[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1845 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1845

  To amend title 5, United States Code, to create a presumption that 
 disability of a Federal employee in fire protection activities caused 
  by certain conditions is presumed to result from the performance of 
                         such employee's duty.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 18, 2001

   Mr. Kerry introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
           referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 5, United States Code, to create a presumption that 
 disability of a Federal employee in fire protection activities caused 
  by certain conditions is presumed to result from the performance of 
                         such employee's duty.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 
2001''.

SEC. 2. CERTAIN DISEASES PRESUMED TO BE WORK-RELATED CAUSE OF 
              DISABILITY OR DEATH FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES IN FIRE 
              PROTECTION ACTIVITIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 8102 of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c)(1) With regard to an employee in fire protection activities, 
a disease specified in paragraph (2) shall be presumed to be 
proximately caused by the employment of such employee. The disability 
or death of an employee in fire protection activities due to such a 
disease shall be presumed to result from personal injury sustained 
while in the performance of such employee's duty. Such presumptions may 
be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence.
    ``(2) The diseases specified in this paragraph are the following:
            ``(A) Heart disease.
            ``(B) Lung disease.
            ``(C) The following cancers:
                    ``(i) Brain cancer.
                    ``(ii) Cancer of the blood or lymphatic systems.
                    ``(iii) Leukemia.
                    ``(iv) Lymphoma (except Hodgkin's disease).
                    ``(v) Multiple myeloma.
                    ``(vi) Bladder cancer.
                    ``(vii) Kidney cancer.
                    ``(viii) Prostate cancer.
                    ``(ix) Testicular cancer.
                    ``(x) Cancer of the digestive system.
                    ``(xi) Colon cancer.
                    ``(xii) Liver cancer.
                    ``(xiii) Skin cancer.
                    ``(xiv) Breast cancer.
                    ``(xv) Lung cancer.
            ``(D) The following infectious diseases:
                    ``(i) Tuberculosis.
                    ``(ii) Hepatitis A, B, or C.
                    ``(iii) Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
                    ``(iv) Diphtheria.
                    ``(v) Hemorrhagic fever.
                    ``(vi) Meningococcal disease.
                    ``(vii) Rabies.
                    ``(viii) Any uncommon infectious disease the 
                contraction of which the Secretary of Labor determines 
                to be related to the hazards to which an employee in 
                fire protection activities may be subject.
    ``(3) In this subsection, the term `employee in fire protection 
activities' means an employee, including a firefighter, paramedic, 
emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance personnel, or 
hazardous materials worker, who--
            ``(A) is trained in fire suppression, has the legal 
        authority and responsibility to engage in fire suppression; and
            ``(B) is engaged in the prevention, control, and 
        extinguishment of fires or response to emergency situations 
        where life, property, or the environment is at risk.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section applies to 
an injury that is first diagnosed, or a death that occurs, on or after 
the date of enactment of this Act.
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