61.621 Fred Capps Memorial Act -- Eligibility for benefits for duty-related injury --
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/ky/61-621A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Benefits for surviving spouse and dependent children -- Receipt of benefits
pending final determination.
(1)Notwithstanding any provision of any statutes to the contrary, effective June 1, 2000, any
employee participating in one
(1)of the state-administered retirement systems who is not
in a hazardous duty position, as defined in KRS 61.592 or 78.5520, shall be eligible for
minimum benefits equal to the benefits payable under this section or KRS 61.702 or
78.5536, as applicable, if the employee dies or becomes totally and permanently disabled
to engage in any occupation for remuneration or profit as a result of a duty-related injury.
(a)For purposes of this section, "duty-related injury" means:
1. a. A single traumatic event that occurs while the employee is performing
the duties of his or her position; or
b. A single act of violence committed against the employee that is found to
be related to his or her job duties, whether or not it occurs at his or her
job site; and
2. The event or act of violence produces a harmful change in the human
organism evidenced by objective medical findings.
(b)"Duty-related injury" does not include the effects of the natural aging process, a
communicable disease unless the risk of contracting the disease is increased by
nature of the employment, or a psychological, psychiatric, or stress-related change
in the human organism unless it is the direct result of a physical injury.
(a)If the employee dies as a result of a duty-related injury and is survived by a spouse,
the surviving spouse shall be the beneficiary, and this shall supersede the designation
of all previous beneficiaries of the deceased employee's retirement account, except
as provided in KRS 61.542(2)(e).
(b)The surviving spouse, provided he or she supersedes all previously designated
beneficiaries, may elect to receive the benefits payable under KRS 61.640 or other
applicable death benefit statutes, or may elect to receive a lump-sum payment of ten
thousand dollars ($10,000) and a monthly payment equal to seventy-five percent
(75%) of the member's monthly average pay beginning in the month following the
member's death and continuing each month until the death of the surviving spouse.
(c)In addition, if the member is also survived by dependent children, monthly payments
shall be made for each dependent child equal to ten percent (10%) of the deceased
member's monthly average pay, except that the combined maximum payment made
to the:
1. Surviving spouse and dependent children under this subsection shall not
exceed one hundred percent (100%) of the deceased member's monthly
average pay; and
2. Dependent children, while the surviving spouse is living, shall not exceed
twenty-five percent (25%) of the deceased member's monthly average pay.
Payments made to the dependent children under this subsection shall be
divided equally among all the dependent children.
(4)If the employee dies as a result of a duty-related injury and is not survived by a spouse
but is survived by a dependent child or children, the following benefits shall be paid to the
dependent child or children:
(a)Fifty percent (50%) of the deceased member's monthly average pay, if the
deceased member has one
(1)dependent child;
(b)Sixty-five percent (65%) of the deceased member's monthly average pay, if the
deceased member has two
(2)dependent children; or
(c)Seventy-five percent (75%) of the deceased member's monthly average pay, if the
deceased member has three
(3)or more dependent children.
Payments made to the dependent children under this subsection shall be divided equally
among all the dependent children.
(5)If the employee is determined to be disabled as provided in KRS 61.600, or other
applicable disability statutes in any other state-administered retirement system, as the
result of a duty-related injury, the employee may elect to receive benefits determined
under the provisions of KRS 61.605, or other applicable disability statutes in any other
state-administered retirement system, except that:
(a)If an employee is working in a nonhazardous position that could be certified as a
hazardous position based upon KRS 61.592, the monthly retirement allowance
shall not be less than seventy-five percent (75%) of the employee's monthly average
pay; or
(b)If an employee is working in a nonhazardous position that could not be certified as a
hazardous position based upon KRS 61.592, the monthly retirement allowance
shall not be less than twenty-five percent (25%) of the employee's monthly final rate
of pay.
For purposes of determining a disability that is the result of a duty related injury, the
service requirement in KRS 61.600(1)(a), or other applicable statutes in any other state-
administered retirement system, shall be waived.
(a)In the period of time following the disability of a member covered by subsection
(5)(a) of this section during which dependent children survive, a monthly payment
shall be made for each dependent child who is alive which shall be equal to ten
percent (10%) of the disabled member's monthly average pay, except that:
1. Member and dependent children payments under this section shall not exceed
one hundred percent (100%) of the member's monthly average pay; and
2. Total maximum dependent children's benefits shall not exceed twenty-five
percent (25%) of the member's monthly average pay while the member is
living and forty percent (40%) of the disabled member's monthly average pay
after the member's death. The payment shall commence in the month
following the date of disability of the member and shall be payable to the
dependent children, or to a legally appointed guardian, or as directed by the
system and shall be divided equally among all dependent children.
(b)In the period of time following the disability of a member covered by subsection
(5)(b) of this section during which dependent children survive, a monthly payment
shall be made for each dependent child who is alive which shall be equal to ten
percent (10%) of the disabled member's monthly final rate of pay; except that total
maximum dependent children's benefits shall not exceed forty percent (40%) of the
disabled member's monthly final rate of pay at the time any particular payment is
due. The payment shall commence in the month following the date of disability of
the member and shall be payable to the dependent children, or to a legally
appointed guardian, or as directed by the system.
(7)Benefits for death as a result of a duty-related injury to a dependent child shall be payable
under this section notwithstanding an election by a surviving spouse or beneficiary to
withdraw the deceased member's accumulated account balance as provided in KRS
61.625 or benefits under any other provisions of KRS 61.515 to 61.705 or other
applicable death benefit statutes in any other state-administered retirement system.
(a)A spouse applying for benefits under this section who is also eligible for benefits
under KRS 61.640 or 78.5532 may elect to receive benefits under KRS
61.640(2)(a) or
(b)or 78.5532(2)(a) or
(b)while the application for benefits under
this section is pending.
(b)If a final determination results in a finding of eligibility for benefits under this section,
the system shall recalculate the benefits due the spouse in accordance with this
subsection.
(c)If the spouse has been paid less than the amount of benefits to which the spouse
was entitled to receive under this section, the system shall pay the additional funds
due to the spouse.
(d)If the spouse has been paid more than the benefit the spouse was eligible to receive
under this section, then the system shall deduct the amount owed by the spouse
from the ten thousand dollars ($10,000) lump-sum payment and from the monthly
retirement allowance payments until the amount owed to the systems has been
recovered.
(9)For purposes of this section, "dependent child" has the same meaning as in KRS 16.505.
(10)This section shall be known as "The Fred Capps Memorial Act."