§ 46. Disaster Relief Workers Fund; health care providers; reimbursement

(a) The Disaster Relief Workers Fund is established in the State Treasury, and shall be managed in accordance with the provisions of 32 V.S.A. chapter 7, subchapter 5. The Fund is established for the purpose of providing pay reimbursement to employers of certain public or private health care providers who perform mental health disaster relief services.

(b) All monies received by or generated to the Fund shall be used to provide wage reimbursement to any public or private Vermont employer for disaster relief services rendered by its employee. The employee shall be a certified disaster relief service volunteer of the American Red Cross. Reimbursement shall be for not more than 14 days for performing disaster relief work pursuant to a request from the American Red Cross when:

(1) the work is performed in Vermont;

(2) the disaster is a federal or presidentially declared disaster designated as Level III or above, according to the American Red Cross regulations and procedures; or

(3) the disaster is declared by the governor of a state or territory.

(c) The proceeds from grants, donations, contributions, and other sources of revenue, as provided by law, may be deposited in the Fund. Interest earned on the Fund and any balance remaining at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the Fund. The Treasurer's Office shall maintain records that indicate the amount of money in the Fund at any given time.

(d) The Commissioner of Finance and Management shall issue warrants for disbursement from the Fund only for the purposes described in subsection (b) of this section, and shall administer the Fund pursuant to an appropriation from the Fund by the General Assembly or authorization from the Emergency Board.

(e) For mental health care relief services, the Commissioner of Mental Health or a director of a regional mental health center may make timely applications to any and all appropriate federal or other grant programs that provide money for disaster relief or homeland security services, including the Crisis Counseling Training and Assistance Program. Any monies awarded from these sources for the purposes authorized in subsection (b) of this section shall be deposited into the Disaster Relief Workers Fund. The Commissioner of Mental Health shall supervise the administration of mental health care reimbursements under this section.

(f) Nothing in this section shall render an employer liable for damage, injury, or harm caused or sustained by an employee who performs disaster relief services and who is eligible for reimbursement under this section, whether or not reimbursement occurs. (Added 2001, No. 100 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 2013, No. 96 (Adj. Sess.), § 120.)