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2023 Florida Statutes (including 2023C)

Title XXXI LABOR
Chapter 440 WORKERS' COMPENSATION Entire Chapter
SECTION 091
Law enforcement officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, or paramedic; when acting within the course of employment.
F.S. 440.091
440.091 Law enforcement officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, or paramedic; when acting within the course of employment.—
(1) If an employee:
(a) Is elected, appointed, or employed full time by a municipality, the state, or any political subdivision and is vested with authority to bear arms and make arrests and the employee’s primary responsibility is the prevention or detection of crime or the enforcement of the penal, criminal, traffic, or highway laws of the state;
(b) Was discharging that primary responsibility within the state in a place and under circumstances reasonably consistent with that primary responsibility; and
(c) Was not engaged in services for which he or she was paid by a private employer, and the employee and his or her public employer had no agreement providing for workers’ compensation coverage for that private employment;

the employee is considered to have been acting within the course of employment. The term “employee” as used in this subsection includes all certified supervisory and command personnel whose duties include, in whole or in part, responsibilities for the supervision, training, guidance, and management of full-time law enforcement officers, part-time law enforcement officers, or auxiliary law enforcement officers but does not include support personnel employed by the employing agency.

(2) If a firefighter as defined by s. 112.191(1)(b) is engaged in extinguishing a fire, or protecting and saving life or property due to a fire in this state in an emergency, and such activities would be considered to be within the course of his or her employment as a firefighter and covered by the employer’s workers’ compensation coverage except for the fact that the firefighter was off duty or that the location of the fire was outside the employer’s jurisdiction or area of responsibility, such activities are considered to be within the course of employment. This subsection does not apply if the firefighter is performing activities for which he or she is paid by another employer or contractor.
(3) If an emergency medical technician or paramedic is appointed or employed full time by a municipality, the state, or any political subdivision, is certified under chapter 401, is providing basic life support or advanced life support services, as defined in s. 401.23, in an emergency situation in this state, and such activities would be considered to be within the course of his or her employment as an emergency medical technician or paramedic and covered by the employer’s workers’ compensation coverage except for the fact that the location of the emergency was outside of the employer’s jurisdiction or area of responsibility, such activities are considered to be within the course of employment. The provisions of this subsection do not apply if the emergency medical technician or paramedic is performing activities for which he or she is paid by another employer or contractor.
History.—s. 1, ch. 82-146; s. 43, ch. 89-289; s. 56, ch. 90-201; s. 52, ch. 91-1; s. 102, ch. 97-103; s. 1, ch. 2002-236.