Professional Fire Fighters of Ogden
IAFF Local 552
  • March 28, 2024
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  • Important Legislation

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    Remember, you can find your State Legislative Representative by entering your zip code in the handy Contact Congress! window on the right side of the page.

    2015 Legislative Update

    Week #1

    The 2015 Utah Legislative Session began on 26 January and runs through midnight on 12 March.

    While there are no visible attacks towards us or labor in general, the first week on the hill proved to be a very busy one. As in past years we will maintain a daily presence at the capitol throughout the session.

    All members are welcome to attend our scheduled meetings/events. In the event you are not able to attend regular weekly meetings, you are welcome to join me any day that you are available. Regular weekly meetings are as follows:

    Wednesdays from 0630-0800 hours: AFL-CIO Labor Caucus. East bldg.(let me know if you would like to attend in advance as space is limited).

    Wednesdays at 1000 hours: PFFU Huddle. Capitol cafeteria (East bldg). This is the single best meeting you can attend as we discuss the bills that directly effect the Professional Fire Fighters of Utah and our IAFF affiliate locals. We cover the status of our tracked bills, our actions, and strategize our future actions so our efforts represent the best interests of ALL of your locals.

    Thursdays from 0900-1200 hours: Joint Fire Council. Cannon Bldg, room 125. SSL L4080 President Dave Larsen serves as Vice Chair. PFFU Pension Rep. Marty Peterson attends to brief the council on all retirement issues pending.

    Thursdays from 1200-1400 hours: Utah One Coalition. East Bldg, Beehive room. This coalition is made up of 9 different employee groups (unions & associations). I serve as the chair, and we can always accommodate several quests.

    The Utah Fire Caucus Luncheon will be held on Monday 9 Feb., 2015 at noon. Location is the Hall of Governors, which is the ground floor of the Capitol Bldg. If participating, please arrive NLT 1100 hours to receive your briefings.                                                                                                                                          

    The following are the bills that we are tracking and actively involved in currently:

    SB ____ (Mayne): Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Fire Fighters (FF Presumptive

    Cancer). Should be numbered this week. This is our bill, and our top priority for the session. Preparing for this legislation has occupied most of my time since late October. We received good numbers and great data in our recent cancer survey statewide. Thank you to Ray Schelble and each IAFF local for getting us the data. On Friday we cleared a 2 week process of getting the “go ahead” from the Labor Commission’s Workers’ Comp Advisory Committee to move forward with the bill. We are optimistic, but realistic. It will continue to be an uphill climb. Assisting myself and Senator Mayne from here on will be Fernando Rivera (L1696). Fernando serves as our (PFFU) representative with the national Fire Fighter Cancer Support Network, which brings a unique skill set to the table for us. Our bill should go to committee within the next 2 weeks.

    SB ____ (Mayne): Municipal Govt Amendments. Not numbered. Will review language once released to insure it does not create any negative impacts for any of our locals.

    HB ____ (McCay): Forfeiture of Retirement Allowance for Felony Conviction. Not numbered yet. The Devil is in the details. We will watch very closely.

    HB ____ (McCay): Emergency Medical Service Peer Review Board. Not numbered yet. Would add a Peer Review Committee to the BEMS to insure better handling of personnel issues and potential investigations. We support.

    HB 77 (Cunningham): Post Retirement Employment. Would reduce the current re-employment wait time from 12 months to 60 days. Huge fiscal note. This is important because the employee that is involved could be the one paying the freight. Marty Peterson and I have been meeting daily with the sponsor to work out the details. At this point: We support.

    HB 115 (Powell): Public Safety Retirement for Dispatchers. Self explanatory. We support.

    HB 133 (Ipson): FF Retirement Amendments. Allows the fire service the same consideration as law enforcement when a member is transferring into an administrative/HR position. We support.

    HB 151 (Sagers): Volunteer FF Post Retirement Employment Amendments. We support.

    SB 11 (Weiler): Retirement System revisions. Looks neutral to us - Watching.

