PRINTER'S NO. 4010
No. 2688 Session of 2004
INTRODUCED BY YUDICHAK, TIGUE, GOODMAN, SOLOBAY, GRUCELA,
BARRAR, BIANCUCCI, BLAUM, BOYD, BROWNE, BUNT, CAPPELLI,
CAWLEY, CIVERA, S. E. CORNELL, CORRIGAN, COY, CRAHALLA,
DALEY, DALLY, DeWEESE, FABRIZIO, FICHTER, FRANKEL, FREEMAN,
GEIST, GOOD, HARHAI, HARPER, HARRIS, HASAY, HERSHEY, HORSEY,
KENNEY, KOTIK, LAUGHLIN, LEDERER, LEH, MAJOR, MANN, MARKOSEK,
McCALL, McGEEHAN, MICOZZIE, R. MILLER, MUNDY, MUSTIO,
O'NEILL, PAYNE, PETRARCA, PICKETT, RAYMOND, REICHLEY,
ROBERTS, ROONEY, RUBLEY, SAINATO, SATHER, SCHRODER,
SCRIMENTI, SHANER, B. SMITH, STABACK, R. STEVENSON, SURRA,
TANGRETTI, THOMAS, TURZAI, WANSACZ, WASHINGTON, WEBER,
WOJNAROSKI AND YOUNGBLOOD, JUNE 8, 2004
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 8, 2004
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of December 16, 1998 (P.L.980, No.129),
2 entitled "An act providing for a waiver of tuition and other
3 fees for children of certain deceased police officers,
4 National Guard members, firefighters and correction employees
5 at community colleges and State-owned and State-related
6 institutions of higher education and for additional powers
7 and duties of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance
8 Agency and the Department of General Services," further
9 providing for Postsecondary Educational Gratuity Program.
10 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
11 hereby enacts as follows:
12 Section 1. Section 3(a) and (b) of the act of December 16,
13 1998 (P.L.980, No.129), known as the Police Officer,
14 Firefighter, Correction Employee and National Guard Member Child
15 Beneficiary Education Act, are amended to read:
16 Section 3. Postsecondary Educational Gratuity Program.
1 (a) Establishment.--There is hereby established the
2 Postsecondary Educational Gratuity Program for children of
3 police officers, firefighters, correction employees [and],
4 National Guard members and certain individuals who are on
5 Federal or State active military duty who are residents of this
6 Commonwealth and who are killed while acting in the performance
7 of their duties.
8 (b) Eligibility.--
9 (1) Police officers shall be deemed to have been killed
10 in the performance of their duties if death results from job-
11 related injuries sustained or inflicted while performing any
12 of the following:
13 (i) Answering an emergency call.
14 (ii) Conducting interrogations of crime suspects or
15 interrogations pursuant to a response to an emergency
16 call.
17 (iii) Conducting vehicle stops for traffic
18 violations.
19 (iv) Actively responding to requests for assistance
20 from the public.
21 (v) Maintaining order and security at the scene of
22 an emergency.
23 (2) Firefighters shall be deemed to have been killed in
24 the performance of their duties if death results from job-
25 related injuries sustained or inflicted while performing any
26 of the following:
27 (i) Being present at the scene of a fire or going to
28 and from a fire. In the case of volunteer firefighters,
29 going to and from a fire shall include traveling from and
30 directly returning to the firefighter's home, place of
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1 business or other location where the firefighter was when
2 the fire call or alarm was received for a fire which the
3 firefighter's volunteer fire company attended.
4 (ii) Answering an emergency call.
5 (iii) Maintaining order and security at the scene of
6 an emergency.
7 (3) A member of the National Guard shall be deemed to
8 have been killed in the performance of his or her duties if
9 his or her death results from performance of a duty required
10 by his or her orders or commander while in an official duty
11 status [other than on Federal active duty] authorized under
12 Federal or State law.
13 (4) Correction employees shall be deemed to have been
14 killed in the performance of their duties if death results
15 from job-related injuries sustained or inflicted while
16 maintaining order and security or otherwise carrying out
17 their duties at a correctional facility.
18 (5) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section,
19 deaths which occur as the direct and proximate result of
20 preexisting physical conditions, diseases or illnesses shall
21 be excluded from eligibility under this section.
22 (6) Any child of a police officer, firefighter,
23 correction employee or National Guard member killed in the
24 performance of his or her duties shall be eligible for an
25 educational gratuity provided the child is 25 years of age or
26 younger at the time of application for participation in this
27 program, meets all admission requirements of the community
28 college or State-owned or State-related institution to which
29 application is made and is enrolled as a full-time student at
30 a community college or a State-owned or State-related
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1 institution.
2 (7) A child who is 25 years of age or younger at the
3 time of the child's application for participation in this
4 program and who meets all other eligibility requirements may
5 receive an educational gratuity for up to five years provided
6 the child otherwise continues to be eligible for
7 participation.
8 * * *
9 Section 2. This act shall apply to the child of any National
10 Guard member killed in the performance of duties as described in
11 section 3(b)(3) of the act on or after September 11, 2001.
12 Section 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
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