SB79.html

Chapter 9 of Title 45 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to insuring and indemnification of public officers and employees, is amended by striking in its entirety paragraphs (4) and (5) of Code Section 45-9-81, relating to definitions applicable to Part 1 of Article 5 of this chapter with respect to the indemnification of certain public safety employees, and inserting in lieu thereof new paragraphs (4) and (5) to read as follows:
"(4)(A) 'Firefighter' or 'fireman' means any person who is employed as a professional firefighter on a full-time basis of at least 40 hours per week by any municipal, county, or state government fire department employing three or more firefighters and who has the responsibility of preventing and suppressing fires, protecting life and property, enforcing municipal, county, and state fire prevention codes, enforcing any law pertaining to the prevention and control of fires or who performs any acts or actions while on duty or when responding to a fire or emergency during any fire or other emergency or while performing duties intended to protect life and property.
(B) 'Firefighter' or 'fireman' shall also mean any individual serving as an officially recognized or designated member of a legally organized volunteer fire department who performs any acts or actions while on duty or when responding to a fire or emergency during any fire or other emergency or while performing duties intended to protect life and property.
(C) 'Firefighter' or 'fireman' shall also mean any individual employed by a person or corporation which has a contract with a municipal corporation or county to provide fire prevention and fire-fighting services to such municipal corporation or county and any such individual is employed on a full-time basis of at least 40 hours per week and has the responsibility of preventing and suppressing fires, protecting life and property, enforcing municipal or county fire prevention codes, enforcing any municipal or county ordinances pertaining to the prevention and control of fires or who performs any acts or actions while on duty or when responding to a fire or emergency during any fire or other emergency or while performing duties intended to protect life and property.
(5) 'In the line of duty' means:
(A) With respect to an emergency medical technician, while on duty and when responding to or returning from an emergency or performing duties at the scene of an emergency or transporting a person to a medical facility for emergency treatment or returning therefrom;
(B) With respect to a firefighter, while on duty and when responding to or returning from a fire or other emergency or performing duties during any fire or other emergency or performing duties intended to protect life and property;
(C) With respect to a law enforcement officer or firefighter, while on duty and performing services for and receiving compensation from the law enforcement and fire service agency which employs such officer or firefighter, while off duty when responding to any situation which would save a life or preserve the peace, or while preventing or attempting to prevent the commission of a crime or fire. A law enforcement officer or firefighter who is performing duties for and receiving compensation from a private employer at the time of such officer´s or firefighter´s death or bodily injury causing permanent disability shall not be considered in the line of duty unless the officer or firefighter has left the scope of his or her employment for the private employer for the direct purpose of enforcing or attempting to enforce fire service, the criminal or traffic laws, preserving or attempting to preserve public order, protecting or attempting to protect life or property, performing active state service as a member of the Georgia National Guard, preventing or attempting to prevent a crime, detecting or attempting to detect crime, or investigating or attempting to investigate crime. The determination that a law enforcement officer or firefighter was killed or permanently disabled in the line of duty and is entitled to indemnification pursuant to this part shall not be considered in the determination of the entitlement of such officer to workers´ compensation, disability, health, or other benefits from such officer´s or firefighter´s public or private employer; or
(D) With respect to a prison guard, while on duty and performing services for and receiving compensation from the public agency which employs such prison guard."

Said chapter is further amended by striking in its entirety Code Section 45-9-102, relating to definitions applicable to Part 2 of Article 5 of said chapter, with respect to the temporary disability compensation program for certain public safety employees, and inserting in lieu thereof a new Code Section 45-9-102 to read as follows:
"45-9-102.
As used in this part, the term:
(1) 'Commission' means the Georgia State Indemnification Commission created in Code Section 45-9-83.
