I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2163
To amend title 5, United States Code, to create a presumption that disability
of a Federal employee in fire protection activities caused by certain
conditions is presumed to result from the performance of such employee’s
duty.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 13, 2001
Mr. RODRIGUEZ (for himself, Mrs. MORELLA, Mrs. CAPPS, Mrs. JO ANN
DAVIS of Virginia, and Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce
A BILL
To amend title 5, United States Code, to create a presump-
tion that disability of a Federal employee in fire protec-
tion activities caused by certain conditions is presumed
to result from the performance of such employee’s duty.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Firefighters
Fairness Act of 2001’’.
SEC. 2. CERTAIN DISEASES PRESUMED TO BE WORK-RE-
LATED CAUSE OF DISABILITY OR DEATH FOR
FEDERAL EMPLOYEES IN FIRE PROTECTION
ACTIVITIES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8102 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection:
‘‘(c)(1) With regard to an employee in fire protection
activities, a disease specified in paragraph (2) shall be pre-
sumed to be proximately caused by the employment of
such employee. The disability or death of an employee in
fire protection activities due to such a disease shall be pre-
sumed to result from personal injury sustained while in
the performance of such employee’s duty. Such presump-
tions may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence.
‘‘(2) The diseases specified in this paragraph are the
following:
‘‘(A) Heart disease.
‘‘(B) Lung disease.
‘‘(C) The following cancers:
‘‘(i) Brain cancer.
‘‘(ii) Cancer of the blood or lymphatic sys-
tems.
‘‘(iii) Leukemia.
‘‘(iv) Lymphoma (except Hodgkin’s dis-
ease).
‘‘(v) Multiple myeloma.
‘‘(vi) Bladder cancer.
‘‘(vii) Kidney cancer.
‘‘(viii) Prostate cancer.
‘‘(ix) Testicular cancer.
‘‘(x) Cancer of the digestive system.
‘‘(xi) Colon cancer.
‘‘(xii) Liver cancer.
‘‘(xiii) Skin cancer.
‘‘(xiv) Breast cancer.
‘‘(xv) Lung cancer.
‘‘(D) The following infectious diseases:
‘‘(i) Tuberculosis.
‘‘(ii) Hepatitis A, B, or C.
‘‘(iii) 
Human 
immunodeficiency 
virus
(HIV).
‘‘(iv) Diphtheria.
‘‘(v) Hemorrhagic fever.
‘‘(vi) Meningococcal disease.
‘‘(vii) Rabies.
‘‘(viii) Any uncommon infectious disease
the contraction of which the Secretary of Labor
determines to be related to the hazards to
which an employee in fire protection activities
may be subject.
‘‘(3) The term ‘employee in fire protection activities’
means an employee, including a firefighter, paramedic,
emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance
personnel, or hazardous materials worker, who—
‘‘(A) is trained in fire suppression, has the legal
authority and responsibility to engage in fire sup-
pression; and
‘‘(B) is engaged in the prevention, control, and
extinguishment of fires or response to emergency sit-
uations where life, property, or the environment is at
risk.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
this section applies to an injury that is first diagnosed,
or a death that occurs, on or after the date of enactment
of this Act.
Æ