(A) Service incurred. Any active member who receives a service-connected injury, disease, or disability, which totally and permanently incapacitates him or her, physically or mentally, from regular and continuous duty as a firefighter or police officer, and any other duty or duties available through the Fire or Police Departments respectively to the firefighter or police officer, shall receive in equal monthly installments an amount equal to 75% of monthly earnings in effect on date disability is granted by the Board. For firefighters only, if the member’s accrued benefit exceeds the disability benefit, such excess benefit will be classified as a normal retirement benefit. The disability pension shall be effective immediately and the first payment shall be made on the first day of the month coincident with or next following such granting and shall be payable until the earlier of death or recovery from disability. If the member dies after retirement but before recovery from disability and before he or she has received benefits for a period of ten years, the same monthly benefit will be paid to the beneficiary (or beneficiaries) as designated by the member for the balance of such ten-year period.
As provided and subject to the limitations in F.S. § 112.1816, effective July 1, 2019, a firefighter (as defined in F.S. § 112.1816(1)) Member shall be considered to be Totally and Permanently Disabled in the line of duty if he or she meets the Plan's definition of totally and permanently disabled due to a diagnosis of cancer (as defined in F.S. § 112.1816(1)), or circumstances that arise out of the treatment of cancer (as defined in F.S. § 112.1816(1)).
(B) 9/11 Service Incurred Disability. Should any member of this Plan be deemed disabled, as defined in the preceding paragraph, as a direct result of his or her duty related service at the "9/11 Ground Zero" site said member shall be eligible to change his or her current retirement status from Normal Retirement to a Service Connected Disability Retirement and shall receive in equal monthly installments an amount equal to 75% of monthly earnings in effect on date of his or her Normal Retirement. Said 9/11 Service Incurred Disability designation will have an effective date on the first of the month immediately following the determination made by the Board, per section (C) below. The first payment shall be made on the first day of the month following such granting and shall be payable until the earlier of death or recovery from said disability. For a Plan member to be eligible for the 9/11 Disability Service Incurred Disability, said member must be a recognized participant in and a recipient of compensation from the World Trade Center Federal Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) for at least two years prior to application for the 9/11 Service Incurred Disability designation.
(C) Nonservice incurred. Any active member with seven years of service who receives a nonservice-incurred injury, disease, or disability, which totally and permanently incapacitates him or her, physically or mentally, from regular and continuous duty as a firefighter or police officer, and any other duty or duties available through the Fire or Police Departments respectively to the firefighter or police officer, shall receive in equal monthly installments an amount equal to 3% of his or her average monthly earnings for each year of continuous service, subject in any event to a maximum of 60% of monthly earnings in effect on date disability is granted by the Board plus 2% of monthly earnings for each year of continuous service in excess of 25 years. However, in the case of a member, the minimum benefit shall be 25% of such member’s average monthly earnings. The disability pension shall be effective immediately and the first payment shall be made on the first day of the month coincident with or next following such granting and shall be payable until the earlier of death or recovery from disability. If the member dies after retirement but before recovery from disability and before he or she has received benefits for a period of ten years, the monthly benefit will be paid to the beneficiary (or beneficiaries) as designated by the member for the balance of such ten-year period.
(D) Determination of disability. All questions relating to eligibility for continuance of disability benefits shall be determined by the Board of Trustees, which may refer disability benefit recipients for medical examinations pursuant to § 34.049.
(E) Service-incurred aggravation of non-service incurred condition. Any benefit payable under this section by virtue of service-incurred aggravation of an injury, disease, disability, impairment, or condition which existed at the time of a member’s entry into the plan or of an injury, disease, disability, impairment, or condition which itself was not service-incurred, shall be deemed to be a non-service incurred benefit, regardless of whether or not the injury, disease, disability, impairment, or condition was known or was symptomatic prior to the service-incurred aggravation.
(‘58 Code, § 11.47) (Ord. 72-59, passed 8-15-72; Am. Ord. 78-36, passed 3-15-78; Am. Ord. 82-18, passed 12-15-81; Am. Ord. 85-23, passed 2-5-85; Am. Ord. 2000-73, passed 9-12-00; Am. Ord. 2001-71, passed 7-10-01; Am. Ord. 2002-40, passed 3-12-02; Am. Ord. 2002-41, passed 3-12-03; Am. Ord. 2015-19, passed 1-13-15; Am. Ord. 2020-14, passed 12-10-19; Am. Ord. 2020-48, passed 3-10-20; Am. Ord. 2023-10, passed 11-8-22)