A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT THE DEATH OF A fIREMAN BY heart attack WHILE ON DUTY or within twenty‑four hours after participating in a training exercise or responding to an emergency situation IS A QUALIFYING EVENT FOR PURPOSES OF DEATH BENEFITS UNDER THE LAW‑ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS', FIREMEN'S, RESCUE SQUAD WORKERS', AND CIVIL AIR PATROL MEMBERS' DEATH BENEFITS ACT. 
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑166.2(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c) The term 'killed in the line of duty' shall apply to any law‑enforcement officer, fireman, rescue squad worker who is killed or dies as a result of bodily injuries sustained or of extreme exercise or extreme activity experienced in the course and scope of his official duties while in the discharge of his official duty or duties. When applied to a senior member of the Civil Air Patrol as defined in this Article, 'killed in the line of duty' shall mean any such senior member of the North Carolina Wing‑Civil Air Patrol who is killed or dies as a result of bodily injuries sustained or of extreme exercise or extreme activity experienced in the course and scope of his official duties while engaged in a State requested and approved mission pursuant to Article 11 of Chapter 143B of the General Statutes. For purposes of this Article, when a fireman dies as the direct and proximate result of a myocardial infarction suffered while on duty or within 24 hours after participating in a training exercise or responding to an emergency situation, the fireman is presumed to have been killed in the line of duty."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 143‑166.2(d) reads as rewritten:
"(d)	The term 'law‑enforcement officer,' 'officer,' or 'fireman' shall mean all law‑enforcement officers employed full time by the State of North Carolina or any county or municipality thereof and all full‑time custodial employees of the North Carolina Department of Correction and all full‑time institutional and detention employees of the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The term 'firemen' shall mean both 'eligible fireman'; or 'fireman' as defined in G.S. 58-86-25; all full‑time, permanent part‑time and temporary employees of the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, during the time they are actively engaged in fire‑fighting activities; all full‑time employees of the North Carolina Department of Insurance during the time they are actively engaged in fire‑fighting activities, during the time they are training fire fighters or rescue squad workers, and during the time they are engaged in activities as members of the State Emergency Response Team, when the Team has been activated; and all otherwise eligible persons acting in the capacity of a fire instructor. The term 'rescue squad worker' shall mean a person who is dedicated to the purpose of alleviating human suffering and assisting anyone who is in difficulty or who is injured or becomes suddenly ill by providing the proper and efficient care or emergency medical services. In addition, this person must belong to an organized rescue squad which is eligible for membership in the North Carolina Association of Rescue Squads, Inc., and the person must have attended a minimum of 36 hours of training and meetings in the last calendar year. Each rescue squad belonging to the North Carolina Association of Rescue Squads, Inc., must file a roster of those members meeting the above requirements with the State Treasurer on or about January 1 of each year, and this roster must be certified to by the secretary of said association. In addition, the term 'rescue squad worker' shall mean a member of an ambulance service certified by the Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to Article 7 of Chapter 131E of the General Statutes. The Department of Health and Human Services shall furnish a list of ambulance service members to the State Treasurer on or about January 1 of each year. The term 'Civil Air Patrol members' shall mean those senior members of the North Carolina Wing‑Civil Air Patrol 18 years of age or older and currently certified pursuant to G.S. 143B‑491(a). The term 'fireman' shall also mean county fire marshals when engaged in the performance of their county duties. The term 'rescue squad worker' shall also mean county emergency services coordinators when engaged in the performance of their county duties."
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to death benefits awarded on or after that date under Article 12A of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes.