Introduced Version
House Bill 2543 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
H. B. 2543
(By Mr. Speaker, (Mr. Thompson) and Delegates Boggs,
Caputo, Swartzmiller, White, Miley, Poling, M., Morgan,
Armstead, Lane and Cowles)
[Introduced February 19, 2013; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §12-4-14a of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to specifying that the subsidy
provided to volunteer fire departments to offset certain
workers' compensation premium increases apply to increases
attributable to the fire fighting service, rapid response
emergency medical service, ambulance service and diving
service components of the services provided by volunteer fire
departments.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §12-4-14a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. ACCOUNTS, REPORTS AND GENERAL PROVISIONS.
§12-4-14a. Workers' Compensation Subsidy for Volunteer Fire
Departments; creation of program; Auditor to
administer.
(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) "Fiscal year" means the fiscal year of the state.
(2) "Individual base year premium" means the workers'
compensation insurance individual premium that became due and
payable by a volunteer fire department after June 30, 2010, but
before July 1, 2011.
(3) "Individual premium" means the workers' compensation
insurance premium due and payable by a volunteer fire department
for fire fighting services, rapid response emergency medical
services, ambulance services or diving services provided by the
volunteer fire department in each twelve month period beginning on
or after July 1, 2011.
(4) "Total base year premium" means the aggregate workers'
compensation insurance premium due and payable by all volunteer
fire departments for fire fighting services, rapid response
emergency medical services, ambulance services or diving services
provided by the volunteer fire departments as determined by the
Insurance Commissioner after June 30, 2010, but before July 1,
2011.
(5) "Total premium" means the aggregate workers' compensation
insurance premium due and payable by all volunteer fire departments
for fire fighting services, rapid response emergency medical
services, ambulance services or diving services provided by the
volunteer fire departments in each twelve month period beginning on
or after July 1, 2011.
(b) In recognition of the burden of increasing workers'
compensation insurance premiums on volunteer fire departments, the
Legislature has determined that additional funding assistance
should be made available to eligible departments to pay a portion
of those premium increases beginning with invoices due and payable
on or after July 1, 2011.
(c) There is hereby established a special program which shall
be known as the "Volunteer Fire Department Workers' Compensation
Subsidy Program." The program shall be administered by the State
Auditor from moneys that may be appropriated and designated for the
program by the Legislature.
(d) The State Auditor shall administer the distribution of
moneys appropriated for Volunteer Fire Department Workers'
Compensation Subsidy Program to volunteer fire departments to help
defray workers' compensation insurance premium increases.
(1) Volunteer fire departments shall request supplemental
funds by submitting to the Auditor the following information:
(A) The previous fiscal year's workers' compensation premium
invoices with paid receipts;
(B) The current fiscal year's workers' compensation premium
invoices showing the amount due and due date and any applicable
paid receipts; and
(C) Any other information the Auditor deems necessary for
administering the subsidy on forms and schedules as the Auditor directs. The Auditor is authorized to set up an electronic filing
system at his or her discretion for filing of the aforementioned
information.
(2) After determining that there is a premium increase and the
amount of the premium increase for the volunteer fire department
requesting the subsidy, the Auditor shall make disbursements in the
manner set forth in subsection (e) of this section subject to the
following requirements:
(A) The volunteer fire department must be in good standing
with the State Fire Marshal;
(B) The volunteer fire department must be registered with the
Auditor's Office in a form and manner prescribed by the Auditor
prior to being eligible for consideration of any subsidy, which
registration must be completed no fewer than thirty days prior to
the due date of the workers' compensation premium;
(C) The volunteer fire department must agree that the subsidy
for its workers' compensation insurance premium increase will be
paid directly to its insurance carrier by the Auditor and that it
will timely pay the balance of the premium due; and
(D) Should a volunteer fire department fail to pay the balance
of its workers' compensation insurance premium after a disbursement
by the Auditor and that insurance policy is subsequently cancelled,
the premium paid by the Auditor shall be returned directly to him
or her. If the Auditor does not receive a reimbursement for a cancelled policy, he or she shall seek reimbursement for the
subsidy portion of the insurance premium from the State Treasurer
when the Treasurer makes the next quarterly payment to the
volunteer fire department pursuant to sections thirty-three and
fourteen-d, article three, chapter thirty-three of this code.
(e) Beginning with the fiscal year that starts July 1, 2011,
and continuing in each fiscal year thereafter, after the Auditor
has verified that a volunteer fire department is eligible for a
subsidy pursuant to this section, he or she shall pay on behalf of
a volunteer fire department its subsidy, which is calculated by:
(1) Dividing the total amount of premium subsidy allocated by
the Legislature to the Volunteer Fire Department Workers'
Compensation Subsidy Program by the total premium minus the total
base year premium, which calculation produces the "total shortfall
multiplier"; and
(2) Multiplying the total shortfall multiplier determined in
subdivision (1) of this subsection by the individual premium less
the individual base year premium.
(3) In no event shall a volunteer fire department receive a
workers' compensation premium subsidy greater than one hundred
percent of its premium increase.
(f) For fiscal years after July 1, 2011, the Auditor shall
consult with the Insurance Commissioner to determine the total
amount of workers' compensation premium due by volunteer fire departments for any subsequent fiscal year. The Auditor may
determine payment dates based upon information reasonably available
for such a determination.
(g) The Auditor may promulgate emergency rules and may propose
for promulgation legislative rules, in accordance with the
provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, as
are necessary to provide for implementation and enforcement of the
provisions of this section.
(h) The volunteer fire departments' workers' compensation
premium subsidy program shall undergo a review to assess its
effectiveness after three years of operation. The Auditor shall
submit a report to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance
not later than February 1, 2015, and provide details of the program
operation including funds distributed and departments taking
advantage of the subsidy.
NOTE: The purpose of the bill is to clarify that the subsidy
provided to volunteer fire departments to offset their workers'
compensation premium increases apply not only to the increases
attributable to their fire fighting services, but apply as well to
increases attributable to the rapid response emergency medical
service, ambulance service and diving service components of the
services provided by the volunteer fire departments.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.