Bill Text: NJ S510 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes municipalities and fire districts to require physician's certificate as condition for service or continuing service by volunteer fire fighters; requires municipalities and fire districts to reimburse them for out-of-pocket costs.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2010-06-10 - Received in the Assembly, Referred to Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee [S510 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-S510-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
214th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2010 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator JOHN A. GIRGENTI
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
Senator CHRISTOPHER J. CONNORS
District 9 (Atlantic, Burlington and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes municipalities and fire districts to require physician's certificate as condition for service or continuing service by volunteer fire fighters; requires municipalities and fire districts to reimburse them for out-of-pocket costs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act authorizing municipalities and fire districts to require submission of physician's certificate as condition of service or continuing service by volunteers and supplementing chapter 14 of Title 40A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending N.J.S.40A:14-36 and P.L.1979, c.453.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New Section) The governing body of any municipality or the board of commissioners of any fire district maintaining a volunteer fire department may require any volunteer to supply a physician's certificate as a condition for continuing to serve as a volunteer or as a condition for being accepted as a volunteer by that municipality or fire district. The governing body of any municipality or the board of commissioners of any fire district maintaining a volunteer fire department may require a volunteer to supply a physician's certificate no more than once a year. The governing body or board of commissioners shall reimburse the volunteer for all costs and out-of-pocket expenses associated with supplying the physician's certificate.
2. N.J.S.40A:14-36 is amended to read as follows:
40A:14-36. a. The governing body of a municipality, by resolution, may appropriate annually such sums of money as they shall deem necessary for the purpose of compensating any volunteer [fireman] firefighter, not in receipt of compensation for his services, for any losses sustained by him while performing his duties as such volunteer fireman.
b. The governing body of a municipality that requires volunteer firefighters to obtain physician's certificates pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall reimburse the volunteers for all costs and out-of-pocket expenses associated with complying with that requirement.
(cf: N.J.S.40A:14-36)
3. Section 4 of P.L.1979, c.453 (C.40A:14-81.4) is amended to read as follows:
4. a. Any employees of a fire district and any volunteer [firemen] firefighter having membership in a volunteer fire company within the fire district may be reimbursed within the limitations of amounts appropriated therefor in the annual district budget for expenses and losses actually incurred in the performance of their duties.
b. The board of commissioners of any fire district that requires volunteer firefighters to obtain physician's certificates pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall reimburse volunteers for all costs and out-of-pocket expenses associated with complying with that requirement.
(cf: P.L.1979, c.453, s.4)
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
statement
This bill would authorize the governing body of any municipality or the board of commissioners of any fire district which maintains a volunteer fire department to require any volunteer to supply a physician's certificate, no more than once per year, as a condition for continuing to serve as a volunteer or being accepted as a volunteer by that municipality or fire district.
Under the bill's provisions, a municipality or fire district that imposes a requirement that a volunteer firefighter submit a physician's certificate must reimburse the volunteer for all out-of-pocket expenses associated with obtaining the certificate. The bill also revises the laws governing the compensation of volunteer firefighters to allow the volunteer to be reimbursed for the out-of-pocket costs associated with obtaining the physician's certificate.
Current law does not directly address the physical condition of such volunteers but instead covers the insurance and liability issues related to the potentially dangerous work that they do. Under current law, such volunteers may be covered by life insurance and other insurance considered necessary for the protection, safety and welfare of the municipality which is otherwise provided to public employees. In addition, under N.J.S.59:6-4, public entities and public employees are deemed not liable for injury caused by the failure to make ".a physical or mental examination, or to make an adequate physical or mental examination, of any person for the purpose of determining whether such person has a disease or physical or mental condition that would constitute a hazard to the health or safety of himself or others...."
Title 18A authorizes boards of education to require employees to undergo a physical examination which may include individual psychiatric or physical examinations of any employee. Current law is silent, however, with regard to the power of municipalities and fire districts to require volunteers to produce physicians' certificates.
