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Bill > A788

NJ A788

NJ A788
Permits any member of PERS to receive accidental disability retirement allowance for disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup options.

summary

Introduced
01/09/2024
In Committee
01/09/2024
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
01/12/2026

Introduced Session

2024-2025 Regular Session

Bill Summary

A law recently enacted, P.L.2019, 157, provided that a member or retiree of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS), the State Police Retirement System (SPRS), and the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) is eligible to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance for a permanent and total disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. The law provides that permanent and total disability resulting from a qualifying condition or impairment of health will be presumed to have occurred during and as a result of the performance of a member's regular or assigned duties if the member participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations for a minimum of eight hours. The law permits a member who did not participate in those operations for a minimum of eight hours to be eligible for the presumption under certain circumstances. The law also provides for a reclassification of a retiree's retirement from a service retirement or an ordinary disability retirement to an accidental disability retirement under certain circumstances. The law applies regardless of whether the PERS member or retiree was enrolled in the PERS at the time of the participation in the rescue, recovery and cleanup operations. Currently, the PERS portion of the bill applies only to: any member or retiree who is or was enrolled in the PERS because the member or retiree did not meet the age or medical requirements for enrollment in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System on the basis of the position held; and to any emergency medical technician who is a member or retiree of the Public Employees' Retirement System. The bill amends the relevant provisions of the PERS to provide this benefit to any member of the PERS.

AI Summary

This bill amends the existing law to permit any member of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance for a disability resulting from their participation in the 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. The key provisions include: 1. Establishing a presumption that a PERS member's permanent and total disability resulting from a "qualifying condition or impairment of health" is presumed to have occurred during and as a result of their regular or assigned duties if they participated in the 9/11 World Trade Center operations for at least 8 hours. This presumption can be rebutted by competent evidence. 2. Allowing PERS members who participated for less than 8 hours but sustained a documented physical injury on September 11-12, 2001 that prevented them from continuing to participate, to also be eligible for the presumption. 3. Permitting PERS members who previously retired on a service or ordinary disability retirement to apply to have their retirement recalculated as an accidental disability retirement if they later develop a disability due to a qualifying condition from the 9/11 operations. 4. Applying these provisions to any PERS member, regardless of whether they were enrolled in PERS at the time of the 9/11 operations.

Committee Categories

Government Affairs

Sponsors (13)

Last Action

Introduced, Referred to Assembly State and Local Government Committee (on 01/09/2024)
(4 Companion Bills)

bill text

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bill summary

Document Type Source Location Created
State Bill Page https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2024/A788 01/09/2024
BillText https://pub.njleg.gov/Bills/2024/A1000/788_I1.HTM 01/18/2024
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