63. Liability of county. 1. In the case of plans established pursuant to former subdivision three-a of section fifty of this chapter and continued pursuant to the provisions of section sixty-one of this chapter, payments with respect to (a) the liability of participants arising on and after January first, nineteen hundred fifty-seven, and (b) the joint liability of the participants imposed pursuant to such former subdivision three-a of section fifty of this chapter, shall be made by the county.
2. When a plan is established pursuant to this article, payments with respect to the liability of participants arising on and after the effective date of the plan shall be made by the county.
3. Where a town participates in a plan, in addition to payments with respect to the liability of the town, the county shall make payments with respect to that portion of the liability of all villages, fire districts, fire protection districts and fire alarm districts within such town and all territory within such town outside cities, villages, fire districts, fire protection districts and fire alarm districts arising out of the death of or injury to volunteer firefighters; provided, however, that the county shall not be obligated to make such payments in the case of a village, fire district, fire protection district or fire alarm district, located in more than one town unless the town board of each town containing part of the village or district by resolution elects to become a participant in the plan. Participation in a plan by a village or fire district shall make the county liable for such payments where the town or towns in which such village or fire district is located are not participants in the plan. The term "injury", as used in this subdivision, means "injury" as defined in subdivision four of section three of the volunteer firefighters' benefit law, as amended from time to time. If a county has elected to establish a self-insurance plan for itself, it may elect to extend coverage under such plan to voluntary ambulance companies upon the same terms and conditions as such coverage applies to volunteer firefighters.
4. The expenditure of county funds for payments authorized or required by this article is hereby declared to be for a county purpose.
5. For the purposes of this article, officers and employees of a soil conservation district located wholly within a county shall be deemed employees of the county in which such district is located.
6. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, each participant alone shall be obligated to pay the increased liability provided for by section fourteen-a of this chapter.
7. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, each participant in a plan continued or established pursuant to this article shall be deemed to have duly taken such action, as would have otherwise been required by this chapter, to elect to bring all of its employees, or officers, elected or appointed or otherwise, not enumerated in section three, subdivision one, groups one to seventeen inclusive, of this chapter, within the coverage of this chapter hereafter, notwithstanding the definitions of the terms "employment", "employer", or "employee" in subdivisions three, four and five of section two of this chapter, and each participant which has any group, as defined by order of the New York state civil defense commission, of civil defense volunteers not enumerated in section three, subdivision one, group seventeen, who are personnel of a volunteer agency of the local office of such participant, as defined in the state defense emergency act, shall be deemed to have duly taken such separate and distinct action of its legislative or other governmental body, as would otherwise have been required by this chapter, to bring such group of civil defense volunteers within the coverage of this chapter hereafter as to their authorized civil defense services to the extent not covered under article ten of this chapter, and hereafter all such officers and employees and such civil defense volunteers of a participant in a plan continued or established pursuant to this article shall be within the coverage of this chapter to the same extent as if all appropriate action had been taken pursuant to section three, subdivision one, group nineteen, or any other applicable provision, of this chapter; provided, however, in relation to such officers and employees of the participant, or any class or group of such officers and employees of the participant or for such civil defense volunteers who are personnel of the participant, a participant may (1) elect not to provide such coverage, (2) elect to provide such coverage in a manner provided in section fifty of this chapter other than under article five thereof, (3) elect to revoke an election made under either "(1)" or "(2)" above and adopt the other of such elections, or (4) elect to revoke an election made under either "(1)" "(2)" or "(3)" above and have such coverage provided under the plan as if no election had been made hereunder. Any such election shall become effective when adopted if it is filed with the chairman of the workmen's compensation board and with the committee or administrator of the plan within ten days after adoption, otherwise it shall become effective when filed with both the chairman of the workmen's compensation board and the committee or administrator of the plan. The chairman of the workmen's compensation board may prescribe the form or forms of any such election. Notwithstanding the provisions of section three, subdivision one, group nineteen, of this chapter, if the county elects to exclude one or more groups of such civil defense volunteers of the county's office of civil defense, then the plan shall not be liable for coverage under this chapter for such civil defense volunteers so excluded, but this shall not preclude a town or a village in such county or a city participating in the consolidated county office of civil defense of such county from bringing the members of such group or groups of duly enrolled civil defense volunteers who are residents of and are enrolled from such town, village or city within the coverage of this chapter during any period when the county has so excluded, but in any such case the compensation shall be secured in a manner provided in section fifty of this chapter other than under article five thereof. This subdivision shall not affect the coverage of officers and employees and civil defense volunteers for whom mandatory coverage is provided under this chapter.
8. Except as provided in subdivision three or nine of this section in relation to volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers, participation in a plan by a town shall not make the county liable for payments of compensation under this chapter in relation to the officers and employees of a fire or ambulance district located in whole or in part in such town. Except as provided in subdivision three of this section in relation to volunteer firefighters or subdivision nine of this section in relation to volunteer ambulance workers, the county shall be liable for payments of compensation under this chapter in relation to the officers and employees of a fire or ambulance district only in cases where the fire or ambulance district is a participant in the plan.
9. Where a town participates in a plan, in addition to payments with respect to the liability of the town, the county shall make payments with respect to that portion of the liability of all villages, ambulance districts, within such town and all territory within such town outside cities, villages, ambulance districts, arising out of the death of or injury to volunteer ambulance workers; provided, however, that the county shall not be obligated to make such payments in the case of a village, ambulance district, located in more than one town unless the town board of each town containing part of the village or district by resolution elects to become a participant in the plan. Participation in a plan by a village or ambulance district shall make the county liable for such payments where the town or towns in which such village or ambulance district is located are not participants in the plan. The term "injury", as used in this subdivision, means "injury" as defined in subdivision four of section three of the volunteer ambulance workers' benefit law, as amended from time to time.
Last modified: February 3, 2019