SB-0372, As Passed Senate, October 14, 2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SENATE BILL No. 372

 

 

June 4, 2015, Introduced by Senators ZORN, HORN, HANSEN, MARLEAU, JONES, O'BRIEN, SCHMIDT, NOFS, KNEZEK, HUNE and ANANICH and referred to the Committee on Regulatory Reform.

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1966 PA 291, entitled

 

"Firefighters training council act,"

 

by amending section 9 (MCL 29.369), as amended by 2013 PA 166.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 9. (1) The state fire marshal, with the approval of the

 

council, shall prepare and publish standards with due consideration

 

to varying factors and special requirements of organized fire

 

departments in the following areas:

 

     (a) Advisory standards of physical, educational, mental and

 

moral fitness, which shall govern the recruitment, selection, and

 

appointment of firefighters.

 

     (b) The approval by the council of firefighter training

 

schools. The standards shall address, at least, the following

 

issues:

 

     (i) The qualification and certification of instructors.


 

     (ii) The courses of study, attendance, record-keeping

 

requirements, equipment, and facilities.

 

     (iii) The visitation and evaluation of instructors and schools.

 

     (c) The establishment of subordinate regional training centers

 

in strategic geographic locations in order to serve the greatest

 

number of organized fire departments that are unable to support

 

their own training programs.

 

     (2) Each organized fire department shall file a statement with

 

the council designating at least 1 training officer or training

 

coordinator for the fire department. If a training officer or

 

training coordinator is changed, the organized fire department,

 

within 7 days of the change, shall file a statement notifying the

 

council of the change.

 

     (3) The council shall develop and provide to each organized

 

fire department, upon request of the organized fire department and

 

at no charge, a videotape, digital video disc, or other electronic

 

form of video display to be used in training firefighters. The

 

videotape, digital video disc, or other electronic form of video

 

display shall not include training that requires a practical

 

demonstration. as proposed by the state fire marshal, training

 

material in an electronic format to be used in training

 

firefighters. The videotape, digital video disc, or other

 

electronic form of video display electronic training material shall

 

be based on the standards for fire fighter I and fire fighter II

 

set forth in "standard for fire fighter professional

 

qualifications", national fire protection association "Standard for

 

Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications", National Fire Protection


 

Association standard no. 1001. The council may impose a reasonable

 

fee for loss, damage, or late return of a videotape, digital video

 

disc, or other electronic form of video display provided to an

 

organized fire department under this subsection.

 

     (4) The state fire marshal, with the approval of the council,

 

shall develop and administer an examination, which shall include a

 

practical demonstration, a written or oral test, or a combination

 

thereof, to determine a person's competency in regard to the

 

knowledge and skill requirements set forth in standards for fire

 

fighter I and fire fighter II set forth in "standard for fire

 

fighter professional qualifications", national fire protection

 

association "Standard for Fire Fighter Professional

 

Qualifications", National Fire Protection Association standard no.

 

1001. The council, upon the request of an organized fire

 

department, shall administer the examination in each county at

 

least once every year. The examination shall be administered in 2

 

parts. Part 1 shall test the knowledge and skill requirements set

 

forth in fire fighter I, and part 2 shall test the knowledge and

 

skill requirements set forth in fire fighter II. The examination

 

may be retaken, as necessary, upon request from an organized fire

 

department.

 

     (5) Except as provided in subsection subsections (7) and (9),

 

by 12 months after a person's hiring date as a full-time

 

firefighter, the person must pass both part 1 and part 2 of the

 

examination to be eligible for continued or permanent full-time

 

employment as a firefighter.

 

     (6) Except as provided in subsection subsections (7) and (9),


 

by 24 months after a person's appointment date as a volunteer or

 

paid on-call firefighter, a person must pass part 1 of the

 

examination to be eligible for continued volunteer or paid on-call

 

service as a firefighter.

 

     (7) The examination described in requirements under this

 

section does do not apply to a person who is employed or under

 

appointment as a firefighter on October 1, 1988, unless the person

 

subsequently changes his or her status from a volunteer or paid on-

 

call firefighter to a full-time firefighter. The state fire marshal

 

may waive the examination requirements in under this section for a

 

veteran who served in and is separated from the armed forces and

 

provides a form DD214 or DD215 or any other form that is

 

satisfactory to the department that demonstrates that he or she was

 

separated from service with an honorable character of service or

 

under honorable conditions (general) character of service, upon

 

verification that the veteran completed firefighter training that

 

meets the standards for fire fighter I and fire fighter II set

 

forth in "standard for fire fighter professional qualifications",

 

national fire protection association "Standard for Fire Fighter

 

Professional Qualifications", National Fire Protection Association

 

standard no. 1001, while serving in the armed forces of the United

 

States. As used in this subsection, "armed forces" means that term

 

as defined in section 2 of the veteran right to employment services

 

act, 1994 PA 39, MCL 35.1092.

 

     (8) The state fire marshal, with the approval of the council,

 

shall review and monitor the state and federal standards relating

 

to live fire training exercises in structures and make


 

recommendations to the general industry safety standards commission

 

for any new or modified standards necessary for the protection of

 

firefighter trainees.

 

     (9) The state fire marshal shall waive the examination

 

requirements under this section and extend reciprocity

 

certification to a firefighter from another state who seeks to work

 

as a firefighter in this state if the firefighter was certified in

 

the other state after successfully completing a program that meets

 

or exceeds the standards for firefighter I and II set forth in

 

"Standard for Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications", National

 

Fire Protection Association standard no. 1001 by an international

 

accreditation fire service organization.

 

     (10) The presentation of records evidencing certification

 

under subsection (9) shall automatically result in certification by

 

this state.