I believe CAP members ARE covered by the Public Safety Officers Benefit Act

[RiverAux]

Some of you may be familiar with the federal Public Safety Officers Benefit Act which provides significant benefits to those killed or seriously injured.  See here for more info: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/grant/psob/psob_main.html

Back in 2005 bills were introduced in both houses of Congress to put language in this act that would specifically include CAP members when on AFAMs.  However, it never went anyplace.

I recently started looking at this Act and I don't see any reason why CAP would not be covered under it as it now stands.  Follow my logic. 

Who is eligible?  Here is a quote from the site with the broad overview:

As defined by Congress in Public Law 90-351 (Sec. 1217), a public safety officer is an individual serving a public agency in an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew. In October 2000, Public Law 106-390 (Sec. 305) designated employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as public safety officers under the PSOB Act if they were performing official, hazardous duties related to a declared major disaster or emergency. The legislation also indicated that state, local, or tribal emergency management or civil defense agency employees working in cooperation with FEMA are, under the same circumstances, considered public safety officers under the PSOB Act. Retroactive to September 11, 2001, chaplains also are included in the PSOB Act definition of a public safety officer.

Where does CAP fit?  I believe CAP members would be covered under the provisions for "rescue squad members."  Lets walk it down.  First here is the official public safety officer definition from the legislation:

"public safety officer" means—
(A) an individual serving a public agency in an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law enforcement officer, as a firefighter, as a chaplain, or as a member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew;

Is a CAP a public agency?  No, but the Air Force, as part of the federal government certainly fits and when on an AFAM we are considered an instrumentality of the US.

8) "public agency" means the United States....

Well, are we seving the feds in an official capacity?

Official capacity – An individual serves a public agency in an official capacity only if—
(1)  He is officially authorized, ‑recognized, or ‑designated (by such agency) as functionally within or ‑part of it; and
(2)  His acts and omissions, while so serving, are legally those of such agency, which legally recognizes them as such (or, at a minimum, does not deny (or has not denied) them to be such).

.
So, we're serving the feds in an official capacity without compensation, so would we fall under the rescue squad definition?

Here is the definition of the squad and I believe we fall under "officially recognized"

7) "member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew" means an officially recognized or designated public employee member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew;

Does CAP do what a rescue squad does?  Well, we are trained in rescue activity and the AF gives us the authority to carry this out in accordance with the MOUs they have with the various state.

Rescue squad or ambulance crew means a squad or crew whose members are rescue workers, ambulance drivers, paramedics, health-care responders, emergency medical technicians, or other similar workers, who—
(1)  Are trained in rescue activity or the provision of emergency medical services; and
(2)  As such members, have the legal authority and ‑responsibility to—
(i)     Engage in rescue activity; or
(ii)    Provide emergency medical services.

I know some people will say we rarely actually rescue anyone, but that is irrelevant.  Here is the definition of rescue activity they use:

Rescue activity means search or rescue assistance in locating or extracting from danger persons lost, missing, or in imminent danger of serious bodily harm.

So, we very clearly provide services that fall in that definition.  Please note that there are a lot of "or"'s in this code so don't try to say that because we don't provide medical services we wouldn't be covered. 

So, I know we have a lawyer or two here.  Where am I wrong? 

[Flying Pig]

Your reaching......really far.

[RiverAux]

Please explain how.  I've gone point by point through the requirements in the law itself (except for the initial quote, all the quotes I give come from the actual text of the legislation) and shown how CAP fits, at least when we are performing SAR work on an AFAM. 

Which part of the law am I misinterpreting? 

Incidentally, I think the same reasoning could be used to cover members of SAR teams run by county sheriffs or local emergency management agencies. 

[Trung Si Ma]

Why bother - your president is cutting the program anyway

[capchiro]

I think the magic words you overlooked are "public employee".  We are not considered employees in any shape of the word..   jmho..

