(HB 1019)
Nonprofit corporate rural firefighters eligible for state workers compensation when working for the Department of Agriculture.
Section
1.
That
§
62-1-5.2
be amended to read as follows:
62-1-5.2.
Any firefighter who is a member of any county, municipal, special purpose district,
or
township
, or private nonprofit corporation operating as a
fire department
which
that
has on file
a cooperative fire suppression agreement with the South Dakota Department of Agriculture, and
has been approved by the governing body for assignment to the state, is eligible for workers'
compensation benefits from the state if injured during a period of time commencing from the time
dispatched by the secretary of agriculture or
his
the secretary's
designee until the time the
firefighter returns to the location from which the firefighter was originally dispatched by the
secretary of agriculture or
his
the secretary's
designee. In the event of injury or death, the firefighter
shall, for the purpose of computing compensation, be considered to be earning a wage that would
entitle that person to the maximum compensation for death or injury allowable under this title; but
in no event may payments to any firefighter exceed the maximum limitations for benefits as set
out in this title.