CONGRESSIONAL CLIPBOARD
THE MRE SERVICE in America is a peculiar institution. In a nation that undoubtedly is not preoccupied with either preventing or combating fire, it is the most pervasive and active institution in the country. What is more, the overwhelming majority of firefighters serve for little or no compensation, supporting their department’s limited budget on spaghetti dinners and fundraising drives. Paid fire departments in urban areas daily face challenges both to their own lives and to public safety that are unknown anywhere else in the industrialized world.
Despite a 200-year-old record of service and commitment, firefighters have received scant support from government at any level, but least of all Congress. I am proud to announce that this is about to change. Next month I will introduce the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights, which will lay the pattern for future federal support for the fire service. This is bill is being drafted with three premises in mind:
- Firefighters have a right to know about specific information that affects them. The greater the exchange of information between all branches and regions of the fire service, the more efficient and capable our national fire protection effort will be.
- More important, firefighters have a right to a certain degree of security in the performance of their job. None should be expected to endanger their own lives and their families’ futures without feeling that they are being protected to the greatest extent possible and that their families will be provided for in the event of a tragedy.
- For serving their communities in such a crucial capacity, firefighters deserve ample opportunity for advancement within their profession, irrespective of financial circumstances.
On these basic premises I have crafted the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights. Far from being a definitive document, it is intended to provide a framework within which certain fundamental entitlements—to knowledge, security, and advancement-may be fulfilled.
Having said that, let me elaborate on some of the programs to be included in the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights:
To secure the gains that the fire service has made in engaging the public eye, this bill will establish a National Fire Center and Museum. This is crucial to the fire service not only to document its history but to provide educational programs and research initiatives for the public and the fire service. Located in Washington, D.C., the National Fire Center will be a testament to the fire service as a historic and living American institution.
As the first responder to fires, accidents, and disasters, the fire service should enjoy preferential treatment in the distribution of any federal surplus property that it can use. To make this equipment readily available to the fire service, the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights will order the General Services Administration (through which surplus federal property passes) to prepare a step-bystep manual for fire departments to complete the application procedure and to make this manual readily available to every fire department in the country.
Certainly, we have a civic and moral responsibility to ensure that no firefighter’s life is squandered for lack of adequate equipment or access to data. The Firefighters’ Bill of Rights will develop a national program through which fire departments can obtain matching funds to purchase fire apparatus and equipment. These loans would be closely linked to state low-interest loan programs. Where no state fund exists, the establishment of a federal loan fund would provide a powerful stimulus for states to establish such a program. Ultimately, the adoption of low-interest loan programs in each state will bring uniformity and a stable funding mechanism for the fire service nationally. This program has proven to be very successful in Pennsylvania: The state has committed $35 million to a Volunteer Fire Department Loan Fund since 1976 and has not had a single default.
The bill will also require that firefighters everywhere are instructed in the dangers of infectious diseases, and what on-the-job precautions they should take to avoid contracting them.
Every time a firefighter responds to a call he is accepting the possibility of endangering his own life and his family’s future. And every year that possibility becomes a tragic reality for dozens of firefighters and their families. I am proposing that a National Hero Scholarship Fund be established to provide tuition scholarships to the spouses and children of any firefighter who is killed in the line of duty. This would guarantee that every child be given the opportunity to pursue a higher education regardless of any financial hardships that the family may face. This is certainly the minimum commitment society should make to the men and women who sacrifice their lives while struggling to protect our communities.
Finally, I am committed to establishing a national endowment that will provide scholarship money for each national fire service association to award for advanced degrees in fire protection and fire science. The true success of America’s fire protection effort lies not in machines but in men, and our successes will surely be fleeting if we fail to advance the brightest and most innovative among us.
The fire service’s attitude toward legislative direction has long been influenced by the dictum, “He governs best who governs least”—a mindset that I neither wish nor intend to change. Each of the provisions in the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights is designed to provide federal support for programs that will be directed and in some cases implemented by the fire service itself. From this bill, only you can forge a foundation for a stronger fire service: It is not a gift; it is a challenge.