[heliodoc]

I would imagine this is reaching pretty far

CAP covered by FTCA / FECA

CAP is a support function an not a direct LE or Fire Response "agency"

I would also imagine CAP Inc, and its lawyers would weigh in on this one

Mandates are different......  I suppose if Congress wrote us in differently in the 1940's, this may have been different

BUT CAP Inc is not a First Response organization established under Federal, State, City, and County laws and therefore should not be eligible for PSOB UNTIL ALL CAP NHQ do some politicing for it.  It require alot more than what CAP has done currently and in the past AND if they were REALLY concened about it....it would have been done already

Again WE (CAP) MAY think we are a First Response agency...........we are not

Like FP says.....reaching...................really far

[heliodoc]

That is why CAP is "so cheap" on use during missions....

READ the PSOB.... more directly toward employed FIRE, LE, Volly FD, etc

We could argue this all night....keep tryin

CAP is not "employed"  and again because we are CAP INC  and not tied to a "govt agency...there's the explanation, pure and simple

WE ARE NOT Public Safety or DESIGNATED disaster workers as defined by the Staaford Act or FEMA....we are a requested resource known for our capability and "being cheaper to the US Govt"

Until we are written and SPELLED out in the PSOB......well,  good luck

Wildland fire folks and airtankers pilot have been fighting to in on the PSOB FOR YEEEEEEAAARS

CAP, get in line

[RiverAux]

I think the magic words you overlooked are "public employee".

Read closer.  Whether or not you are paid is not a factor. 

CAP is a support function an not a direct LE or Fire Response "agency"

Does not matter that we're not a LE or Fire Response agency.  All that matters is that we are working under the auspices of a federal agency -- it doesn't speciffy what type of agency.  What matters is what we are doing. 

READ the PSOB.... more directly toward employed FIRE, LE, Volly FD, etc

Actually it covers volunteers. 

CAP is not "employed"  and again because we are CAP INC  and not tied to a "govt agency...there's the explanation, pure and simple

Again, it doesn't matter that we're volunteer.  Read the federal law that explicitly says that CAP is an instrumentality of the federal government when on an Air Force Assigned Mission.  CAP members going to meetings or doing corporate flying certainly would not be covered under this law.  CAP members doing a CD flight probably wouldn't either since they weren't being used as a rescue squad at the time.  But a CAP aircrew or ground team (or chaplain) on a AFAM SAR mission would be. 

WE ARE NOT Public Safety or DESIGNATED disaster workers as defined by the Staaford Act or FEMA....

I never claimed that we were.  That is a separate part of the Act from what I brought up. 

[Rotorhead]

"public safety officer" means—
(A) an individual serving a public agency in an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law enforcement officer, as a firefighter, as a chaplain, or as a member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew;

We're not members of any of those categories.

And don't try the "rescue squad" angle, because we don't typically rescue victims.

[heliodoc]

AGAIN RiverAux,  your interpretation

You can keep the "volunteer" reminder up

Does not matter woildland fire and airtanker pilots by virtue of designator for wildland firefighters are technically known as forest technicians and range technicians NOT firefighters and that has been the sticking point for YEARS

Airtanker pilots have been told they are contractors to US Govt and not a First Responder for what ever reason dictated by the writers of PSOB

PROVE how CAP goes ahead of these folks and will start chewing my hat when it occurs

So by my operating knowledge, if these folks have not been written in, and they RESPOND ALOT FASTER than CAP can, where does CAP fit in to this??

I have an answer and I will stick with it.....we are a SUPPORT function not a First Response agency

I have read and read it closely...being in the wildland fire biz.  If I pass away on the fireline...no dinero for me except a State agency pittance and MAYBE some insurance money

I HAVE READ the PSOB many a time and I know where I fit because of my  wildland fire title....again not designated in the PSOB and wildland is considered First Response in  many States and because of TITLES and how PSOB is written

SO again , how does CAP fit in this when our title is not a disaster worker..please explain that to a wildland fire operator who sees more action in several days over CAP SAR missions and assignments that are basically support functions as designated by the (not SAR) incident IC, 1AF, or an emergency manager of a community on case by case basis and NOT an incident that requires emergency response ?

