NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1971 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 1176

SENATE BILL 279

 

 

AN ACT TO AMEND G.S. 97-13(c) RELATING TO WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION BENEFITS FOR PRISONERS.

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

 

Section 1.  G.S. 97-13(c) is hereby stricken out in its entirety and there is substituted in lieu thereof the following:

"(c)       Prisoners - This article shall not apply to prisoners being worked by the State or any subdivision thereof, except to the following extent: Whenever any prisoner assigned to the State Department of Correction shall suffer accidental injury or accidental death arising out of and in the course of the employment to which he had been assigned, if there be death or if the results of such injury continue until after the date of the lawful discharge of such prisoner to such an extent as to amount to a disability as defined in this article, then such discharged prisoner or the dependents or next of kin of such discharged prisoner may have the benefit of this article by applying to the Industrial Commission as any other employee; provided, such application is made within twelve months from the date of the discharge; and provided further that the maximum compensation to any prisoner or to the dependents or next of kin of any deceased prisoner shall not exceed twenty dollars per week and the period of compensation shall relate to the date of his discharge rather than the date of the accident. If any person who has been awarded compensation under the provisions of this subsection shall be recommitted to prison upon conviction of an offense committed subsequent to the award, such compensation shall immediately cease. Any awards made under the terms of this subsection shall be paid by the State Department of Correction from the funds available for the operation of the Department of Corrections. The provisions of G.S. 97-10.1 and G.S. 97-10.2 shall apply to prisoners and discharged prisoners entitled to compensation under this subsection and to the State in the same manner as said section applies to employees and employers."

Sec. 2.  All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 3.  This act shall be in full force and effect from and after its ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 21st day of July, 1971.