{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-61.315","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 61.315","heading":"Benefits payable on death of certain peace officers, firefighters, correctional","body":"officers, jailers, school resource officers, members of a state National Guard or\nReserve component, and emergency medical services personnel --\nAdministrative regulat ions -- Estates to be exempted from probate fees --\nFunds allotted to a self-insuring account -- Presumption that firefighter's death\nfrom cancer resulted from act in the line of duty under certain conditions.\n(1) As used in this section:\n(a) \"Police o fficer\" means every paid police officer, sheriff, or deputy sheriff,\ncorrections employee with the power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS\n196.037, any metropolitan or urban-county correctional officer with the power\nof a peace officer pursuant to KRS 446 .010, any jailer or deputy jailer, any\nauxiliary police officer appointed pursuant to KRS 95.445, any police officer\nof a public institution of postsecondary education appointed pursuant to KRS\n164.950, any school resource officer as defined in KRS 158.441 , or any\ncitation or safety officer appointed pursuant to KRS 83A.087 and 83A.088,\nelected to office, or employed by any county, airport board created pursuant to\nKRS Chapter 183, city, local board of education, or by the state;\n(b) \"Firefighter\" means eve ry paid firefighter or volunteer firefighter who is\nemployed by or volunteers his or her services to the state, airport board\ncreated pursuant to KRS Chapter 183, any county, city, fire district, or any\nother organized fire department recognized, pursuant to KRS 95A.262, as a\nfire department operated and maintained on a nonprofit basis in the interest of\nthe health and safety of the inhabitants of the Commonwealth and shall\ninclude qualified civilian firefighters employed at Kentucky -based military\ninstallations; and\n(c) \"Emergency medical services personnel\" means any paid or volunteer\nemergency medical services personnel who is certified or licensed pursuant to\nKRS Chapter 311A and who is employed directly by, or volunteering directly\nfor, any:\n1. County;\n2. City;\n3. Fire protection district created under KRS 75.010 to 75.260; or\n4. Emergency ambulance service district created under KRS 108.080 to\n108.180;\nto provide emergency medical services.\n(2) The spouse of any police officer, sheriff, deputy sheriff,  corrections employee with\nthe power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS 196.037, any metropolitan or urban -\ncounty correctional officer with the power of a peace officer pursuant to KRS\n446.010, any jailer or deputy jailer, any auxiliary police officer appo inted pursuant\nto KRS 95.445, any police officer of a public institution of postsecondary education\nappointed pursuant to KRS 164.950, any school resource officer as defined in KRS\n158.441, or any citation or safety officer appointed pursuant to KRS 83A.08 7 and\n83A.088, firefighter, or member of the Kentucky National Guard on state active\nduty pursuant to KRS 38.030, or a member of a state National Guard or a Reserve\ncomponent on federal active duty under Title 10 or 32 of the United States Code\nwho names K entucky as home of record for military purposes, whose death occurs\non or after July 1, 2002, as a direct result of an act in the line of duty shall receive a\nlump-sum payment of eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) if there are no surviving\nchildren, which s um shall be paid by the State Treasurer from the general fund of\nthe State Treasury. The spouse of any emergency medical services personnel whose\ndeath occurs on or after November 1, 2015, as a direct result of an act in the line of\nduty shall receive a lump-sum payment of eighty thousand dollars ($80,000) if there\nare no surviving children, which sum shall be paid by the State Treasurer from the\ngeneral fund of the State Treasury. If there are surviving children and a surviving\nspouse, the payment shall be  apportioned equally among the surviving children and\nthe spouse. If there is no surviving spouse, the payment shall be made to the\nsurviving children, eighteen (18) or more years of age. For surviving children less\nthan eighteen (18) years of age, the State Treasurer shall:\n(a) Pay thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000) to the surviving children; and\n(b) Hold forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in trust divided into equal accounts\nat appropriate interest rates for each surviving child until the child rea ches the\nage of eighteen (18) years.\nIf a child dies before reaching the age of eighteen (18) years, his or her account shall\nbe paid to his or her estate. If there are no surviving children, the payment shall be\nmade to any parents of the deceased.\n(3) The Kentucky Fire Commission shall be authorized to promulgate administrative\nregulations establishing criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of\nthis section as it pertains to both paid and volunteer firefighters, including but not\nlimited to defining when a firefighter has died in line of duty. Administrative\nhearings promulgated by administrative regulation under authority of this\nsubsection shall be conducted in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B.