New Jersey S 3259: Establishes presumption for accidental disability retirement in PERS and PFRS that emergency medical technician, firefighter, and police officer has Parkinson's disease as result of employment.

Bill Text

SENATE, No. 3259
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE

INTRODUCED MAY 16, 2024

Sponsored by:
Senator DOUGLAS J. STEINHARDT
District 23 (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren)

SYNOPSIS
Establishes presumption for accidental disability retirement in PERS and
PFRS that emergency medical technician, firefighter, and police officer has
Parkinson’s disease as result of employment.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.

S3259 STEINHARDT
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EXPLANATION – Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is
not enacted and is intended to be omitted in the law.

Matter underlined thus is new matter.

AN ACT concerning a presumption for accidental disability 1
retirement in the Public Employees’ Retirement System and the 2
Police and Firemen’s Retirement System and amending 3
P.L.1954, c.84 and P.L.1944, c.255. 4
5
BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and General Assembly of the State 6
of New Jersey: 7
8
1. Section 43 of P.L.1954, c.84 (C.43:15A-43) is amended to 9
read as follows: 10
43. a. A member who has not attained age 65 shall, upon the 11
application of the head of the department in which he is employed 12
or upon his own application or the application of one acting in his 13
behalf, be retired by the board of trustees, if said employee is 14
permanently and totally disabled as a direct result of a traumatic 15
event occurring during and as a result of the performance of his 16
regular or assigned duties, on an accidental disability allowance. A 17
traumatic event occurring during voluntary performance of regular 18
or assigned duties at a place of employment before or after required 19
hours of employment which is not in violation of any valid work 20
rule of the employer or otherwise prohibited by the employer shall 21
be deemed as occurring during the performance of regular or 22
assigned duties. 23
The application to accomplish such retirement must be filed 24
within five years of the original traumatic event, but the board of 25
trustees may consider an application filed after the five-year period 26
if it can be factually demonstrated to the satisfaction of the board of 27
trustees that the disability is due to the accident and the filing was 28
not accomplished within the five-year period due to a delayed 29
manifestation of the disability or to circumstances beyond the 30
control of the member. 31
Permanent and total disability resulting from a cardiovascular, 32
pulmonary or musculo-skeletal condition which was not a direct 33
result of a traumatic event occurring in the performance of duty 34
shall be deemed an ordinary disability. 35
Before consideration of the application by the board of trustees, 36
the physician or physicians designated by the board shall have first 37
made a medical examination of the member at his residence or at 38
any other place mutually agreed upon and shall have certified to the 39
board that he is physically or mentally incapacitated for the 40
performance of duty, and should be retired, and the appointing 41
authority shall have certified to the board that the member is 42
permanently and totally disabled as a direct result of a traumatic 43
event occurring during and as a result of the performance of his 44
regular or assigned duties, the time and place where the duty 45

S3259 STEINHARDT
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causing the disability was performed, that the disability was not the 1
result of his willful negligence and that the member should be 2
retired. 3
No person who becomes a member of the retirement system on 4
or after the effective date of P.L.2010, c.3 shall be eligible for 5
retirement pursuant to this section. 6
b. (1) For purposes of this subsection: 7
"Qualifying condition or impairment of health" includes: 8
diseases of the upper respiratory tract and mucosae, including 9
conditions such as conjunctivitis, rhinitis, sinusitis, pharyngitis, 10
laryngitis, vocal cord disease, upper airway hyper-reactivity and 11
tracheo-bronchitis, or a combination of such conditions; 12
diseases of the lower respiratory tract, including but not limited 13
to bronchitis, asthma, reactive airway dysfunction syndrome, and 14
different types of pneumonitis, such as hypersensitivity, 15
granulomatous, or eosinophilic; 16
diseases of the gastroesophageal tract, including esophagitis and 17
reflux disease, either acute or chronic, caused by exposure or 18
aggravated by exposure; 19
diseases of the psychological axis, including post-traumatic 20
stress disorder, anxiety, depression, or any combination of such 21
conditions; 22
diseases of the skin such as contact dermatitis or burns, either 23
acute or chronic in nature, infectious, irritant, allergic, idiopathic or 24
non-specific reactive in nature, caused by exposure or aggravated 25
by exposure; and 26
new onset diseases resulting from exposure as such diseases 27
occurring in the future including cancer, chronic obstructive 28
pulmonary disease, asbestos-related disease, heavy metal poisoning, 29
musculoskeletal disease and chronic psychologic