Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2008
Latest action · Nov 17, 2008 By Senator Lieberman from Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs filed written report. Report No. 110-520.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedAug 1, 2007
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2008 - Provides that: (1) specified diseases, including heart disease, lung disease, tuberculosis, hepatatis, human immunodeficiency virus, and specified cancers, of federal employees in fire protection activities shall be presumed to be proximately caused by such employment; (2) the disability or death of such an employee due to such a disease shall be presumed to result from personal injury sustained while in the performance of duty; and (3) such presumptions may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence.
Defines an "employee in fire protection activities" as a firefighter, paramedic, emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance personnel, or hazardous material worker, who: (1) is trained in fire suppression; (2) has the legal authority and responsibility to engage in fire suppression; (3) is engaged in the prevention, control, and extinguishment of fires or response to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk; and (4) performs such activities as a primary responsibility of his or her job.
Directs the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to examine the implementation of this Act and appropriate scientific and medical data related to the health risks associated with firefighting and to report to Congress on: (1) an analysis of the injury claims made under this Act; (2) an analysis of the available research related to the health risks associated with firefighting; and (3) recommendations for any administrative or legislative actions necessary to ensure that those diseases most associated with firefighting are included in the presumption created by this Act.
Cosponsors 19
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Aug 1, 2007 to Sep 15, 2008; 2 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-VA | John Warner | Original | Aug 1, 2007 |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Original | Aug 1, 2007 |
| D-MA | John F. Kerry | Aug 2, 2007 | |
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Sep 4, 2007 | |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Sep 4, 2007 | |
| R-ME | Susan M. Collins | Sep 4, 2007 | |
| D-MO | Claire McCaskill | Sep 5, 2007 | |
| R-GA | Johnny Isakson | Sep 6, 2007 | |
| R-ME | Olympia J. Snowe | Oct 15, 2007 | |
| D-CT | Christopher J. Dodd | Nov 15, 2007 | |
| I-CT | Joseph I. Lieberman | Dec 6, 2007 | |
| D-NM | Jeff Bingaman | Mar 11, 2008 | |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Mar 11, 2008 | |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Mar 11, 2008 | |
| D-MA | Edward M. Kennedy | Mar 12, 2008 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee | Referred Aug 1, 2007Markup Jun 25, 2008Reported Oct 1, 2008 |
| Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia Subcommittee | Referred Aug 22, 2007 |
Actions 7
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Nov 17, 2008By Senator Lieberman from Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs filed written report. Report No. 110-520.
- Oct 1, 2008Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Lieberman with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Oct 1, 2008Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 1102.
- Jun 25, 2008Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Aug 22, 2007Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs referred to Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimates 2
- Sep 2, 2008S. 1924, Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2008<p>Cost estimate for the bill as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on June 25, 2008</p>
- Sep 2, 2008S. 1924, Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2008Cost estimate for the bill as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on June 25, 2008
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 103 | Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2007 | Related bill | May 9, 2007 |
| HR 1142 | Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2007 | Related bill | Feb 16, 2007 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to amend chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, to create a presumption that a disability or death of a Federal employee in fire protection activities caused by any of certain diseases is the result of the performance of such employee's duty.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2007
- Short Titles as Reported to Senate
- Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2008
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
- AIDS (Disease)
- Animals
- Blood diseases
- Brain diseases
- Breast cancer
- Cancer
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Colon cancer
- Communicable diseases
- Digestive diseases
- Diphtheria
- Emergency Management
- Emergency medicine
- Environmental Protection
- Evidence (Law)
- Families
- Federal employees
- Fire fighters
- Government Operations and Politics
- Health
- Hepatitis
- Human immunodeficiency viruses
- Kidney diseases
- Labor and Employment
- Law
- Leukemia
- Liver diseases
- Lung cancer
- Lung diseases
- Medical personnel
- Paramedical personnel
- Prostate cancer
- Rabies
- Rescue work
- Skin cancer
- Survivors' benefits
- Tuberculosis
- Women
- Workers' compensation
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Oct 1, 2008Reported to Senate
- Aug 1, 2007Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
