Bill would boost fire training

By MARLY KOSINSKI
Tribune Chronicle
POSTED: January 28, 2008

WARREN — A piece of legislation that changes the certification process for firefighters is aimed at creating a better educated and more thoroughly trained pool of rescue personnel, according to proponents.

Fire Bill 401, also known as the fire safety training bill, was passed in December 2006, and signed into law in January 2007.

However, the Ohio Fire Alliance started working on the legislation about three years before that, according to the bill’s sponsor, former state Rep. Randy Law.

Howland fire Chief George Brown said the bill’s language was altered several times based on feedback from fire personnel working in the field. He said the new rules took effect Friday, and all firefighters have one year to complete the registration process online.

Brown said previously, firefighters were certified for life once they completed all their training and education. The new law will require firefighters to take 18 hours of continuing education per year in order to keep their certification, which must be renewed every three years.

“The problem with the old way is there are firefighters on Ohio’s roster who have died, moved away or retired and we have no way of knowing who is active and who has what certification. With this new law, there will be a comprehensive data base of every firefighter in Ohio — paid or volunteer — and what kind of certification they have so if there is a major catastrophe or disaster we know who to call,” Brown said.

He said the new law requires 54 hours of continuing education over the three-year recertification period, in addition to field training hours. The CE hours must be signed off by a certified instructor or the fire chief.

Also, the bill will streamline the recertification process for firefighters who have more than one certification. Previously, certifications were renewed at different times of the year. Now, all certifications will be up for renewal on the applicant’s birthday.

The bill also calls for 10 percent of recertification applications to be audited each month to avoid fraud and requires fire inspectors to complete 10 additional hours of continuing education per year on top of the 18 hours required for all firefighters.

“Most departments won’t be affected by this, especially in our area, because all of the departments are pretty well up on their training and education. This legislation is aimed mostly at smaller, rural departments in the southern part of the state that may not have as many requirements,” Brown said.

He said fire training was first required by the state in 1978 and there are 104,000 firefighters statewide based on that initial registration. The chief said the new law will weed out inactive firefighters and provide a more accurate picture of the personnel available.

Brown said the Howland Fire Department serves as a training center for accredited and chartered fire programs and is open to all departments, but most continuing education courses are offered in-house by the individual departments.

And while the new training guidelines are required by the Ohio Department of Public Safety, other agencies such as the Occupational Health and Safety Administration and Insurance Services Office have their own requirements that in some cases exceed what the ODPS is seeking.

“I don’t see these new requirements being an unnecessary burden on our local departments since most of them already are in compliance,” Brown said.

Vienna fire Chief Richard Brannon said he has mixed emotions about the new legislation. He said he has a lot of questions about the new requirements, but thinks they will make it difficult to recruit and retain volunteers — something an all-volunteer department like his struggles with now.

“Training and education is key to good firefighting, but I worry that too much is being asked of people who become volunteer firefighters,” he said.

Vienna holds training exercises twice a month for two hours each, so Brannon is not concerned about that aspect of the certification process. He said it’s the continuing education portion that concerns him.

“This just adds to my responsibilities. I am not a full-time chief and I have another job. How am I supposed to keep track of my personnel’s training and education when I also have to worry about my own certification,” Brannon asked.

He said he plans to attend a forum dealing with the new law so he can get a better understanding of the requirements. For now, he said he is in favor of anything that improves the service firefighters give to their communities.

Law said he sponsored the bill because one of the Ohio House leaders at the time was a friend of his and also was a former fire chief. He said the legislation was worked and reworked in committee for several years before he brought it to the House for a vote.

He also said a companion bill was presented to the Senate to speed up the bill’s passage and avoid having hearings in both Chambers.

“The advantage of this bill is that it provides a uniform training code for the entire state, which is important when dealing with Homeland Security issues. Another advantage is that it provides a good, reliable database of fire personnel and their training. The result will be better, more efficient fire departments,” Law said.