    SB 50 (Mayne): Railroad Revisions. Blocks the ability for Union Pacific and BNSF to reduce staffing on freight trains to only (1) person (the Engineer). I testified in committee                                                                                                                                         

    in support of this bill last Wed. as it has a huge impact on how our crews safely respond to railway incidents. We support.

    SB 57 (Weiler): Taxation of Social Security Benefits. Watching.

    SB 63 (Bramble): Workers Compensation Fund Amendments. Funding revisions with no employee impact. We support.

    SB 65 (Bramble): In -State Tuition for Fallen Public Safety Officer’s & Fire Fighters’ Families. Would provide a tuition waiver for surviving family. We support.

    SB 91 (Hillyard): Post Retirement Employment Amendments. No impact currently to firefighters. Watching.

    SB 119 (Weiler): Prescription Database Revisions. Restricts unauthorized access to an individual’s protected information in several state databases. Would require proper means to obtain that access other than the current system which is NOT really secure, and has allowed members of uninvolved agencies to cross reference other agency databases to “fish” for adverse data. In plain text… people would have to get proper clearance to try and get dirt on you from someone else. This has proven to be a big issue for a couple of our locals. The ACLU is assisting us with this legislation. We support.

    Other pending legislation that we are involved with:

    (10) Fire Code bills. The State Fire Marshall’s office is the lead on these, however we will support as needed.

    Background checks for EMS responders. (Rep. Ray): Language pending. Watching.

    Medicaid Reimbursements. (Sen. Bramble): Language pending. We support.

    Continuing to explore additional Firefighter training site agreements and delivery methods, to include potential funding.

    As the session progresses, more bills will be added to our tracking list.

    Hope to see everyone on the hill at some point during the session!

    Fraternally,

    Jack Tidrow, President

    (801) 718-4392

    2015 Legislative Update

    Week #2

    The 2015 Utah Legislative Session began on 26 January and runs through midnight on 12 March.

    While there are no visible attacks towards us or labor in general, the first 2 weeks on the hill proved to be a very busy ones. As in past years we will maintain a daily presence at the capitol throughout the session.

    All members are welcome to attend our scheduled meetings/events. In the event you are not able to attend regular weekly meetings, you are welcome to join me any day that you are available. Regular weekly meetings are as follows:

    Wednesdays from 0630-0800 hours: AFL-CIO Labor Caucus. East bldg.(let me know if you would like to attend in advance as space is limited).

    Wednesdays at 1000 hours: PFFU Huddle. Capitol cafeteria (East bldg). This is the single best meeting you can attend as we discuss the bills that directly effect the Professional Fire Fighters of Utah and our IAFF affiliate locals. We cover the status of our tracked bills, our actions, and strategize our future actions so our efforts represent the best interests of ALL of your locals.

    Thursdays from 0900-1200 hours: Joint Fire Council. Cannon Bldg, room 125. SSL L4080 President Dave Larsen serves as Vice Chair. PFFU Pension Rep. Marty Peterson attends to brief the council on all retirement issues pending.

    Thursdays from 1200-1400 hours: Utah One Coalition. East Bldg, Beehive room. This coalition is made up of 9 different employee groups (unions & associations). I serve as the chair, and we can always accommodate several quests.

    The Utah Fire Caucus Luncheon will be held on Monday 9 Feb., 2015 at noon. Location is the Hall of Governors, which is the ground floor of the Capitol Bldg. If participating, please arrive NLT 1100 hours to receive your briefings.

                                                                                                                                                2

    The following are the bills that we are tracking and actively involved in currently:

    SB 135 (Mayne): Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Fire Fighters (FF Presumptive

    Cancer). This is our bill, and our top priority for the session. Preparing for this legislation has occupied most of my time since late October. We received good numbers and great data in our recent cancer survey statewide. Thank you to Ray Schelble and each IAFF local for getting us the data. On Friday the 30th of January we cleared a 2 week process of getting the “go ahead” from the Labor Commission’s Workers’ Comp Advisory Committee to move forward with the bill. We are optimistic, but realistic. It will continue to be an uphill climb. Assisting myself and Senator Mayne from here on will be Fernando Rivera (L1696). Fernando serves as our (PFFU) representative with the national Fire Fighter Cancer Support Network, which brings a unique skill set to the table for us. Passed out of both the Senate Rules and Business & Labor  Committees unanimously this week. Next is the vote on the Senate floor. Halfway there... alot of hard work still to do.

    SB ____ (Mayne): Municipal Govt Amendments. Not numbered. Will review language once released to insure it does not create any negative impacts for any of our locals.

    HB ____ (McCay): Forfeiture of Retirement Allowance for Felony Conviction. Not numbered yet. The sponsor has assured me that this will be only for elected officials. The Devil is in the details. We will watch very closely.

    HB ____ (McCay): Emergency Medical Service Peer Review Board. Not numbered yet. Would add a Peer Review Committee to the BEMS to insure better handling of personnel issues and potential investigations. In progress. Myself, L1696 President Jeremy Robertson, and L1696 Steward Darren Park are in discussions with all parties regarding this bill. We support.

    HB 77 (Cunningham): Post Retirement Employment. Would reduce the current re-employment wait time from 12 months to 60 days. Huge fiscal note. This is important because the employee that is involved could be the one paying the freight. Marty Peterson and I have been meeting daily with the sponsor to work out the details. This bill has been changing everyday. The sponsor wants to make this work and needs our support. Marty Peterson's main focus is on what is best for all of our members as this develops.   Assigned to committee. At this point: We support.

    HB 115 (Powell): Public Safety Retirement for Dispatchers. Self explanatory. Assigned to committee. We support.

    HB 133 (Ipson): FF Retirement Amendments. Allows the fire service the same consideration as law enforcement when a member is transferring into an administrative/HR position. Passed House and sent to the Senate. We support.

    HB 151 (Sagers): Volunteer FF Post Retirement Employment Amendments. We support.

                                                                                                                                                  3

    SB 11 (Weiler): Retirement System revisions. Looks neutral to us - Watching.

    SB 50 (Mayne): Railroad Revisions. Blocks the ability for Union Pacific and BNSF to reduce staffing on freight trains to only (1) person (the Engineer). I testified in committee in support of this bill last Wed. as it has a huge impact on how our crews safely respond to railway incidents. We support.

    SB 57 (Weiler): Taxation of Social Security Benefits. Watching.

    SB 63 (Bramble): Workers Compensation Fund Amendments. Funding revisions with no employee impact. We support.

    SB 65 (Bramble): In -State Tuition for Fallen Public Safety Officer’s & Fire Fighters’ Families. Would provide a tuition waiver for surviving family. We support.

    SB 91 (Hillyard): Post Retirement Employment Amendments. No impact currently to firefighters. Watching. Sent to Interim Study on Friday.

    SB 119 (Weiler): Prescription Database Revisions. Restricts unauthorized access to an individual’s protected information in several state databases. Would require proper means to obtain that access other than the current system which is NOT really secure, and has allowed members of uninvolved agencies to cross reference other agency databases to “phish” for adverse data. In plain text… people would have to get proper clearance to try and get dirt on you from someone else. This has proven to be a big issue for a couple of our locals. The ACLU is assisting us with this legislation. Passed out of Senate Committee and the next stop is the Senate floor. Great job so far by the ACLU, Sego Strategies, and especially L1696 members! Brother Marlin Jones was very impressive! We support.

    Other pending legislation that we are involved with:

    (10) Fire Code bills. The State Fire Marshall’s office is the lead on these, however we will support as needed.

    Background checks for EMS responders. (Rep. Ray): Language pending. Watching.

    \

    Medicaid Reimbursements. (Sen. Bramble): Language pending. We support.

    Continuing to explore additional Firefighter training site agreements and delivery methods, to include potential funding. I have met with several ATC campus Presidents in the past week, and all are interested in continuing discussions in establishing and/or expanding certified firefighter training programs.

    As the session progresses, more bills will be added to our tracking list

                                                                                                                                                 4

    For more legislative information visit the Utah Legislature's website or www.pffu.org.

    Hope to see everyone on Monday at the luncheon, or at one of our weekly capitol events.

    Thanks for all of the hard work that each of you do every day for our memberships!

    Fraternally,

    Jack Tidrow, President

    Professional Fire Fighters of Utah

    president@pffu.org

    (801) 718-4392

    2015 Legislative Update

    Week #3

    The 2015 Utah Legislative Session began on 26 January and runs through midnight on 12 March.

    While there are no visible attacks towards us or labor in general, we did have an anti Collective Bargaining bill surface. As the Utah One Coalition we were able to convince the sponsor to drop it. The first 3 weeks on the hill have proven to be very busy ones. As in past years we will maintain a daily presence at the capitol throughout the session.

    All members are welcome to attend our scheduled meetings/events. In the event you are not able to attend regular weekly meetings, you are welcome to join me any day that you are available. Regular weekly meetings are as follows:

    Wednesdays from 0630-0800 hours: AFL-CIO Labor Caucus. East bldg.(let me know if you would like to attend in advance as space is limited).

    Wednesdays at 1000 hours: PFFU Huddle. New location – Capitol bldg room # 105. This is the single best meeting you can attend as we discuss the bills that directly effect the Professional Fire Fighters of Utah and our IAFF affiliate locals. We cover the status of our tracked bills, our actions, and strategize our future actions so our efforts represent the best interests of ALL of your locals. Great attendance by local leaders so far - thank you!

    Thursdays from 0900-1200 hours: Joint Fire Council. Cannon Bldg, room 125. SSL L4080 President Dave Larsen serves as Vice Chair. PFFU Pension Rep. Marty Peterson attends to brief the council on all retirement issues pending.

    Thursdays from 1200-1400 hours: Utah One Coalition. East Bldg, Beehive room. This coalition is made up of 9 different employee groups (unions & associations). I serve as the chair, and we can always accommodate several quests.

    The Utah Fire Caucus Luncheon was held on Monday 9 Feb., 2015 at noon. Location was the Hall of Governors, on the ground floor of the Capitol Bldg.

    It was another successful event this year. 74 legislators attended. Thanks to everyone that attended/contributed their time!

                                                                                                                                                2

    The following are the bills that we are tracking and actively involved in currently:

    SB 135 (Mayne): Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Fire Fighters (FF Presumptive

    Cancer). This is our bill, and our top priority for the session. Preparing for this legislation has occupied most of my time since late October. We received good numbers and great data in our recent cancer survey statewide. Thank you to Ray Schelble and each IAFF local for getting us the data. On Friday the 30th of January we cleared a 2 week process of getting the “go ahead” from the Labor Commission’s Workers’ Comp Advisory Committee to move forward with the bill. We are optimistic, but realistic. It will continue to be an uphill climb. Assisting myself and Senator Mayne from here on will be Fernando Rivera (L1696). Fernando serves as our (PFFU) representative with the national Fire Fighter Cancer Support Network, which brings a unique skill set to the table for us. Passed out of both the Senate Rules and Business & Labor  Committees unanimously in Week #2. Next is the vote on the Senate floor. We are #40 on the calendar, should be voted on this week. Halfway there... alot of hard work still to do.

    SB ____ (Mayne): Municipal Govt Amendments. Not numbered. Will review language once released to insure it does not create any negative impacts for any of our locals.

    HB ____ (McCay): Forfeiture of Retirement Allowance for Felony Conviction. Not numbered yet. The sponsor has assured me that this will be only for elected officials. The Devil is in the details. We will watch very closely.

    HB 292 (McCay): Emergency Medical Service Peer Review Board. Would add a Peer Review Board to the BEMS to insure better handling of personnel issues and potential investigations. I am working the bill with the sponsor, while L1696 ‘s Jeremy Robertson and Darren Park are working with the BEMS to draft rules language dictated by the impending statute.  We support.

    HB 77 (Cunningham): Post Retirement Employment. Would reduce the current re-employment wait time from 12 months to 60 days. Huge fiscal note. This is important because the employee that is involved could be the one paying the freight. Marty Peterson and I have been meeting daily with the sponsor to work out the details. This bill has been changing everyday. The sponsor wants to make this work and needs our support. Marty Peterson's main focus is on what is best for all of our members as this develops. A task force was formed this past week to study/discuss from April –Nov. Marty Peterson named our member of the group. At this point: We support.

    HB 115 (Powell): Public Safety Retirement for Dispatchers. Self explanatory. Assigned to committee. We support.

                                                                                                                                            3

    HB 133 (Ipson): FF Retirement Amendments. Allows the fire service the same consideration as law enforcement when a member is transferring into an administrative/HR position. Passed House and sent to the Senate. We support.

    HB 151 (Sagers): Volunteer FF Post Retirement Employment Amendments. We support.

                                                                                                                                                  

    SB 11 (Weiler): Retirement System revisions. Looks neutral to us - Watching.

    SB 50 (Mayne): Railroad Revisions. Blocks the ability for Union Pacific and BNSF to reduce staffing on freight trains to only (1) person (the Engineer). I testified in committee in support of this bill as it has a huge impact on how our crews safely respond to railway incidents. We support.

    SB 57 (Weiler): Taxation of Social Security Benefits. Watching.

    SB 63 (Bramble): Workers Compensation Fund Amendments. Funding revisions with no employee impact. We support.

    SB 65 (Bramble): In -State Tuition for Fallen Public Safety Officer’s & Fire Fighters’ Families. Would provide a tuition waiver for surviving family. We support.

    SB 119 (Weiler): Prescription Database Revisions. Restricts unauthorized access to an individual’s protected information in several state databases. Would require proper means to obtain that access other than the current system which is NOT really secure, and has allowed members of uninvolved agencies to cross reference other agency databases to “phish” for adverse data. In plain text… people would have to get proper clearance to try and get dirt on you from someone else. This has proven to be a big issue for a couple of our locals. The ACLU is assisting us with this legislation. Passed out of Senate Committee and the next stop is the Senate floor. # 32 on the calendar, should be voted on this week. We support.

    New bills we are working.

    HB 191 (Ray): Background checks for EMS responders. Watching.

    \

    SB 172 (Bramble): Medicaid Transport Reimbursements. We support.

    HB 196 (Briscoe): Wildfire Mitigation Amendments. Creates a monetary incentive for homeowners to comply with interface recommendations. Our own Scott Winkler (Local 1645) will be testifying Tuesday morning in support of it in House Committee.

                                                                                                                                             4

    HB 285 (Wilson): Building Code Amendments. Creates safety concerns for firefighters. The Utah Fire Marshals oppose this bill, and so does the PFFU.

                                                                                                                                               

    HB 288 (Ray): Line of Duty Death Benefit. Creates a medical insurance benefit for the spouse/family of firefighters and law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. We support.

    Continuing to explore additional Firefighter training site agreements and delivery methods, to include potential funding. I have met with several ATC campus Presidents over the past weeks, and all are interested in continuing discussions in establishing and/or expanding certified firefighter training programs.

                                                                                                                                               For more legislative information visit the Utah Legislature's website or www.pffu.org.

    Thanks for all of the hard work that each of you are doing every day for our memberships!

    Fraternally,

    Jack Tidrow, President

    Professional Fire Fighters of Utah

    president@pffu.org

    (801) 718-4392

    2015 Legislative Update

    Week #4

    The 2015 Utah Legislative Session began on 26 January and runs through midnight on 12 March.

    While there are no “visible” attacks towards us or labor in general, we did have an anti Collective Bargaining bill surface in the House in week #3. As the Utah One Coalition we were able to convince the sponsor to drop it. This past week, that same bill surfaced in the Senate. It is titled “Public School Collective Bargaining Amendments”. A clear attack on school teachers. We are watching very closely and will act as needed. No language attached to the bill yet.

    The first 4 weeks on the hill have proven to be very busy ones. As in past years we will maintain a daily presence at the capitol throughout the session.

    All members are welcome to attend our scheduled meetings/events. In the event you are not able to attend regular weekly meetings, you are welcome to join me any day that you are available. Regular weekly meetings are as follows:

    Wednesdays from 0630-0800 hours: AFL-CIO Labor Caucus. East bldg. (let me know if you would like to attend in advance as space is limited).

    Wednesdays at 1000 hours: PFFU Huddle. New location – Capitol bldg room # 105. This is the single best meeting you can attend as we discuss the bills that directly effect the Professional Fire Fighters of Utah and our IAFF affiliate locals. We cover the status of our tracked bills, our actions, and strategize our future actions so our efforts represent the best interests of ALL of your locals. Great attendance by local leaders so far - thank you!

    Thursdays from 0900-1200 hours: Joint Fire Council. Cannon Bldg, room 125. SSL L4080 President Dave Larsen serves as Vice Chair. PFFU Pension Rep. Marty Peterson attends to brief the council on all retirement issues pending.

    Thursdays from 1200-1400 hours: Utah One Coalition. East Bldg, Beehive room. This coalition is made up of 9 different employee groups (unions & associations). I serve as the chair, and we can always accommodate several quests.

                                                                                                                                                2

    The following are the bills that we are tracking and actively involved in currently:

    SB 135 (Mayne): Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Fire Fighters (FF Presumptive

    Cancer). This is our bill, and our top priority for the session. On Friday the 30th of January we cleared a 2 week process of getting the “go ahead” from the Labor Commission’s Workers’ Comp Advisory Committee to move forward with the bill. We are optimistic, but realistic. It will continue to be an uphill climb. Assisting myself and Senator Mayne from here on will be Fernando Rivera (L1696). Fernando serves as our (PFFU) representative with the national Fire Fighter Cancer Support Network, which brings a unique skill set to the table for us. Passed out of both the Senate Rules and Business & Labor  Committees unanimously in Week #2. Next is the vote on the Senate floor. We are #10 on the calendar, should be voted on early this week. Providing it clears the Senate, Representative Paul Ray will be our House sponsor. Halfway there... alot of hard work still to do.

    SB ____ (Mayne): Municipal Govt Amendments. Not numbered. Will review language once released to insure it does not create any negative impacts for any of our locals.

    HB ____ (McCay): Forfeiture of Retirement Allowance for Felony Conviction. Not numbered yet. The sponsor has assured me that this will be only for elected officials. The Devil is in the details. We will watch very closely.

    HB 292 (McCay): Emergency Medical Service Peer Review Board. This is our bill. Would add a Peer Review Board to the BEMS to insure better handling of personnel issues and potential investigations. I am working the bill with the sponsor, while L1696 ‘s Jeremy Robertson and Darren Park are working with the BEMS to draft rules language dictated by the impending statute.  We support. Scheduled for House Committee (Law Enforcement/C.J. ) tomorrow, Monday the 23rd at 4 pm in room 450 of the Capitol.

    HB 77 (Cunningham): Post Retirement Employment. Would reduce the current re-employment wait time from 12 months to 60 days. Huge fiscal note. This is important because the employee that is involved could be the one paying the freight. Marty Peterson and I have been meeting daily with the sponsor to work out the details. This bill has been changing everyday. The sponsor wants to make this work and needs our support. Marty Peterson's main focus is on what is best for all of our members as this develops. A task force was formed this past week to study/discuss from April –Nov. Marty Peterson named our member of the group. At this point: We support.

