129th MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 298		LR 761(01)
	An Act To Establish a Conditional Presumption of Compensability for Corrections Employees in Cases of Impairment from Hypertension or Heart Disease
	Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement for Original Bill
	Sponsor: Rep. Handy of Lewiston
	Committee: Labor and Housing
	Fiscal Note Required: Yes
Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement
Potential State Mandate - Unfunded Potential current biennium cost increase - All Funds
State Mandates
	Required Activity				Unit Affected	Local Cost
	Shifting the burden of proof that a county corrections employee contracted heart disease or hypertension as a result of employment as a corrections employee from the claimant to the employer and/or the employer's insurer may increase the number of cases counties must defend, require a more rigorus and costly defense in some cases and result in more cases being resolved adversely against the counties.				County	Significant statewide
	The required local activities in this bill may represent a state mandate pursuant to the Constitution of Maine. If the bill does require a local unit of government to expand or modify its activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures from local revenue, the state mandate provisions of the Constitution of Maine require either: (1) General Fund appropriations be provided to fund at least 90% of any additional necessitated local costs of the mandate; or (2) a Mandate Preamble be added to the bill and two-thirds of the members of each House vote to exempt the mandate from the funding requirement. If the bill does represent a state mandate and neither one of these actions occurs, the local units of government will not be required to implement the mandated activities.
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	Adding a presumption that heart disease or hypertension suffered by a corrections employee employed by the State was caused in the course of that employment will result in additional costs to the State as a direct reimbursement employer and to the Department of Corrections associated with increased payments of workers' compensation benefits and legal and administrative expenses.  The impact will depend on actual experience.