The Florida Senate

250.536  Responsibilities.--

(1)  Nothing in this compact shall be construed as a waiver of any benefits, privileges, immunities, or rights otherwise provided for National Guard personnel performing duty pursuant to Title 32, U.S.C., nor shall anything in this compact be construed as a waiver of coverage provided for under the Federal Tort Claim Act. In the event that National Guard personnel performing counter-drug activities do not receive the rights, benefits, privileges, and immunities otherwise provided for National Guard personnel, the following provisions shall apply:

(a)  Whenever National Guard forces of any responding state are engaged in another state in carrying out the purposes of this compact, the members thereof so engaged shall have the same powers, duties, rights, privileges, and immunities as members of National Guard forces of the requesting states. The requesting state shall save and hold members of the National Guard forces of responding states harmless from civil liability, except as otherwise provided herein, for acts or omissions which occur in the performance of their duty while engaged in carrying out the purposes of this compact, whether responding forces are serving the requesting state within the borders of the responding state or are attached to the requesting state for purposes of operational control.

(b)  Subject to the provisions of this compact, all liability that may arise under the laws of the requesting state or the responding state, on account of or in connection with a request for assistance or support shall be assumed and borne by the requesting state.

(c)  Any responding state rendering aid or assistance pursuant to this compact shall be reimbursed by the requesting state for any loss or damage to or expense incurred in the operation of any equipment answering a request for aid, and for the cost of the materials, transportation, and maintenance of National Guard personnel and equipment incurred in connection with such request, provided that nothing herein contained shall prevent any responding state from assuming such loss, damage, expense, or other cost.

(d)  Unless there is a written agreement to the contrary, each party shall provide, in the same amounts and manner as if they were on duty within their state for pay and allowances of the personnel of its National Guard units while engaged without the state pursuant to this compact and while going to and returning from such duty pursuant to this compact.

(e)  Each party state providing for the payment of compensation and death benefits to injured members and the representatives of deceased members of its National Guard forces, in case such members sustain injuries or are killed within their own state, shall provide for the payment of compensation and death benefits in the same manner and on the same terms in the event such members sustain injury or are killed while rendering assistance or support pursuant to this compact. Such benefits and compensation shall be deemed items of expense reimbursable pursuant to the compact.

(2)  Officers and enlisted personnel of the National Guard performing duties subject to proper orders pursuant to this compact shall be subject to and governed by the provisions of their home state code of military justice, whether they are performing duties within or without their home state. In the event that any National Guard member commits, or is suspected of committing, a criminal offense while performing duties pursuant to this compact without the member's home state, he or she may be returned immediately to his or her home state and said home state shall be responsible for any disciplinary action to be taken. However, nothing in this section shall abrogate the general criminal jurisdiction of the state in which the offense occurred.

History.--s. 2, ch. 93-283; s. 118, ch. 95-148.