(2) 'Firefighter' or 'fireman' means any person who is employed as a professional firefighter on a full-time basis by any municipal, county, or state government fire department employing three or more firefighters and who has the responsibility of preventing and suppressing fires, protecting life and property, enforcing municipal, county, and state fire prevention codes, enforcing any law pertaining to the prevention and control of fires or who performs any acts or actions while on duty or when responding to a fire or emergency during any fire or other emergency or while performing duties intended to protect life and property.
(3) 'Full-time' means an employee who regularly works 30 hours or more each week.
(4) 'In the line of duty' means:
(A) With respect to a firefighter, while on duty and performing duties during any fire or other emergency or performing duties intended to protect life and property; or
(B) With respect to a law enforcement officer or firefighter, while on duty and performing services for and receiving compensation from the law enforcement or fire service agency which employs such officer or firefighter, while off duty and responding to any situation which would save a life or preserve the peace, or while preventing or attempting to prevent the commission of a crime or fire. A law enforcement officer or firefighter who is performing duties for and receiving compensation from a private employer at the time of such officer´s or firefighter´s bodily injury, but not permanent disability, shall not be considered in the line of duty unless the officer or firefighter has left the scope of his or her employment for the private employer for the direct purpose of enforcing or attempting to enforce fire service, the criminal or traffic laws, preserving or attempting to preserve public order, protecting or attempting to protect life or property, preventing or attempting to prevent a crime, detecting or attempting to detect crime, or investigating or attempting to investigate crime. The determination that a law enforcement officer or firefighter was disabled in the line of duty and is entitled to compensation pursuant to this part shall not be considered in the determination of the entitlement of such officer to workers´ compensation, disability, health, or other benefits from such officer´s or firefighter´s public or private employer.
(5) 'Injured in the line of duty' means an injury which arises out of or in the course of employment in the line of duty. Going to or from work shall not be considered in the line of duty.
(6) 'Law enforcement officer' means any agent or officer of this state, or a political subdivision or municipality thereof, who, as a full-time employee, is vested either expressly by law or by virtue of public employment or service with authority to enforce the criminal or traffic laws and whose duties include the preservation of public order, the protection of life and property, or the prevention, detection, or investigation of crime. Such term also includes prison guards as defined under Code Section 45-9-81 and the employees designated by the commissioner of juvenile justice of the Department of Juvenile Justice pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection (i) of Code Section 49-4A-8, which employees have the duty to investigate and apprehend delinquent and unruly children who have escaped from a facility under the jurisdiction of the Department of Juvenile Justice or who have broken the conditions of supervision and employees designated and delegated law enforcement powers by the Public Service Commission pursuant to Code Sections 46-7-28 and 46-11-6, which personnel have the duty to enforce the laws relating to motor carriers and the transportation of hazardous materials."

Said chapter is further amended by striking in its entirety Code Section 45-9-103, relating to payment of compensation with respect to temporary disability of certain public safety employees, and inserting in lieu thereof a new Code Section 45-9-103 to read as follows:
"45-9-103.
(a) Any law enforcement officer who becomes physically disabled, but not permanently disabled, on or subsequent to July 1, 2001, as a result of a physical injury incurred in the line of duty and caused by a willful act of violence committed by a person other than a fellow employee shall be entitled to receive compensation as provided in this Code section. Any firefighter who becomes physically disabled, but not permanently disabled, on or subsequent to July 1, 2001, as a result of a physical injury incurred in the line of duty while fighting a fire shall be entitled to receive compensation as provided in this Code section. The compensation shall be paid to eligible applicants by the commission from funds appropriated to the commission for such purpose.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this part, any law enforcement officer or firefighter injured in the line of duty as provided in subsection (a) of this Code section shall receive monthly compensation from the commission in an amount equal to such person´s regular compensation for the period of time that the law enforcement officer or firefighter is physically unable to perform the duties of his or her employment; provided, however, that such benefits provided pursuant to this Code section for injuries resulting from a single incident shall not be granted for more than a total of 12 months. A law enforcement officer or firefighter shall be required to submit to the commission satisfactory evidence of such disability.
