H. B. 4536
(By Delegates Stemple, Varner, Swartzmiller,
Staton, Kominar, Michael and Amores)
[Introduced February 19, 2004; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §15-10A-1 and
§15-10A-2, all relating to establishing the law-enforcement
act; to authorize the reemployment of retired county and
municipality law-enforcement officers, and division of natural
resource law-enforcement officers.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §15-10A-1 and
§15-10A-2, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 10A. LAW-ENFORCEMENT REEMPLOYMENT ACT.
§15-10A-1. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds:
(1) That West Virginia law enforcement is currently suffering
from an unacceptably high number of vacant law-enforcement positions because of military service obligations, and that given
the time factors and expense associated with the hiring and
training of personnel with no prior law-enforcement experience, it
is in the interest of the state to reemploy retired law-enforcement
officers in order to temporarily fill only the vacant positions of
those law-enforcement officers called to active military duty;
(2) That no pension rights of any kind shall accrue or attach
pursuant to reemployment under this section;
(3) That the law-enforcement agency shall bear no
responsibility for medical payments for work-related injuries or
illnesses of employees hired pursuant to this section, other than
those commonly associated with state employees covered by workers'
compensation.
§15-10A-2. Reemployment of law-enforcement officers.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any honorably retired law-enforcement officer of any
county, municipality, or department of natural resources may, at
the discretion of the head of a law-enforcement agency, as defined
in section three, article ten of this chapter, be reemployed.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any honorably retired law-enforcement officer of any
county, municipality, or division of natural resources who
qualifies for reemployment shall possess all certification
requirements for such law-enforcement position.
(c) Any member reemployed pursuant to the provisions of this
section shall receive the same compensation as a regularly enlisted
member of the same rank. Any member reemployed pursuant to this
section shall receive credit for all years of service accrued prior
to their retirement, as well as service rendered after
reemployment. Any member reemployed pursuant to this section shall
exercise the same authority as a regularly enlisted member of such
law-enforcement agency. A reemployed law-enforcement officer shall
wear the same uniform and insignia, is subject to the same oath,
shall execute the same bond, shall exercise the same powers and is
subject to the same limitations as a regularly enlisted member of
such law-enforcement position.
(d) Any member reemployed pursuant to the provisions of this
section is not eligible for promotion or reclassification of any
type, nor is he or she eligible for appointment to temporary rank.
(e) Any reemployment offered subject to the provisions of this
section shall be for a period not exceeding two years from the date
of hiring.
(f) Any retired member applying for reemployment under this
section is required to pass such mental and physical examinations,
and meet such other requirements as may be provided in rules
promulgated by the head of the applicable law-enforcement agency
pursuant to this section.
(g) The head of the law-enforcement shall make provisions for coverage of personnel employed pursuant to this section by the
workers' compensation division, bureau of employment programs. In
the event a member reemployed pursuant to this section sustains an
illness or injury which is work related in origin, any cost
associated with the treatment shall be defrayed in this manner.
(h) In the event a work-related illness or injury, as
described within subsection (g) above, renders a member employed
pursuant to the provisions of this section permanently physically
or mentally disabled, the applicable law-enforcement agencies
disability shall apply, and the member's existing pension shall be
recalculated as though the disabling event had occurred coincident
with the member's original retirement. Any change in benefits
resulting from this recalculation may not be retroactive in nature.
The provisions of subsection (c), section twenty-nine of this
article do not apply with respect to payments for medical,
surgical, laboratory, X ray, hospital, ambulance and dental
expenses and fees. Neither do the provisions of this subsection
apply in the event the member is disabled because of some cause or
event which is determined not to be work related.
(i) Any individual reemployed pursuant to this section is not
eligible to contribute to any pension plan administered by the
consolidated public retirement board, nor may he or she establish
or accrue any new pension eligibility pursuant to such
reemployment.
(j) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any member reemployed pursuant to this section shall
serve at the will and pleasure of the head of the law-enforcement
agency, and is subject to termination without cause. Any member
reemployed pursuant to this section may not be included in the
classified service of the civil service system.
(k) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, compensation paid to any member reemployed pursuant to
this section shall be in addition to any public employees insurance
act retirement benefits, or any other retirement payments or
pension benefits which he or she is already entitled to receive.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to establish the
law-enforcement reemployment act; to authorize the reemployment of
retired county and municipality law-enforcement officers and DNR
officers that meet certification requirements, but without accruing
any additional retirement, or receiving any benefits.
§15-10A-1 and §15-10A-2
are new; therefore, strike-throughs
and underscoring have been omitted.