FISCAL NOTE
West Virginia Legislature
2017 Regular Session
Introduced
House Bill 2055
By Delegate Rodighiero
[Introduced February
8, 2017; referred to the
Committee on Banking and
Insurance then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and
reenact §5-16-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend
said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §5-16-27, all relating to
including volunteer firefighters within the Public Employees Insurance Act and
requiring the county commissions to pay either three-fourths or the full amount
of premiums.
Be it enacted by the
Legislature of West Virginia:
That §5-16-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and that said code be amended by adding thereto a new
section, designated §5-16-27, all
to read as follows:
ARTICLE 16. WEST VIRGINIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES INSURANCE ACT.
§5-16-2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases as used in this article, unless a
different meaning is clearly indicated by the context, have the following
meanings:
(1) "Agency" means the Public Employees Insurance
Agency created by this article.
(2) "Director" means the Director of the Public
Employees Insurance Agency created by this article.
(3) "Employee" means any person, including an elected
officer, who works regularly full time in the service of the State of West
Virginia and, for the purpose of this article only, the term
"employee" also means any person, including an elected officer, who
works regularly full time in the service of a county board of education; a
county, city or town in the state; any separate corporation or instrumentality
established by one or more counties, cities or towns, as permitted by law; any
corporation or instrumentality supported in most part by counties, cities or
towns; any public corporation charged by law with the performance of a
governmental function and whose jurisdiction is coextensive with one or more
counties, cities or towns; any comprehensive community mental health center or
comprehensive mental retardation facility established, operated or licensed by
the Secretary of Health and Human Resources pursuant to section one, article
two-a, chapter twenty-seven of this code and which is supported in part by
state, county or municipal funds; any person who works regularly full time in
the service of the Higher Education Policy Commission, the West Virginia
Council for Community and Technical College Education or a governing board, as
defined in section two, article one, chapter eighteen-b of this code; any
person who works regularly full time in the service of a combined city-county
health department created pursuant to article two, chapter sixteen of this
code; any person designated as a 21st Century Learner Fellow pursuant to
section eleven, article three, chapter eighteen-a of this code; and any person who
works as a long-term substitute as defined in section one, article one, chapter
eighteen-a of this code in the service of a county board of education: Provided, That a long-term substitute
who is continuously employed for at least one hundred thirty-three
instructional days during an instructional term, and until the end of that
instructional term, is eligible for the benefits provided in this article until
September 1, following that instructional term:
Provided, however, That a long-term substitute employed fewer
than one hundred thirty-three instructional days during an instructional term
is eligible for the benefits provided in this article only during such time as
he or she is actually employed as a long-term substitute. On and after January 1, 1994, and Upon
election by a county board of education to allow elected board members to
participate in the Public Employees Insurance Program pursuant to this article,
any person elected to a county board of education shall be considered to be an
"employee" during the term of office of the elected member. Upon election by the State Board of Education
to allow appointed board members to participate in the Public Employees
Insurance Program pursuant to this article, any person appointed to the State
Board of Education is considered an "employee" during the term of
office of the appointed member: Provided
further, That the elected member of a county board of education and the
appointed member of the State Board of Education shall pay the entire cost of
the premium if he or she elects to be covered under this article. Any matters of doubt as to who is an employee
within the meaning of this article shall be decided by the director.
(A) On or after July 1, 1997 A person shall be considered an
"employee" if that person meets the following criteria:
(i) Participates in a job-sharing arrangement as defined in
section one, article one, chapter eighteen-a of this code;
(ii) Has been designated, in writing, by all other participants
in that job-sharing arrangement as the "employee" for purposes of
this section; and
(iii) Works at least one third of the time required for a full-time
employee.
(B) On or after July 1, 2017, a person working as a volunteer
firefighter under article fifteen, chapter eight of this code, is considered an
"employee" under this section.
