Bill seeks cancer leave for firefighters in state

Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville, is shown with her daughters Evie (left), 8, and Kit, 4, at the state Capitol in this file photo.
Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville, is shown with her daughters Evie (left), 8, and Kit, 4, at the state Capitol in this file photo.

A Little Rock firefighter who died from colon cancer in 2017 is the namesake for legislation filed Wednesday aimed at providing future firefighters diagnosed with cancer with a year of paid sick leave.

"Crump's Law," or House Bill 1299, by Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville, is named for Nathaniel Crump, who a colleague and union representative said was forced to return to work in 2017 with stage 4 cancer, shortly before his death from the disease.

"Firefighting raises the risks of contracting certain types of cancer. The science is clear," Clowney said. "They have our backs in times of crisis, and it's time for us to have theirs."

Clowney's bill provides for 2,912 hours of sick leave, which covers a year's worth of 24-hour shifts, according to Matthew Stallings, the political director for Arkansas Professional Fire Fighters, Local 34. "Cancer leave," as defined by the bill, would cover leukemia, lymphoma, mesothelioma, multiple myeloma and 10 different types of cancer.

[RELATED: Complete Democrat-Gazette coverage of the Arkansas Legislature]

According to the First Responder Center for Excellence, a nonprofit based in Maryland, 33 states provide cancer benefits to firefighters through worker's compensation laws. Arkansas, however, allows only the award of a one-time death benefit to the firefighter's family, according to the center.

Clowney said that creates a "gap" under the law in which firefighters who are disabled because of cancer cannot get benefits and -- as in Crump's circumstance -- can force firefighters to return to work while sick.

"Our firefighters deserve better," Clowney said. "Nathaniel Crump deserved better."

Stallings said the firefighters' union is assembling a cancer registry to determine how many firefighters would be affected by the legislation, and to determine how much it would cost municipalities and counties to cover cancer leave.

"Right now we know our data is incomplete," Stallings said. "Nobody has been keeping these statistics."

Clowney said she is also working with the Arkansas Municipal League to smooth over issues related to the cost of the legislation on local fire departments.

Mark Hayes, the executive director of the Municipal League, could not be reached Wednesday to comment on the bill.

HB1299 was assigned to the House Committee on City, County and Local Affairs.

Metro on 01/31/2019

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