(c) Benefits made available under this Code section shall be subordinate to any workers´ compensation benefits, disability and other compensation benefits from the person´s employer which the law enforcement officer or firefighter is awarded and shall be limited to the difference between the amount of workers´ compensation benefits and other compensation benefits actually paid and the amount of the law enforcement officer´s or firefighter´s regular compensation.
(d) A law enforcement officer or firefighter who collects benefits pursuant to this Code section shall not be entitled to any benefits under Code Section 45-7-9.
(e) A law enforcement officer or firefighter who is disabled and who receives indemnification under Part 1 of this article as a result of an incident shall not be entitled to any compensation under this Code section for the disability resulting from the same incident. A law enforcement officer or firefighter who initially receives benefits under this Code section but who is determined subsequently to be entitled to benefits under Part 1 of this article with respect to the same incident or whose beneficiary is determined subsequently to be entitled to benefits under Part 1 of this article shall be entitled only to the amount equal to the benefits to which the person would be entitled under Part 1 reduced by the total amount of benefits received under this Code section."

The Official Code of Georgia Annotated is amended by striking from the following Code sections the terms "fireman" and "firemen" wherever the same shall occur and inserting in lieu thereof, respectively, the terms "firefighter" and "firefighters":
(1) Code Section 8-2-51, relating to inspection of buildings and notifying owners regarding noncompliance with requirements relating to fire escapes;
(2) Code Section 16-10-24, relating to the offense of hindering certain public safety employees;
(3) Code Section 16-10-30, relating to the offense of refusal to obey official request at fire or other emergency;
(4) Code Section 17-10-30, relating to procedure for imposition of death penalty generally;
(5) Code Section 20-3-451, relating to definitions applicable under Subpart 7 of Part 3 of Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 20, relating to grants to children of law enforcement officers, firefighters, and prison guards;
(6) Code Section 20-3-453, relating to eligibility for grants to children of law enforcement officers, firefighters, and prison guards;
(7) Code Section 25-4-9, relating to completion of basic firefighter training course and establishment of requirements for course;
(8) Code Section 25-7-2, relating to the creation of the Georgia Fire Academy;
(9) Code Section 31-22-9.1, relating to HIV tests and who may perform tests;
(10) Code Section 34-3-1, relating to the hours of labor in cotton or woolen manufacturing establishments;
(11) Code Section 40-1-1, relating to definitions applicable to Title 40;
(12) Code Section 40-6-2, relating to obedience to authorized persons directing traffic;
(13) Code Section 42-1-6, relating to injury or contact by inmate presenting possible threat of transmission of communicable disease;
(14) Code Section 42-5-85, relating to leave privileges of inmates serving murder sentences;
(15) Code Section 45-7-9, relating to compensation for line-of-duty injuries of full-time state employees;
(16) Code Section 45-9-82, relating to establishment of indemnification program for certain public safety employees;
(17) Code Section 45-9-84.2, relating to the Georgia State Indemnification Fund and authorization for appropriation of moneys to the fund;
(18) Code Section 45-9-85, relating to payment of indemnification for death or disability generally of certain public safety employees;
(19) Code Section 45-9-86, relating to application for indemnification with respect to certain public safety employees;
(20) Code Section 45-9-86.2, relating to time limitation on applications for indemnification with respect to certain public safety employees permanently disabled due to organic brain damage;
(21) Code Section 45-9-101, relating to the purpose of Part 2 of Article 5 of Chapter 9 of Title 45 with respect to payment of compensation to certain public safety employees for temporary disability;
(22) Code Section 45-9-104, relating to submission of application for payment of compensation to certain public safety employees for temporary disability;
(23) Code Section 45-9-105, relating to effect of penal violations with respect to payment of compensation to certain public safety employees for temporary disability; and
(24) Code Section 45-10-25, relating to exceptions to prohibitions on transactions with state agencies.