Bill Text: NY S07837 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: 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.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-06-06 - referred to local governments [S07837 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S07837-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7837

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    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:

     1    Section 1. The volunteer  firefighters'  benefit  law  is  amended  by
     2  adding a new section 34 to read as follows:
     3    §  34.    Municipal  group  insurance technical assistance program. 1.
     4  There is hereby established by the workers' compensation board a munici-
     5  pal group insurance technical assistance  program  for  the  purpose  of
     6  assisting  persons and municipalities with access to indemnity insurance
     7  and employee compensation as required by this chapter.
     8    2. Such program shall have the following duties,  including,  but  not
     9  limited to:
    10    a.  establishing  a service delivery structure based in New York state
    11  that includes a toll-free telephone hotline, an interactive website  and
    12  availability  of  in-person, telephone and email access to program staff
    13  or volunteers;
    14    b. identifying, investigating, referring and resolving complaints made
    15  by, or on behalf of, a person who is indemnified by  an  insurance  plan
    16  for  a  fire  protection  district  or  a  fire  alarm district, or to a
    17  village, town or county, or combination thereof,  that  is  required  to
    18  provide insurance to such person, as required by this chapter;
    19    c.  providing  assistance to a village, town or county, or combination
    20  thereof, that contracts or is applying to contract for insurance  indem-
    21  nifying  a fire protection district or a fire alarm district, including,
    22  but not limited to, the financing of any benefits to be paid with serial
    23  bonds or capital notes, contracting and purchasing such indemnity insur-
    24  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

     1  with  the workers' compensation board and paying financial benefits to a
     2  person covered by such indemnity insurance under this chapter;
     3    d.  assisting  individuals  in filing and preparing appeals before the
     4  workers' compensation board as may be required by  the  board  or  under
     5  this chapter;
     6    e.   collecting,  tracking  and  quantifying  problems  and  inquiries
     7  encountered by individuals and municipalities; and
     8    f. educating individuals or a village, town or county to their  rights
     9  and  responsibilities  with  respect  to  indemnity contracts for a fire
    10  protection district or a fire alarm district.
    11    3. Notices and materials provided to persons by the  workers'  compen-
    12  sation  board  as required by this chapter shall include the name, phone
    13  number and website address of the municipal  group  insurance  technical
    14  assistance program established pursuant to this section.
    15    4.  Funds  available  for expenditure pursuant to this section for the
    16  establishment  of  a  municipal  group  insurance  technical  assistance
    17  program  may  be  allocated and distributed by the chair of the workers'
    18  compensation board, subject to the approval of the director of the budg-
    19  et, but only after the chair of the workers' compensation board holds  a
    20  request  for proposal process for the establishment of a municipal group
    21  insurance technical assistance  program.  Only  domestic  not-for-profit
    22  corporations  shall  be  eligible  to submit proposals for such program.
    23  Entities and individuals that currently or  have  represented  claimants
    24  before  the board shall be excluded from consideration. The chair of the
    25  workers' compensation board shall  consider  all  competitive  proposals
    26  submitted  through such request for proposal process and shall determine
    27  which proposal submitted is  appropriate  for  the  establishment  of  a
    28  municipal  group  insurance technical assistance program. In making such
    29  determination, applicants who demonstrate experience providing  advocacy
    30  or  assistance  to  a fire protection district or a fire alarm district,
    31  experience operating a call center, or experience tracking and reporting
    32  on case activities while  protecting  individual  confidentiality  shall
    33  receive deference for the award.
    34    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
    35  it shall have become a law.