Legislation Supporting State Park Rangers and Wildlife Officers Passes Committee

SB 391 allows the treatment of skin cancer to be covered through workers’ compensation just as it is for state and local lifeguards

SACRAMENTO – Legislation by Sen. Catherine Blakespear, D-Encinitas, to ensure state park rangers and wildlife officers can receive treatment for skin cancer through workers’ compensation passed the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee on Wednesday. 

SB 391 would establish a rebuttable presumption that skin cancer developed by California’s wildlife officers and park rangers is associated with excessive exposure to the sun during their employment, thereby removing any barriers to receiving workers’ compensation coverage for skin cancer treatment. The same rebuttable presumption currently exists for lifeguards employed by cities or counties and the state Department of Parks and Recreation.

“California park rangers and wildlife officers spend their entire careers working outside,” Blakespear said. “Sun exposure comes with the job, and they deserve to be covered for the primary health risk that comes with that exposure – skin cancer.”

California fish and game officers and state park rangers often work 10 to 12 hours per day, and many of those hours are spent outside in the sun. For career wildlife officers and park rangers, this amounts to decades outside – far more than the average worker.

According to a 2017 article in the international, peer-reviewed journal Occupational Medicine, workers with sun-exposed occupations have almost double the risk of developing cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma and at least a 43 percent higher risk of developing basal cell carcinoma compared with non-exposed workers.

Many state park rangers and wildlife officers have developed skin cancer. In several cases, they had to spend years fighting to get workers’ compensation to cover their claims, making their battle with the disease even more exhausting and stressful.

The legislation is co-sponsored by the California Fish & Game Warden Supervisors and Managers Association and the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association. SB 391 has support from 17 organizations, including the Peace Officers Research Association of California and the Planning and Conservation League, and no registered opposition.

After being approved by the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee, SB 391 goes next to the Senate Appropriations Committee for consideration.

Elected in November, Blakespear represents Senate District 38, which covers northern coastal San Diego County and part of Orange County. To learn more about the district and Blakespear, visit her Senate website.  

###