How about the airtanker operators that have gone down with their aircraft in the last 6 + yrs...Their families have been trying for years for PSOB because of the dangers of airtanker operations.  NO dinero for them.  Follow THAT industry for awhile.... and you get a sense of what unfair might be

Again from my humble post and work for the last 20 yrs......CAP can get their act together and get to DC and politic for it like my wildland fire kin have and got not too far

CAP can get in line or piggy back with these operators, but don't expect CAP to get in on it anytime soon....Like the DHS stuff CAP is hoping for....I would NOT hold my breath

Continue argument...........

[SJFedor]

Concur on the far stretch on this one.

CAP does NOT engage in rescue activities, and CAP members are not trained for rescue activity. CAP is trained and utilized for "search and locate". If we manage to find a live victim, do we extricate, evacuate, treat, and transport the victim/patient? Negative, because CAP regulations specifically prohibit us doing anything more then first aid, and most supporting activities that go with the ones i listed typically require a higher level of training, nor do we have the capabilities to treat and transport beyond a basic first aid level.  What we end up doing is providing first aid, and calling in help for formal rescue. Maybe we're able to get them into a stokes basket and get them a little closer to pre-hospital care, but that would be the extent of it.

Case in point: you're out trucking through the woods looking for a victim. Maybe it's a crashed plane, maybe it's a missing person. Most likely, they're going to fall under the general summary term of a trauma patient, meaning that they've probably sustained some form of physical trauma. I don't have hard statistics, but i'm willing to bet a majority of rescue victims have some form of trauma.  So, when you find this victim, let's say they fell down a hill or crashed their plane and self extracated or whatever. There's going to be a high index of suspicion for spinal injury. Who's going to immobilize that patient to a long spine board and apply a CSID? Who's going to take responsibility for the medical well being of that patient until they reach a higher level of care? And ultimately, who's going to be liable if something goes wrong, like when you go to immobilize that patient, all of a sudden they can't feel their legs anymore? We're not equipped, nor trained, to provide rescue services beyond location, reporting, and first aid.


And honestly River, why? Does it really matter? Is it going to affect what I do in the field? Is this flag pole really worth urinating vertically upon?

[RiverAux]

"public safety officer" means—
(A) an individual serving a public agency in an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law enforcement officer, as a firefighter, as a chaplain, or as a member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew;

We're not members of any of those categories.

And don't try the "rescue squad" angle, because we don't typically rescue victims.

I already went through the definition of what a rescue squad is under this law and that it very clearly includes search and rescue activities which we clearly perform.  Yes, the end result of most of our searches is that we don't rescue anyone, but we train to do so.  Take a look at the task guides for both aircrew and ground teams and you will find multiple tasks clearly focused on rescue activities ranging from looking for signals set up by survivors to carrying people out of the woods. 

And please read the law.  It does not require that rescue teams provide medical services.  If a team does provide medical services, it is covered.  But, there is a big OR in that same sentence that covers a team only doing SAR.  Remember the definition they use for "rescue assistance".  If we find someone that is merely lost, whether or not they are injured, it is covered by that definition.

[Spike]

From the Lawyers side.......

Since CAP members are given reasonable coverage by the Federal Government for loss of life or limb while assigned on an "Air Force Assigned Mission" (to include duty with, for or detached to another Federal Agency), taking other benefits (like those presented above) would equate to remove the CAP member from a protected category while carrying out "Air Force Assigned Missions".

Trust me, this has been hashed out at levels beyond your imagination.  Lawyers for and against both cases (for and against a new law, or amendment of such laws) have battled, and those against adding CAP Members to the list of covered individuals protected by the PSOBA......WON.

If you can factually state why CAP members need to be added, instead of saying "I believe" or "My Opinion is", then you may have a case.

[RiverAux]

I stated the facts.  I'm not arguing that CAP members should be specifically added to the act as has been proposed, but rather that we are already covered under the existing language of the law.  Whether or not we should be specifically covered is for another thread. 

Yes, we are also covered by other statutes, but I don't see where that precludes also being covered here.  Other federal government employees would seem to be covered by both as well.

Perhaps it has been argued about at high levels and if you know the details, perhaps you can explain specifically where I went wrong in analyzing the law as it now stands. 

