FISCAL NOTE TO

[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 646

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED: JULY 24, 1996

      Senate Bill No. 646 (1R) of 1996 provides that the governing body of a municipality or the committee of a fire district may provide workers' compensation insurance for associate and auxiliary members of a volunteer fire company.

      The Department of Labor estimates that enactment of this legislation would result in a minimal increase in the workers compensation client base, and would thus create no additional administrative burden or expenditure for the State. The department also notes that currently, volunteer fire companies are generally insured through either their respective municipality or a self-insured pool; hence, implementation of this legislation could impose additional costs on those municipalities which have volunteer companies. According to the Division of Fire Safety in the Department of Community Affairs, however, the number of auxiliary or associate members who would be eligible for coverage under the provisions of the bill cannot be ascertained, since neither the division, nor any other agency or organization in the State, is known to maintain data on such membership.

      The OLS concurs with the assessments of both the Department of Labor and the Division of Fire Safety. In addition, the OLS projects, based on information informally provided by the Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau within the Department of Insurance, that enactment of this legislation would cost municipalities approximately $146 for each auxiliary or associate member to whom workers compensation coverage is extended. As suggested by the bureau, this estimate presumes that auxiliary and associate members would ultimately be included in the same rate class as volunteer firefighters, and that the volunteer fire company has an average amount of operational equipment, or approximately five firefighting vehicles. 

This fiscal note has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67.