In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated.
“Board” means the Subsequent Injury Fund Board.
“Fund” means the Subsequent Injury Fund.
There is a Subsequent Injury Fund.
There is a Subsequent Injury Fund Board.
The Board consists of 3 members, appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate.
Of the 3 members of the Board:
1 shall represent labor;
1 shall represent management; and
1 shall represent the general public.
Before taking office, each appointee to the Board shall take the oath required by Article I, § 9 of the Maryland Constitution.
The term of a member is 4 years.
At the end of a term, a member continues to serve until a successor is appointed and qualifies.
A member who is appointed after a term has begun serves only for the rest of the term and until a successor is appointed and qualifies.
The Governor may remove a member for incompetence or misconduct.
The Board shall determine the times and places of its meetings.
Subject to the State budget, each member of the Board is entitled to:
compensation for each day that the member is engaged in duties of the office; and
reimbursement for expenses under the Standard State Travel Regulations.
The Fund shall have a staff in accordance with the State budget.
The Board shall appoint a Director for the Fund.
The Director is entitled to the salary provided in the State budget.
The Attorney General is the legal adviser to the Board and Fund.
With the approval of the Board, staff whom the Attorney General assigns to represent the Fund may hire each expert who is needed to defend an action into which the Fund is impleaded.
The Fund shall consist of:
the money credited to the Fund under Title 9 of this article;
income from investments that the State Treasurer makes for the Fund;
interest on deposits or investments of money from the Fund;
money that the Fund acquires by gift; and
money that the federal government pays as reimbursement for a payment from the Fund.
The Fund shall include each security that the Fund acquires.
The Fund shall be used to pay:
each award under Title 9 of this article charged against the Fund; and
other expenses authorized in the State budget.
The State Treasurer shall keep the Fund as a special indemnity fund.
The Board shall supervise the administration of the Fund.
The Fund annually shall submit to the Governor a proposed budget for the Fund, for inclusion in the budget bill to be submitted to the General Assembly.
The proposed budget shall include an appropriation from the Fund for its budget.
If sale of a security in which money of the Fund is invested is in the best interest of the Fund, the State Treasurer shall sell the security.
Disbursement from the Fund for paying benefits to claimants or dependents shall be made by the Treasurer only on written order of the Workers’ Compensation Commission.
Disbursement from the Fund for any purpose other than paying benefits shall be made by the Treasurer only at the direction of the Director for the Fund under authority of the Board.
As often as the Board requests but at least quarterly, the State Treasurer shall advise the Board about the amount of the Fund in the custody of the State Treasurer.
The State Treasurer annually shall submit to the Board a statement that, for the preceding calendar year:
states the balance on January 1;
states the income and each source of income;
itemizes each payment; and
states the balance on December 31.
On or before October 1 of each year, the Board shall submit to the Governor and, subject to § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, the General Assembly an annual report that includes a detailed statement of the balances and expenses of the Fund.