount payable shall equal 1/2 of such compensation instead of 3 1/2 times such compensation.
(4) Permanent and total disability resulting from a cardiovascular, pulmonary or musculoskeletal condition which was not a direct result of a traumatic event occurring in the performance of duty shall be deemed an ordinary disability.
b. (1) For purposes of this subsection:
"Qualifying condition or impairment of health" includes:
diseases of the upper respiratory tract and mucosae, including conditions such as conjunctivitis, rhinitis, sinusitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, vocal cord disease, upper airway hyper-reactivity and tracheo-bronchitis, or a combination of such conditions;
diseases of the lower respiratory tract, including but not limited to bronchitis, asthma, reactive airway dysfunction syndrome, and different types of pneumonitis, such as hypersensitivity, granulomatous, or eosinophilic;
diseases of the gastroesophageal tract, including esophagitis and reflux disease, either acute or chronic, caused by exposure or aggravated by exposure;
diseases of the psychological axis, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, or any combination of such conditions;
diseases of the skin such as contact dermatitis or burns, either acute or chronic in nature, infectious, irritant, allergic, idiopathic or non-specific reactive in nature, caused by exposure or aggravated by exposure; and new onset diseases resulting from exposure as such diseases occurring in the future including cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asbestos-related disease, heavy metal poisoning, musculoskeletal disease and chronic psychological disease.
"World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations" means the rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations at the World Trade Center site between September 11, 2001 and October 11, 2001.
"World Trade Center site" means any location below a line starting from the Hudson River and Canal Street, east on Canal Street to Pike Street, south on Pike Street to the East River, and extending to the lower tip of Manhattan.
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of subsection a. of this section or any other law to the contrary, for a member who participated, whether or not under orders or instruction by an employer to so participate, in World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations for a minimum of eight hours, permanent and total disability resulting from a qualifying condition or impairment of health shall be presumed to have occurred during and as a result of the performance of the member's regular or assigned duties and not the result of the member's willful negligence, unless the contrary can be proved by competent evidence.
A member who did not participate in such operations for a minimum of eight hours shall be eligible for the presumption provided that:
the member participated in the rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations at the World Trade Center site between September 11, 2001 and September 12, 2001;
the member sustained a documented physical injury at the World
Trade Center site between September 11, 2001 and September 12, 2001 that is a qualifying condition or impairment of health resulting in a disability to the member that prevented the member from continuing to participate in World Trade Center rescu