AN ACT
RELATING TO WORKERS' COMPENSATION;
REMOVING SILICOSIS AND ASBESTOSIS EXEMPTIONS IN THE NEW MEXICO OCCUPATIONAL
DISEASE DISABLEMENT LAW.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF
THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1. Section 52-3-10 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1945,
Chapter 135, Section 10, as amended) is amended to read:
"52-3-10. EMPLOYER LIABILITY FOR
COMPENSATION--CONDITIONS WHEN NO PAYMENT TO BE MADE.--
A. There is imposed upon every employer a
liability for the payment of compensation to every employee of the employer who
suffers total disablement by reason of an occupational disease arising out of
his employment; provided that compensation shall not be paid when the last day
of injurious exposure of the employee to the hazards resulting in an
occupational disease occurred prior to the passage of the New Mexico
Occupational Disease Disablement Law.
B. There is imposed upon every employer a liability
for the payment of compensation to the dependents of every employee in cases
where death results from an occupational disease arising out of his employment.
C. The time limits prescribed by this section
shall not apply in the case of an employee whose disablement or death is due to
occupational exposure to radioactive or fissionable materials, provided that
compensation shall not be paid in such a case unless the disablement or death
occurs within ten years from the last day upon which the employee actually
worked for the employer against whom compensation is claimed."
Section 2. Section 52-3-11 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1945,
Chapter 135, Section 11) is amended to read:
"52-3-11. LAST EMPLOYER LIABLE.--Where compensation is
payable for an occupational disease, the only employer liable shall be the
employer in whose employment the employee was last injuriously exposed to the
hazards of employment resulting in the disease."
Section 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of this act is July 1, 2003.
HB
840
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