§ 143-166.3. Payments; determination. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 143‑166.3.  Payments; determination.

(a)        When any law‑enforcement officer, fireman, rescuesquad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member shall be killed in the line ofduty, the Industrial Commission shall award a death benefit to be paid in theamounts set forth in subsection (b) to the following:

(1)        The spouse of such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker orsenior Civil Air Patrol member if there be a surviving spouse; or

(2)        If there be no spouse qualifying under the provisions ofthis Article, then payments shall be made to any surviving dependent child ofsuch officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol memberand if there be more than one surviving dependent child, then said paymentshall be made to and equally divided among all surviving dependent children; or

(3)        If there be no spouse and no dependent child or childrenqualifying under the provisions of this Article, then payments shall be made tothe surviving dependent parent of such officer, fireman, rescue squad worker orsenior Civil Air Patrol member and if there be more than one survivingdependent parent then said payments shall be made to and equally dividedbetween the surviving dependent parents of said officer, fireman, rescue squadworker or senior Civil Air Patrol member.

(b)        Payment shall be made to the person or persons qualifyingtherefor under subsection (a) in the following amounts:

(1)        At the time of the death of an officer, fireman, rescuesquad worker or senior Civil Air Patrol member, twenty thousand dollars($20,000) shall be paid to the person or persons entitled thereto.

(2)        Thereafter, ten thousand dollars ($10,000) shall be paidannually to the person or persons entitled thereto until the sum of the initialpayment and each annual payment reaches fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).

(3)        In the event there is no person qualifying under subsection(a) of this section, fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall be paid to theestate of the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker or senior CivilAir Patrol member at the time of death.

(c)        In the event that any person or persons eligible forpayments under subsection (a) of this section shall become ineligible, andother eligible person or persons qualify for said death benefit payments undersubsection (a), then they shall receive the remainder of any payments up to thelimit of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in the manner set forth in subsection(b) of this section.

(d)        In the event any person or persons eligible for paymentsunder subsection (a) of this section shall become ineligible and no otherperson or persons qualify for payments under that subsection and where the sumof the initial payment of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) and each subsequentannual payment of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) does not total fifty thousanddollars ($50,000), then the difference between the total of the payments madeand fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall immediately be payable to the estateof the deceased officer, fireman, rescue squad worker, or senior Civil AirPatrol member. (1959, c. 1323, s. 1;1965, c. 937; 1971, c. 960; 1973, c. 634, s. 2; 1975, c. 284, s. 8; 2003‑284,s. 30.18A(a).)