BILL ANALYSIS Ó ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 585| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: AB 585 Author: Fong (D), et al. Amended: 8/24/11 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE LABOR & INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMM. : 6-0, 7/6/11 AYES: Lieu, Wyland, DeSaulnier, Leno, Padilla, Yee NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant SUBJECT : Workers compensation: cancer presumption SOURCE : California Professional Firefighters DIGEST : This bill extends the disputable presumption of cancer as an occupational injury to active firefighting members of a fire department that serve a National Aeronautics and Space Administration installation and who adhere to training standards, as specified. Senate Floor Amendments of 8/24/11 make a minor grammatical correction and add coauthors. ANALYSIS : Existing law establishes a workers' compensation system that provides benefits to an employee who suffers from an injury or illness that arises out of and in the course of employment, irrespective of fault. This system requires all employers to secure payment of benefits by either securing the consent of the Department CONTINUED AB 585 Page 2 of Industrial Relations to self-insure or by securing insurance against liability from an insurance company duly authorized by the state. Existing law creates, through the William Dallas Jones Cancer Presumption Act of 2010, a disputable presumption that if a "firefighter", as defined, develops cancer, the cancer is considered an occupational injury for the purposes of the workers' compensation system. The compensation awarded for occupationally-related cancer must include full hospital, surgical, medical treatment, disability indemnity, and death benefits, as provided by workers compensation law. This presumption runs for 10 years, commencing on their last day of employment. Existing law provides that the presumptions listed above are disputable and may be controverted by evidence. However, unless controverted, the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board must find is accordance with the presumption. Existing law provides that the following firefighting members are eligible for the above-discussed cancer presumption: 1. A fire department of a city, county, city and county, district, or other public or municipal corporation or political subdivision. 2. A fire department of the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU). 3. The Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. 4. A county forestry or firefighting department or unit. 5. Active firefighting members of a fire department that serves a United States Department of Defense (DOD) installation and who are certified by the DOD as meeting its standards for firefighters. Existing law provides that the State Fire Marshal, with policy guidance and advice from the State Board of Fire Services, must manage and direct a comprehensive training CONTINUED AB 585 Page 3 and education program for all of California's firefighting personnel. (Health and Safety Code Sections 13155 to 13159.4) This bill extends the disputable presumption of cancer as an occupational injury to active firefighting members of a fire department that serve a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) installation and who adhere to training standards discussed above. Comments The statutory provision for a rebuttable presumption of cancer being an occupational injury dates back to 1982. When originally created, the presumption was only extended to city, county, city and county and municipal fire departments, as well as the UC and the CSU fire departments. Over time, this exemption was extended to additional groups of firefighters, including fire departments on DOD installations. Several studies have suggested that firefighters have a higher incidence of certain cancers. A May 2007 Study from the School of Public Health at UC Berkeley found an increased incidence of testicular cancer (odds ratio = 1.54, 95 percent confidence interval: 1.18-2.02), melanoma (1.50, 1.33-1.70), brain cancer (1.35, 1.06-1.72), esophageal cancer (1.48, 1.14-1.91), and prostate cancer (1.22, 1.12-1.33). While a 2008 RAND study disputed that there was a higher incidence of cancer among firefighters, other studies done in Massachusetts, Florida, and Seattle and Tacoma, Washington found similar results to the UC Berkeley study. This bill extends the rebuttable presumption of cancer being an occupational injury to active firefighting departments on NASA installations. California currently has two NASA facilities - the Ames Research Center in Mountain View and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. The bill's sponsor and author note that both facilities have large amounts of jet fuel and exotic metals and materials; when combusted, these items can give off significant carcinogens that the firefighters CONTINUED AB 585 Page 4 are exposed to both through inhalation and skin exposure. The sponsor and author also note that these firefighters are not employees of the federal government, and are therefore within the purview of California Labor Law. Who was William "Dallas" Jones? William "Dallas" Jones was a dedicated firefighter in Los Angeles County for nearly 35 years. The passion and professionalism with which he conducted his duties as President for Los Angeles County Firefighters Local 1014 and later as Secretary/Treasurer for California Professional Firefighters made him highly qualified to lead the state Office of Emergency Services (OES) as Director from 1999-2004. During his time at OES, Dallas responded to and was on the ground during a myriad of emergencies, including the devastating fire storms in 2003 that engulfed Southern California. After leaving that post, he continued his work by returning as Secretary-Treasurer for the California Professional Firefighters, even after he was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. He ultimately succumbed to cancer in 2008. Prior Legislation AB 2253 (Coto), Chapter 672, Statutes of 2010, lengthens the statute of limitations for a workers' compensation cancer presumption for peace officers and firefighters from five years to 10 years. SB 1271 (Cedillo), Chapter 747, Statutes of 2008, extends the rebuttable presumption of cancer as an occupational injury for firefighters to firefighters on DOD installations. AB 3011 (Torres), Chapter 1568, Statutes of 1982, created the initial rebuttable presumption of cancer as an occupational injury for firefighters. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 7/12/11) California Professional Firefighters (source) CONTINUED AB 585 Page 5 Glendale Fire Fighters' Association Local 776 Los Angeles County Fire Fighters Local 1014 Moffett Field Firefighter's Association Local I-79 Palo Alto Professional Fire Fighters Local 1319 Pasadena Firefighters Local 809 San Jose Fire Fighters Local 230 Santa Clara County Fire Fighters Local 1165 South Pasadena Firefighters Local 3657 ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : Proponents note that current law does not extend a cancer presumption to active firefighters on NASA installations, despite the fact that they are trained as per California requirements and exposed to significant chemical hazards. Proponents note that at Mountain View's NASA Ames Research Center and Pasadena's NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, firefighters are in constant contact with exotic metals and carbon fiber, which are highly toxic when involved in a fire. On a daily basis, these firefighters are exposed to extremely hazardous chemicals and thousands of gallons of jet fuel that are stored in these facilities. While protecting the civil and military personnel on these facilities, these firefighters are exposed to the same hazardous materials, fires, and dangers as their counterparts in the public sector. Therefore, the proponents believe that is important that the existing cancer presumption for firefighting personnel be extended to NASA installation firefighters. PQ:mw 8/25/11 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED