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NVFC Adopts Positions on Legislation and Policy at Spring Meeting

Published Date: 04.14.2011

During the annual spring meeting last week, the National Volunteer Fire Council’s ( NVFC) board voted to adopt positions on various pieces of legislation and policy, including the following.

NVFC Endorses ‘Justice for Public Servants Act of 2011’

The NVFC endorsed the Justice for Public Servants Act of 2011 (H.R. 815), which was introduced by Congressman Jim Gerlach (R-PA) on February 18. The bill would make killing a member of Congress or a public safety officer an “aggravating factor for the imposition of the death penalty” in capital murder cases in the event that the murder in question was carried out while the individual in question was engaged in their official duties, because of the performance of those duties, or because of their status as a member of Congress or public safety officer.

“I’d like to thank Congressman Gerlach for introducing this bill,” said NVFC Chairman Philip C. Stittleburg. “In the course of carrying out their normal duties public safety officers risk their lives to keep members of the general public safe. If and when public safety officers become the targets of violence – thereby making an inherently dangerous job even more life-threatening – it is appropriate that the law should provide some mechanism to allow for the enhanced punishment of those who perpetrate that violence.”

H.R. 815 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security on February 28. The NVFC encourages you to contact your U.S. Representative to ask them co-sponsor H.R. 815.

NVFC Endorses ‘Fire Police Fairness Act’

The NVFC endorsed the Fire Police Fairness Act (H.R. 1348), which was introduced by Congressman Joe Courtney (D-CT) on April 4. The bill would extend eligibility for the Public Safety Officers Benefit (PSOB) to fire police officers who are, “serving in accordance with State or local law as an officially recognized or designated member of a legally organized public safety agency…” and, “provide scene security or direct traffic – (i) in response to any fire drill, fire call, or other fire, rescue, or police emergency or (ii) at a planned special event.”

“I’d like to thank Congressman Courtney for introducing this legislation,” said Stittleburg. “Public safety agencies in a number of states utilize individuals commonly referred to as ‘fire police’ who are not currently recognized in the portion of the U.S. Code that defines what constitutes a public safety officer. Fire police operating under the aegis of a public safety agency as authorized under state law and/or local ordinance perform duties that would otherwise fall to firefighters and/or law enforcement officers. These individuals should be made eligible for PSOB in the rare and unfortunate instance in which they are killed in the line of duty.”

H.R. 1348 was referred to the House Judiciary Committee on April 4, 2011. The NVFC encourages you to contact your U.S. Representative to ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 1348.

NVFC Endorses ‘Broadband for First Responders Act of 2011’

The NVFC endorsed the Broadband for First Responders Act of 2011 (H.R. 607), which was introduced by Congressman Peter King (R-NY) on February 28. The bill would allocate the “D Block” - 10 megahertz (MHz) of radio spectrum in the 700 MHz band – to public safety for the purpose of constructing a nationwide broadband communications network.

“I’d like to thank Congressman King for introducing this legislation,” said Stittleburg. “A nationwide broadband communications network for public safety is desperately needed, especially in the broad swathes of rural America where broadband access is currently nonexistent. With the establishment of the network proposed in H.R 607, volunteer emergency services agencies could potentially upgrade intra- and inter-operability, as well as take advantage of an array of data-related and other applications that are not currently available to them, without having to purchase expensive new equipment.”

In 2007 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) developed a plan to auction the D Block along with an adjacent 12 MHz of radio spectrum in the 700 MHz band already designated for use by public safety for the purpose of building the nationwide broadband communications network. While there were problems with the auction, the fact remains that the frequencies comprising the D Block are ideal for the purpose of constructing the network.

In 2010, the FCC proposed auctioning the D Block to a commercial entity, which would have meant the end of any hopes for a public safety nationwide broadband communications network. The NVFC made establishment of the network using the D Block a top legislative priority. Earlier this year, the President came out in favor of allocating the D Block to public safety, including $10 billion in his proposed FY 2012 budget to build the network.

H.R. 607 includes language that would require public safety agencies currently operating on frequencies between 420 MHz and 512 MHz for radio communications to migrate to new systems that utilize spectrum in the 700 MHz or 800 MHz bands. A number of fire and EMS agencies are currently using radio communications systems that operate in the 420-512 MHz range. All of these agencies are either in the process of or recently completed upgrading their radio communications systems to comply with a separate FCC regulation requiring them to reduce their bandwidth usage (a process commonly referred to as “narrowbanding”). Requiring these agencies to jettison their existing systems – especially coming so soon after the agencies were required to upgrade them – is unnecessary in terms of enhancing public safety communications, is an inefficient allocation of scarce resources, and is an unfair burden on the agencies themselves.

