Section 36-29-7

Provision in contracts for payment of cost of insurance benefit plan coverage by employer; inclusion, etc., of employees' dependents in coverage and payment of costs thereof generally; appropriations for payment of employers' insurance premium costs; State Employees' Insurance Fund.

(a) The State Employees' Insurance Board is hereby authorized to provide under the contract or contracts entered into under the provisions of this chapter that the cost of such insurance benefit plan for coverage of the employee shall be paid by the employer.

(b) Each employee shall be entitled to have his spouse and dependent children, as defined by the rules and regulations of the board, included in the coverage provided upon agreeing to pay the costs of such coverage for such dependents. The board shall adopt regulations governing the discontinuance and resumption by such employees of coverage for dependents.

(c) As used in this section, the employer shall mean the fund from which the salaries of such insured employees are paid. There is hereby appropriated annually from each fund amounts sufficient to provide the employer's cost of the insurance benefit plan. In the case of those departments supported wholly by transfers from other state funds, there is hereby appropriated from the supporting funds such additional amounts as may be necessary to pay the sums required to pay the premium costs of employees of each department so supported in the same proportion as the other state funds contribute to the support and maintenance of such department.

(d) During any period in which an employee's dependents are covered under this chapter, there shall be withheld from the salary payment of such employee the entire premium cost for coverage of such dependents under the terms of any contract or contracts entered into in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(e) There is hereby created in the State Treasury a fund to be known as the State Employees' Insurance Fund. Such fund shall consist of and there shall be deposited into such fund all appropriations made from employer funds, under the provisions of subsection (c) of this section and all premiums paid by employees under the provisions of subsection (d) of this section and any other premiums paid under the provisions of this chapter. The board shall designate a custodian of this fund who shall be authorized to make deposits into and payments therefrom in accordance with contracts entered into by said board.

(Acts 1965, No. 833, p. 1564, §9; Acts 1969, No. 164, p. 449, §1; Acts 1973, No. 818, p. 1283, §1.)