\n(4) The Justice and Public Safety Cabinet may promulgate administrative regulations\nestablishing criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of this section\nas it pertains to police officers, any metropolitan or urban -county correctional\nofficers with the power of a peace officer purs uant to KRS 446.010, any school\nresource officer as defined in KRS 158.441, or any jailers or deputy jailers,\nincluding but not limited to defining when one has died in line of duty.\nAdministrative hearings promulgated by administrative regulation under au thority\nof this subsection shall be conducted in accordance with KRS Chapter 13B.\n(5) The Department of Corrections shall promulgate administrative regulations\nestablishing the criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of this\nsection as it pertains to correctional employees, including but not limited to defining\nwhich employees qualify for coverage and which circumstances constitute death in\nthe line of duty.\n(6) The Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services shall promulgate\nadministrative regulations establishing the criteria and procedures applicable to the\nadministration of this section as it pertains to emergency medical services\npersonnel, including but not limited to which employees or volunteers qualify for\ncoverage and which circumstances constitute death in the line of duty.\n(7) The Department of Military Affairs shall promulgate administrative regulations\nestablishing the criteria and procedures applicable to the administration of this\nsection as it pertains to National Guard or R eserve component members, including\nbut not limited to defining which National Guard or Reserve component members\nqualify for coverage and which circumstances constitute death in the line of duty.\n(8) The estate of anyone whose spouse or surviving children  would be eligible for\nbenefits under subsection (2) of this section, and the estate of any regular member\nof the United States Armed Forces who names Kentucky as home of record for\nmilitary purposes whose death occurs as a direct result of an act in the l ine of duty,\nshall be exempt from all probate fees, including but not limited to those established\nby the Supreme Court of Kentucky pursuant to KRS 23A.200 and 24A.170, or\nimposed under KRS 24A.185, 64.012, and 172.180.\n(9) The benefits payable under this section shall be in addition to any benefits now or\nhereafter prescribed under any police, sheriff, firefighter's, volunteer firefighter's,\nemergency medical services personnel, or National Guard or Reserve retirement or\nbenefit fund established by the fed eral government or by any state, county, or any\nmunicipality.\n(10) Any funds appropriated for the purpose of paying the death benefits described in\nsubsection (2) of this section shall be allotted to a self -insuring account. These\nfunds shall not be used for the purpose of purchasing insurance.\n(11) (a) For the purposes of this section, if a firefighter dies as a result of cancer, the\ndeath shall be a direct result of an act in the line of duty if the firefighter:\n1. Was a firefighter for at least five (5) consecutive years;\n2. Developed one (1) or more of the cancers listed in paragraph (b) of this\nsubsection which caused the firefighter's death within ten (10) years of\nseparation from service as a firefighter;\n3. Did not use tobacco products for a period o f ten (10) years prior to the\ndiagnosis of cancer;\n4. Was under the age of sixty-five (65) at the time of death;\n5. Was not diagnosed with any cancer prior to employment as a firefighter;\nand\n6. Was exposed while in the course of firefighting to a known ca rcinogen\nas defined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer or the\nNational Toxicology Program, and the carcinogen is reasonably\nassociated with one (1) or more of the cancers listed in paragraph (b) of\nthis subsection.\n(b) This section shall apply to the following cancers:\n1. Bladder cancer;\n2. Brain cancer;\n3. Colon cancer;\n4. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma;\n5. Kidney cancer;\n6. Liver cancer;\n7. Lymphatic or haematopoietic cancer;\n8. Prostate cancer;\n9. Testicular cancer;\n10. Skin cancer;\n11. Cervical cancer; and\n12. Breast cancer.\n(c) 1. The provisions of this subsection creating an entitlement to the line of\nduty death benefits shall apply exclusively to this section and shall not\nbe interpreted or otherwise construed to create either an expr ess or\nimplied presumption of work -relatedness for any type of claim filed\npursuant to KRS Chapter 342.\n2. This paragraph is intended to provide clarification regarding the sole and\nexclusive application of this subsection to only the benefits available\nunder this section and shall not be used as a bar or other type of\nlimitation to impair or alter the rights and ability of a claimant to prove\nwork-relatedness under KRS Chapter 342 or other laws.","path":["KRS Chapter 61"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=50252","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:49:14Z","sha256":"e10e5d36078b76fcdba1c4f98a77687ff0af2cc4c8a7743c1cd5dc1ebb70550b","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-61.310","next":"us-ky/krs-61.316"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}