[heliodoc]

Well Spike

If those lawyers are so bright...

I have wondered what those "wonderful folks" have done for the wildland fire business AND the airtanker industry to help those folks??

Those folks have had more than "I believe" and "in my opinion" and alot of FACTS put to  the the lawyerly trade

The wonderful lawyer community still has not done a service to those disciplines and after all those years of "hashed out beyond your imagination"  There has been plenty of folks that have pushed the facts and "in my opinion" the lawyer trade has not done a justifiable service to wildland fire and airtanker folks

So IF CAP could address facts and get that written into the PSOB, think some lawyer would that leg work for pro bono??  I thought not!!

[wingnut55]

we have gone through this before

CAP is covered there have been several Aircraft Crashes killing the crew and they were covered, look for the South Carolina Crash, a federal Judge ruled that the crew was involved in a CD mission as such they were qualified.

In addition several states cover CAP for workers comp and getting killed in the line of duty.

I can't get over the people in CAP who think CAP means you're screwed if injured or killed on an AFAM when clearly it is written that the aircraft and crew are an instrument of the US Government and directly under the direction of the Secretary of the Air Force.

FICA means if you are killed or injured you are covered as a GS-9

[wingnut55]

This is North Carolina

Chapter 143. State Departments, Institutions, and Commissions.
ARTICLE 12A. Law-Enforcement Officers', Firemen's, Rescue Squad Workers' and Civil Air Patrol Members' Death Benefits Act.
§ 143-166.3. Payments; determination.

(a) When any law-enforcement officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member shall be killed in the line of duty, the Industrial Commission shall award a death benefit to be paid in the amounts set forth in subsection (b) to the following:
(1) The spouse of such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member if there be a surviving spouse; or
(2) If there be no spouse qualifying under the provisions of this Article, then payments shall be made to any surviving dependent child of such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member and if there be more than one surviving dependent child, then said payment shall be made to and equally divided among all surviving dependent children; or
(3) If there be no spouse and no dependent child or children qualifying under the provisions of this Article, then payments shall be made to the surviving dependent parent of such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member and if there be more than one surviving dependent parent then said payments shall be made to and equally divided between the surviving dependent parents of said officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member.
(b) Payment shall be made to the person or persons qualifying therefor under subsection (a) in the following amounts:
(1) At the time of the death of an officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member, twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) shall be paid to the person or persons entitled thereto.
(2) Thereafter, ten thousand dollars ($10,000) shall be paid annually to the person or persons entitled thereto until the sum of the initial payment and each annual payment reaches fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
(3) In the event there is no person qualifying under subsection (a) of this section, fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall be paid to the estate of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member at the time of death.
(c) In the event that any person or persons eligible for payments under subsection (a) of this section shall become ineligible, and other eligible person or persons qualify for said death benefit payments under subsection (a), then they shall receive the remainder of any payments up to the limit of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in the manner set forth in subsection (b) of this section.
(d) In the event any person or persons eligible for payments under subsection (a) of this section shall become ineligible and no other person or persons qualify for payments under that subsection and where the sum of the initial payment of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) and each subsequent annual payment of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) does not total fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), then the difference between the total of the payments made and fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall immediately be payable to the estate of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker, or senior Civil Air Patrol member.

[wingnut55]

This is the FICA reg on CAP and others

http://www.dol.gov/esa/owcp/dfec/regs/compliance/DFECfolio/FECA-PT4.pdf

Due to CAP's expanding role in the 21st century to include increased homeland security work, Congress in February 2003 amended the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to make members of the Civil Air Patrol eligible for Public Safety Officer death benefits.

Under this bill, Civil Air Patrol members who lose their lives in the line of duty will become eligible for the same federal death benefit provided to other public safety personnel. The bill, entitled the Civil Air Patrol Homeland Security Benefits Act (H.R. 3681)applies to the members of CAP who lose their lives or become permanently disabled while engaged in active service in support of operational missions of the U.S. Air Force.

[wingnut55]

South Carolina

South Carolina Permanent
South Carolina - Education Benefit for Families of Firefighters Killed or Permanently Disabled in the Line of Duty

ARTICLE 3.