(4) "Employer" means the State of West Virginia, its
boards, agencies, commissions, departments, institutions or spending units; a county
board of education; a county, city or town in the state; any separate corporation
or instrumentality established by one or more counties, cities or towns, as
permitted by law; any corporation or instrumentality supported in most part by
counties, cities or towns; any public corporation charged by law with the
performance of a governmental function and whose jurisdiction is coextensive
with one or more counties, cities or towns; any comprehensive community mental
health center or comprehensive mental retardation facility established,
operated or licensed by the Secretary of Health and Human Resources pursuant to
section one, article two-a, chapter twenty-seven of this code and which is
supported in part by state, county or municipal funds; a combined city-county
health department created pursuant to article two, chapter sixteen of this
code; and a corporation meeting the description set forth in section three,
article twelve, chapter eighteen-b of this code that is employing a 21st
Century Learner Fellow pursuant to section eleven, article three, chapter
eighteen of this code but the corporation is not considered an employer with
respect to any employee other than a 21st Century Learner Fellow. For purposes of this article, the county
commission in which a volunteer fire department is located is considered the
"employer" of volunteer firefighters for the purposes of the Public
Employees Insurance Act. Any matters
of doubt as to who is an "employer" within the meaning of this
article shall be decided by the director.
The term "employer" does not include within its meaning the
National Guard.
(5) "Finance board" means the Public Employees
Insurance Agency finance board created by this article.
(6) "Person" means any individual, company,
association, organization, corporation or other legal entity, including, but
not limited to, hospital, medical or dental service corporations; health
maintenance organizations or similar organization providing prepaid health
benefits; or individuals entitled to benefits under the provisions of this
article.
(7) "Plan", unless the context indicates otherwise,
means the medical indemnity plan, the managed care plan option or the group
life insurance plan offered by the agency.
(8) "Retired employee" means an employee of the state
who retired after April 29, 1971, and an employee of the Higher Education Policy
Commission, the Council for Community and Technical College Education, a state
institution of higher education or a county board of education who retires on
or after April 21, 1972, and all additional eligible employees who retire on or
after the effective date of this article, meet the minimum eligibility
requirements for their respective state retirement system and whose last
employer immediately prior to retirement under the state retirement system is a
participating employer in the state retirement system and in the Public
Employees Insurance Agency: Provided,
That for the purposes of this article, the employees who are not covered by a
state retirement system, but who are covered by a state-approved or state-contracted
retirement program or a system approved by the director, shall, in the case of
education employees, meet the minimum eligibility requirements of the state
Teachers Retirement System and in all other cases, meet the minimum eligibility
requirements of the Public Employees Retirement System and may participate in
the Public Employees Insurance Agency as retired employees upon terms as the
director sets by rule as authorized in this article. Employers with employees who are, or who are
eligible to become, retired employees under this article shall be mandatory
participants in the Retiree Health Benefit Trust Fund created pursuant to
article sixteen-d of this chapter.
Nonstate employers may opt out of the West Virginia other post-employment
benefits plan of the Retiree Health Benefit Trust Fund and elect to not provide
benefits under the Public Employees Insurance Agency to retirees of the
nonstate employer, but may do so only upon the written certification, under
oath, of an authorized officer of the employer that the employer has no employees
who are, or who are eligible to become, retired employees and that the employer
will defend and hold harmless the Public Employees Insurance Agency from any
claim by one of the employer's past, present or future employees for
eligibility to participate in the Public Employees Insurance Agency as a
retired employee. As a matter of law,
the Public Employees Insurance Agency shall not be liable in any respect to
provide plan benefits to a retired employee of a nonstate employer which has
opted out of the West Virginia other post-employment benefits plan of the
Retiree Health Benefit Trust Fund pursuant to this section.
§5-16-27. Premiums for volunteer firefighters.
Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary, the
county commission in which a volunteer fire department is located shall pay
either three-fourths or the full amount of premiums due to the Public Employees
Insurance Agency for coverage of all volunteer firefighters in the county.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is
to include volunteer firefighters within the Public Employees Insurance Act and
require the county commissions to pay either three-fourths or the full amount
of premiums.
Strike-throughs indicate language
that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring
indicates new language that would be added.