LRB-4392/1

MLJ&MIM:amn&wlj

2019 - 2020 LEGISLATURE

2019 Senate BILL 551

November 8, 2019 - Introduced by Senators Roth, Wanggaard, Feyen, Shilling, Cowles, Bewley, Carpenter, Jacque and Testin, cosponsored by Representatives Rohrkaste, Kolste, Edming, James, Milroy, Loudenbeck, Kitchens, Billings, Stuck, Subeck, Tusler, Petersen, Gruszynski, Dittrich, Anderson, Vruwink, Spreitzer, Sortwell, Considine, Ohnstad and Felzkowski. Referred to Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.

SB551,1,5 An Act to repeal 323.72 (5); to amend 323.72 (title), 323.72 (1), 323.72 (2), 323.72 (3), 323.72 (4) and 895.483 (4); and to create 20.465 (3) (dv), 20.465 (3) (hm), 40.05 (2) (aw), 40.06 (8), 323.72 (2m) and 323.72 (6) of the statutes; relating to: a statewide urban search and rescue task force and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, a regional structural collapse team contracted with the Division of Emergency Management in the Department of Military Affairs is required to respond to structural collapse incidents that meet criteria established by the division. Under current law, a team may respond only to incidents of structural collapse. This bill changes the team's designation from being a structural collapse team to an urban search and rescue task force, as designated by the National Fire Protection Association and Emergency Management Accreditation program standards. This change allows an urban search and rescue task force to respond to any incident involving structural collapse, rope rescue, vehicle extrication, machinery extrication, confined space, trench, excavation, and water operations.

Under current law, when a regional structural collapse team responds to an incident, the team must make a good faith effort to identify the party who is responsible for the structural collapse and provide that information to the Division of Emergency Management to seek reimbursement from that party. Any reimbursement to a regional structural collapse team is limited to the amounts collected by the Division of Emergency Management. Under the bill, this limitation on reimbursement is removed, and DMA must reimburse within 60 days local agencies that provided services as part of an urban search and rescue task force if agencies apply for reimbursement within 45 days of the conclusion of the task force's deployment. DMA may seek reimbursement for those services from any responsible party.

The bill also allows DMA to reimburse a local agency for any increase in contributions for duty disability premiums because an employee incurred an injury while performing duties as a member of an urban search and rescue task force.