The NVFC has expressed our concerns over the language requiring public safety agencies to migrate off of the 420-512 MHz range and been assured that it will be removed if and when the bill moves forward. Based on this understanding, the NVFC voted to endorse H.R. 607 and make it our second highest legislative priority along with similar legislation in the Senate, the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act (S. 28) introduced by Senator Jay Rockefeller IV (D-WV) on January 25, which was one of the NVFC’s legislative priorities prior to the spring meeting.

H.R. 607 was referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications and Technology on February 28. S. 28 was referred to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, which Senator Rockefeller, the bill sponsor, chairs. The NVFC encourages you to contact your Representative and Senators to ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 607/S. 28.

NVFC Board Makes Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program Top Legislative Priority

The NVFC made ‘Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program’ – encompassing both AFG and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program – the top legislative priority for the organization. In the same resolution, the Board voted to establish ‘Nationwide Broadband Communications Network’ as the next most important priority.

“We have 10 different legislative priorities and there are at least as many issues or pieces of legislation not on the formal priorities list that we are supporting,” said NVFC Legislative Committee Chair John Lyman. “Making AFG number one and Broadband number two is in recognition that these issues, at least in the opinion of the NVFC board, are the most important for the greatest number of emergency services volunteers and departments.”

The current list of priorities is as follows:

1. Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program
2. Nationwide Broadband Communications Network (S. 28/H.R. 607)
3. Volunteer Emergency Services Recruitment and Retention Act (H.R. 376)
4. Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Reauthorization Act
5. Volunteer Firefighter and EMS Job Protection Act
6. U.S. Fire Administration
7. Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act
8. Supporting Emergency Responders Volunteer Efforts Act
9. Good Samaritan Volunteer Firefighter Assistance Act
10. Citizen Corps/Fire Corps Funding and Authorization
     

Learn more about each of these issues at www.nvfc.org/priorities.

NVFC Opposes Designating Volunteers as “Contractors” for the Purposes of Taxation

A bill (H.R. 5537) that was introduced by Congressman David Wu (D-OR) in the 111th Congress would have classified volunteer firefighters as “independent contractors” by adding them to a portion of the tax code currently reserved for real estate agents. In doing so, the bill would simplify the reporting and withholding requirements for fire departments that compensate their volunteers. Based on feedback from the NVFC’s state member associations collected since the 2010 fall board meeting, the board voted to oppose efforts to designate volunteers as “contractors” for the purpose of determining how their benefits are taxed.

Historically, departments have issued their volunteers 1099 forms – as you would to a contractor – and for the most part the volunteers would report the amount that appeared on the 1099 form to the IRS as miscellaneous income. Under this arrangement, neither the department nor the volunteer was subject to paying payroll taxes.

In recent years the IRS has been directing departments to issue W-2 forms – as you would to an employee – rather than 1099s. With a W-2, the fire department is responsible for withholding payroll taxes, which are paid for jointly by the department and the individual volunteer. The NVFC is concerned that if volunteers were explicitly defined as independent contractors, the department could go back to issuing 1099 forms but the volunteers would now be subject to reporting and paying self-employment taxes on their benefits without any contribution from the department.

Additionally, in many states, volunteer firefighters qualify for Worker’s Compensation based on their status as ‘employees.’ Several NVFC state member associations have expressed concern that formally designating volunteer firefighters as independent contractors rather than employees could damage the ability of volunteers to qualify for Worker’s Compensation. The impact on Worker’s Comp would vary in each state and it is not clear that anyone would necessarily lose their coverage as a direct and proximate result of H.R. 5537 passing. At the very least, though, expressly stating in the federal tax code that volunteer firefighters who receive taxable benefits are not considered employees would create a pre-text for states and local jurisdictions to argue that they should not be eligible to receive Worker’s Comp coverage.

“The NVFC recognizes that treating volunteer benefits as taxable income makes it more expensive and administratively challenging for fire departments to offer recruitment and retention incentives,” said NVFC Chairman Philip C. Stittleburg. “In order to address this problem, Congress should exempt volunteer benefits from being taxed by extending the Volunteer Responder Incentive Authorization Act (VRIPA), which was enacted in 2007 but expired at the end of last year.”

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