Modifying survivor’s benefit payments on first responders for payment of funeral expenses
Summary
SB 826 updates West Virginia’s funeral expense payment statute for certain public safety personnel. The bill amends §15-11-2 to clarify and conform the language governing payment of up to $8,000 in reasonable funeral and burial expenses when a covered law-enforcement, safety, or emergency worker dies as a proximate result of performing official duties. It also revises the responsible agency reference from the Secretary of Military Affairs and Public Safety to the Department of Homeland Security, and makes the statutory wording consistent with related survivor benefit provisions in West Virginia law.
The bill preserves the existing structure of the benefit: payment is made upon written request, generally through an employer or agency head, and is intended to supplement other available funeral benefits so that at least $8,000 is available. It continues to define covered workers broadly, including law-enforcement officers, correctional employees, firefighters, volunteer firefighters, emergency medical services personnel, probation officers, certain security officers at public institutions, Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority employees, and National Guard members on active duty, while excluding private security firm employees.
Impact
SB 826 would not create a new benefit so much as refine and harmonize the existing funeral expense payment program for first responders and related public safety workers. It would amend the governing code section to align terminology with other West Virginia survivor benefit statutes, clarify administrative responsibility, and preserve the $8,000 maximum payment for eligible funeral expenses. The affected parties are the families of covered public safety workers, their employers or agency heads who submit requests, and the state agency administering the fund.
Sentiment
The available context suggests the bill is generally supportive and noncontroversial in purpose, as it is framed as a technical and conforming change to make the statute consistent with related survivor benefit language. No committee transcript or recorded votes were provided, so there is no evidence of formal opposition or debate in the materials supplied. The bill’s caption and note indicate a narrow administrative cleanup rather than a policy expansion, which typically draws favorable treatment.
Contention
The main potential point of contention is not the existence of the funeral benefit itself, but the scope and wording of who qualifies and which agency administers the payment. The statute continues to include a broad set of public safety workers, such as security officers at public institutions, Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority employees, and National Guard members on active duty, while expressly excluding private security personnel. Another possible issue is the interaction with other benefit programs, since the bill preserves the rule that these funds are not used when funeral expenses are otherwise payable under workers’ compensation or other nonparticipatory state benefit programs.