H. B. 2751
(By Delegates Givens, Jones and Ennis)
[Introduced January 21, 2011; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §29-12A-3 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to clarifying that fire chiefs and
their duly appointed officers working with paid and volunteer
fire departments are employees that are provided immunity
under the Governmental Tort Claims and Insurance Reform Act.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §29-12A-3 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 12A. GOVERNMENTAL TORT CLAIMS AND INSURANCE REFORM ACT.
§29-12A-3. Definitions.
As used in this article:
(a) "Employee" means an officer, agent, employee, or servant,
whether compensated or not, whether full-time or not, who is
authorized to act and is acting with the scope of his or her
employment for a political subdivision. "Employee" includes, but is not limited to, any elected or appointed official of a political
subdivision and fire chiefs working with paid or volunteer fire
departments and their duly appointed officers. "Employee" does not
include an independent contractor of a political subdivision.
(b) "Municipality" means any incorporated city, town or
village and all institutions, agencies or instrumentalities of a
municipality.
(c) "Political subdivision" means any county commission,
municipality and county board of education; any separate
corporation or instrumentality established by one or more counties
or municipalities, as permitted by law; any instrumentality
supported in most part by municipalities; any public body charged
by law with the performance of a government function and whose
jurisdiction is coextensive with one or more counties, cities or
towns; a combined city-county health department created pursuant to
article two, chapter sixteen of this code; public service
districts; and other instrumentalities including, but not limited
to, volunteer fire departments and emergency service organizations
as recognized by an appropriate public body and authorized by law
to perform a government function: Provided, That hospitals of a
political subdivision and their employees are expressly excluded
from the provisions of this article.
(d) "Scope of employment" means performance by an employee
acting in good faith within the duties of his or her office or
employment or tasks lawfully assigned by a competent authority but does not include corruption or fraud.
(e) "State" means the State of West Virginia, including, but
not limited to, the Legislature, the Supreme Court of Appeals, the
offices of all elected state officers, and all departments, boards,
offices, commissions, agencies, colleges, and universities,
institutions, and other instrumentalities of the State of West
Virginia. "State" does not include political subdivisions.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to clarify that fire chiefs
and their duly appointed officers working with paid and volunteer
fire departments are employees that are provided immunity under the
Governmental Tort Claims and Insurance Reform Act.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.