Denial of Ricci Benefits Reversed by Appellate Division

The Bill Ricci World Trade Center Rescue, Recovery, and Cleanup Operations Act establishes certain benefits available to law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emts who were at Ground Zero and become ill as a result of their service to our country on and after the September 11th attacks.

Ms. Sandy filed 98 eligibility registration forms for Ricci Act benefits with accompanying affidavits, which attested that Troopers never received notice of the Ricci Act as required by the statute, to the State Police Retirement Board. The State Police Retirement Board denied 13 retired New Jersey State Troopers accidental disability benefits under the Ricci Act and tabled the remainder. 

Ms. Sandy appealed the matters to the Appellate Division. The Appellate Division noted that the Board did not analyze whether the retired Troopers had presented sufficient evidence to rebut the presumption that properly addressed mail is received by the addressee. Furthermore, the Board’s decision did not address its own tardy notice of the Ricci Act to active and retired New Jersey State Troopers. The Board also failed to address the 98 affidavits presented by active and retired State Troopers attesting that they never received notice of the Ricci Act.

The Appellate Division REVERSED and REMANDED the determination by the State Police Retirement Board, finding that the record below with respect to the issue of whether New Jersey State Troopers received notice of the Ricci Act was not sufficient.

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