Gov. Katie Hobbs held a signing ceremony in Phoenix on Wednesday for legislation supporting Arizona firefighters, including Senate Bill 1215, which clarifies cancer claims under workers’ compensation. The law, which corrects a wording issue in existing statutes, ensures adenocarcinoma is covered as a work-related illness and provides retroactive relief for denied claims dating back to 2021, officials said.
The legislation signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs on Wednesday in Phoenix also includes Senate Bill 1677 and Senate Bill 1400, which focus on first-responder wellness and mental health protections. According to a June 2024 legislative update from Hobbs’ office, SB 1677 addresses post-traumatic stress disorder and therapy access for firefighters and peace officers. AZ Free News reported that SB 1400 authorizes first-responder agencies to create wellness and crisis-response programs that provide counseling, peer support, and crisis intervention services, with confidentiality protections for participant communications.
The new law applies retroactively to denied claims dating back to July 1, 2021, according to AZ Free News and other sources.
Senate Bill 1215, sponsored by Sen. Kevin Payne, R-District 27, is the central firefighter-related measure in the package. The bill corrects a punctuation error in existing Arizona law that affected workers’ compensation claims for firefighters diagnosed with cancer. ABC15 described it as a “comma bill” because it clarifies that adenocarcinoma—a type of cancer—qualifies as a standalone illness presumed to be work-related under the state’s presumptive cancer law for firefighters. The correction ensures coverage for firefighters diagnosed with qualifying cancers regardless of where the cancer develops in the body, officials said.
This retroactive relief allows some previously rejected cancer claims to be reconsidered under the clarified statute. The correction was enacted after the legislature passed the broader public-safety package earlier in 2024 and before the start of the wildfire season, according to reports from the governor’s office and state agencies.
The public-safety legislative package signed by Hobbs in June 2024 also includes Senate Bills 1452 and 1493, which address other public-safety issues beyond firefighter support. SB 1452 establishes a Cargo Theft Task Force under the Arizona attorney general’s office to investigate and prosecute organized cargo theft operations, AZ Free News reported. The package was described by state officials as a bipartisan effort to enhance public safety measures across several fronts.
In addition to the legislative actions, Gov. Hobbs highlighted a 15% pay raise for state firefighters during a separate signing event. She said the raise aims to support firefighters’ families and improve recruitment and retention of personnel amid ongoing public safety and wildfire response challenges, according to official statements released by her office.
The signing ceremony and legislative updates come as Arizona prepares for the 2024 wildfire season. On May 17, 2024, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management announced that House Bill 2751, also signed by Hobbs, expanded the state’s access to wildland firefighting resources through the Great Plains Interstate Fire Compact. The compact includes New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The measure enables Arizona to more efficiently obtain equipment and personnel during periods of high fire activity, agency officials said.
Records show that the governor’s office publicly documented multiple firefighter-related bills signed in June 2024, underscoring an active legislative agenda focused on public safety workers. The package’s timing and provisions reflect ongoing efforts by state lawmakers and the governor to address the needs of firefighters and first responders in the face of increasing wildfire risks and occupational health concerns.
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