100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
SB1235

 

Introduced 2/7/2017, by Sen. Wm. Sam McCann

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
5 ILCS 345/1  from Ch. 70, par. 91

    Amends the Public Employee Disability Act. Provides that volunteer firefighters are covered under the Act. Provides that the amount of compensation shall be calculated in the manner required for volunteer firemen under the Workers' Compensation Act.


LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB1235LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

1    AN ACT concerning government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Public Employee Disability Act is amended by
5changing Section 1 as follows:
 
6    (5 ILCS 345/1)  (from Ch. 70, par. 91)
7    Sec. 1. Disability benefit.
8    (a) For the purposes of this Section, "eligible employee"
9means any part-time or full-time State correctional officer or
10any other full or part-time employee of the Department of
11Corrections, any full or part-time employee of the Prisoner
12Review Board, any full or part-time employee of the Department
13of Human Services working within a penal institution or a State
14mental health or developmental disabilities facility operated
15by the Department of Human Services, and any full-time law
16enforcement officer or full-time or volunteer firefighter who
17is employed by the State of Illinois, any unit of local
18government (including any home rule unit), any State supported
19college or university, or any other public entity granted the
20power to employ persons for such purposes by law.
21    (b) Whenever an eligible employee suffers any injury in the
22line of duty which causes him to be unable to perform his
23duties, he shall continue to be paid by the employing public

 

 

SB1235- 2 -LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

1entity on the same basis as he was paid before the injury, with
2no deduction from his sick leave credits, compensatory time for
3overtime accumulations or vacation, or service credits in a
4public employee pension fund during the time he is unable to
5perform his duties due to the result of the injury, but not
6longer than one year in relation to the same injury. However,
7no injury to an employee of the Department of Corrections or
8the Prisoner Review Board working within a penal institution or
9an employee of the Department of Human Services working within
10a departmental mental health or developmental disabilities
11facility shall qualify the employee for benefits under this
12Section unless the injury is the direct or indirect result of
13violence by inmates of the penal institution or residents of
14the mental health or developmental disabilities facility.
15    (c) At any time during the period for which continuing
16compensation is required by this Act, the employing public
17entity may order at the expense of that entity physical or
18medical examinations of the injured person to determine the
19degree of disability.
20    (d) During this period of disability, the injured person
21shall not be employed in any other manner, with or without
22monetary compensation. Any person who is employed in violation
23of this paragraph forfeits the continuing compensation
24provided by this Act from the time such employment begins. Any
25salary compensation due the injured person from workers'
26compensation or any salary due him from any type of insurance

 

 

SB1235- 3 -LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

1which may be carried by the employing public entity shall
2revert to that entity during the time for which continuing
3compensation is paid to him under this Act. Any person with a
4disability receiving compensation under the provisions of this
5Act shall not be entitled to any benefits for which he would
6qualify because of his disability under the provisions of the
7Illinois Pension Code.
8    (e) Any employee of the State of Illinois, as defined in
9Section 14-103.05 of the Illinois Pension Code, who becomes
10permanently unable to perform the duties of such employment due
11to an injury received in the active performance of his duties
12as a State employee as a result of a willful act of violence by
13another employee of the State of Illinois, as so defined,
14committed during such other employee's course of employment and
15after January 1, 1988, shall be eligible for benefits pursuant
16to the provisions of this Section. For purposes of this
17Section, permanent disability is defined as a diagnosis or
18prognosis of an inability to return to current job duties by a
19physician licensed to practice medicine in all of its branches.
20    (f) The compensation and other benefits provided to
21part-time employees covered by this Section shall be calculated
22based on the percentage of time the part-time employee was
23scheduled to work pursuant to his or her status as a part-time
24employee.
25    (f-5) The compensation provided to a volunteer firefighter
26covered by this Section shall be calculated in the manner

 

 

SB1235- 4 -LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

1required for volunteer firemen under Section 10 of the Workers'
2Compensation Act.
3    (g) Pursuant to paragraphs (h) and (i) of Section 6 of
4Article VII of the Illinois Constitution, this Act specifically
5denies and limits the exercise by home rule units of any power
6which is inconsistent herewith, and all existing laws and
7ordinances which are inconsistent herewith are hereby
8superseded. This Act does not preempt the concurrent exercise
9by home rule units of powers consistent herewith.
10    This Act does not apply to any home rule unit with a
11population of over 1,000,000.
12    (h) In those cases where the injury to a State employee for
13which a benefit is payable under this Act was caused under
14circumstances creating a legal liability for damages on the
15part of some person other than the State employer, all of the
16rights and privileges, including the right to notice of suit
17brought against such other person and the right to commence or
18join in such suit, as given the employer, together with the
19conditions or obligations imposed under paragraph (b) of
20Section 5 of the Workers' Compensation Act, are also given and
21granted to the State, to the end that, with respect to State
22employees only, the State may be paid or reimbursed for the
23amount of benefit paid or to be paid by the State to the
24injured employee or his or her personal representative out of
25any judgment, settlement, or payment for such injury obtained
26by such injured employee or his or her personal representative

 

 

SB1235- 5 -LRB100 10010 JLS 20182 b

1from such other person by virtue of the injury.
2(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15.)