FREE TUITION FOR CHILDREN OF CERTAIN FIREMEN, LAW-ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND THE LIKE

SECTION 59-111-110. Tuition not charged children of firemen, law-enforcement officers and government employees totally disabled or killed in line of duty.

No tuition may be charged for a period of four school years by any state-supported college or university or any state-supported vocational or technical school for children of:

(1) firemen, both regularly employed and members of volunteer organized units, organized rescue squad members, members of the Civil Air Patrol, law enforcement officers, or corrections officers, as defined herein, including reserve and auxiliary units of counties or municipalities who become totally disabled or are killed in the line of duty on or after July 1, 1964;

(2) government employees who become totally disabled or are killed in the line of duty while working on state time on or after July 1, 1996, as a result of a criminal act committed against them which constitutes a felony under the laws of this State.

The tuition authorized to be paid by this section applies only to undergraduate courses or curriculum and may be paid for a period not exceeding four years, regardless of the number of state-supported colleges, universities, or state-supported vocational or technical schools the child attends.

SECTION 59-111-120. "Fireman" defined.

For the purposes of this article, a fireman shall be defined as any person performing general fire-fighting duties who is either employed by an official State, municipal or county fire department in this State, or is a member of any organized volunteer fire department within this State, whose name has been entered on an official roster of such volunteer organization prior to the time such person is totally disabled or killed in line of duty.

SECTION 59-111-130. "Law-enforcement officer" defined.

For the purposes of this article, a law enforcement officer means a:

(1) person performing law enforcement duties at the request of and under the supervision of an official state, municipal, or county law enforcement agency in South Carolina when the person is totally disabled or killed in the line of duty;

(2) person performing law enforcement duties at the request of and under the supervision of a federal agency when the person is totally disabled or killed in the line of duty if he has been a resident of South Carolina for at least eighteen years. This item applies whether or not the law enforcement officer was disabled or killed in South Carolina or another state.

SECTION 59-111-140. "Corrections officer" defined.

For purposes of this article a corrections officer shall be defined as any person who performs duties of security, control, or discipline over inmates at the request of and under the supervision of any official State, municipal, or county correctional institution and who was performing such duties at the time of his death or total disability.

SECTION 59-111-145. "Government employee" defined.

For the purposes of this article, a government employee means a person who is required to participate in the state retirement system.

SECTION 59-111-150. "State-supported college or university" defined.

For the purposes of this article, a State-supported college or university shall be defined as any two-year or four-year college or university supported by the State of South Carolina, including colleges or universities offering postgraduate or professional courses of study.

SECTION 59-111-160. "Total disability" defined.

For the purposes of this article, total disability shall mean the physical inability to perform work in any gainful occupation, which disability directly results from any injury received in line of duty. In cases of such total disability, the free tuition provided for herein shall be extended only while such fireman or law-enforcement officer continues to be totally disabled.

This article shall not apply to a child or children born after the first year of total disability as herein defined.

SECTION 59-111-170. Application for free tuition.

Application for the free tuition provided for in this article shall be filed with the governing body of the institution and shall be accompanied by proof or evidence of the death or total disability of the parent of the applicant and such proof or evidence that the injury or death occurred in the line of duty as considered necessary by such governing body, which shall have sole discretion in granting or not granting free tuition.

[wingnut55]

Some States Use us for many Law Enforcement functions

Minneapolis Minnesota Procedures Manual

6-107 REQUESTING FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ASSISTANCE

Federal law enforcement agencies may be contacted for assistance in emergency situations through the Chief of Police, Chief's designee or the on-duty Watch Commander in their absence. The following Federal agencies may be called; the phone numbers are on file with the Minneapolis Emergency Communications Center or may be found in the blue colored government pages of the Minneapolis Telephone Directory: (04/01/93)

    * Drug Enforcement Administration

    * Federal Bureau of Investigation

    * Immigration and Naturalization

    * Department of Treasury

    * U.S. Marshall

    * ATF- Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms

    * U.S. Postal Inspector

    * Civil Air Patrol

    * Federal Protection and Safety Division

    * U.S. Secret Service