ROBERT L.. EHRLICH, JR., Governor                            . Ch. 31,9

(i) the weekly earnings of the deceased covered employee bears to
the combined weekly earnings of the deceased covered employee and the partly
dependent individuals; and                       

(ii) does not exceed the maximum weekly death benefit.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the employer or its insurer
shall pay the weekly death benefit:

(1) for the period of partial dependency; or

(2) until $60,000 has been paid, INCLUDING ANY PAYMENTS MADE
DURING A PERIOD OF TOTAL DEPENDENCY UNDER § 9-681 OF THIS SUBTITLE.

(d) (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, if a surviving spouse who
is partly dependent remarries and does not have dependent children at the time of the
remarriage, the employer or its insurer shall make payments to the surviving spouse
for 2 years after the date of the remarriage.

(2) The total of the payments made before the remarriage may not
exceed $60,000.

(e) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, the
employer or its insurer shall continue to make payments to, or for the benefit of, a
surviving child until the child reaches 18 years of age.

(2)     If a child who is 18 years old or older remains partly dependent on
the deceased covered employee, the employer or its insurer shall continue to make
payments in accordance with subsections (b) and (c) of this section.

(3)     The employer or its insurer shall continue to make payments to, or
for the benefit of, a child who is 18 years old or older for up to 5 years after reaching
the age of 18 if:

(i) the child is attending school on a full-time basis; and

(ii) the school offers an educational program or a vocational
training program and the program is accredited or approved by the Maryland State
Department of Education.

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the provisions of this
Act relating to wholly dependent spouses who become partly self-supporting shall
apply only to those wholly dependent spouses who become partly self-supporting on
or after October 1, 2003.

SECTION 2. 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take
effect October 1, 2003.

Approved May 13, 2003.

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