                                                                                                                                                 3

    HB 115 (Powell): Public Safety Retirement for Dispatchers. Self explanatory. Passed out of the Retirement Committee on Friday, now to the floor for vote. We support.

    HB 133 (Ipson): FF Retirement Amendments. Allows the fire service the same consideration as law enforcement when a member is transferring into an administrative/HR position. Passed House and sent to the Senate. We support.

    HB 151 (Sagers): Volunteer FF Post Retirement Employment Amendments. We support.

                                                                                                                                                  

    SB 11 (Weiler): Retirement System revisions. Looks neutral to us - Watching.

    SB 50 (Mayne): Railroad Revisions. Blocks the ability for Union Pacific and BNSF to reduce staffing on freight trains to only (1) person (the Engineer). I testified in committee in support of this bill as it has a huge impact on how our crews safely respond to railway incidents. Circled on the Senate calendar. We support.

    SB 57 (Weiler): Taxation of Social Security Benefits. Watching.

    SB 63 (Bramble): Workers Compensation Fund Amendments. Funding revisions with no employee impact. We support.

    SB 65 (Bramble): In -State Tuition for Fallen Public Safety Officer’s & Fire Fighters’ Families. Would provide a tuition waiver for surviving family. We support.

    SB 119 (Weiler): Prescription Database Revisions. This is our bill. Restricts unauthorized access to an individual’s protected information in several state databases. Would require proper means to obtain that access other than the current system which is NOT really secure, and has allowed members of uninvolved agencies to cross reference other agency databases to “phish” for adverse data. In plain text… people would have to get proper clearance to try and get dirt on you from someone else. This has proven to be a big issue for a couple of our locals. The ACLU is assisting us with this legislation. Passed out of Senate Committee and the next stop is the Senate floor. # 2 on the calendar, should be voted on this week. We support.

    New bills we are working.

    HB 191 (Ray): Background checks for EMS responders. Watching.

    \

    SB 172 (Bramble): Medicaid Transport Reimbursements. Passed out of committee and on the Senate calendar. We support.

    HB 196 (Briscoe): Wildfire Mitigation Amendments. Creates a monetary incentive for homeowners to comply with interface recommendations. Our own Scott Winkler (Local 1645) testified in support of it in House Committee. Sent to Interim study.

                                                                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                              4

    HB 285 (Wilson): Building Code Amendments. Creates safety concerns for firefighters. The Utah Fire Marshals oppose this bill, and so does the PFFU. This bill has a lot of attention of many organizations on both sides of the issue. The Utah State Fire Marshals Assoc. has put daily efforts into working on amendments that would make the bill livable for everyone.

                                                                                                                                               

    HB 288 (Ray): Line of Duty Death Benefit. Creates a medical insurance benefit for the spouse/family of firefighters and law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. We support. Passed out of the Retirement Committee on Friday, onto the house floor for vote.

    Continuing to explore additional Firefighter training site agreements and delivery methods, to include potential funding. I have met with several ATC campus Presidents over the past weeks, and all are interested in continuing discussions in establishing and/or expanding certified firefighter training programs.

    *In summary: Please contact your State Senators today, or tomorrow morning NLT 1000 hours and ask them to support SB 119 (Weiler) and SB 135 (Mayne) as they are our most immediate priorities up for vote.

    For SB 119 its talking points are built into the bill description on page 3.

    For SB 135 – I will resend the talking points we distributed at the Fire Caucus luncheon regarding FF cancers.

                                                                                                                                               For more legislative information visit the Utah Legislature's website or www.pffu.org.

    Thanks for all of the hard work that each of you are doing every day for our memberships!

    Fraternally,

    Jack Tidrow, President

    Professional Fire Fighters of Utah

    president@pffu.org

    2015 Legislative Update

    Week #5

    Our bills that have passed through the entire  process are as follows:

    SB 135 : Presumptive Cancer for FF's.
    HB 133: FF Retirement revisions
    SB 63 SO1: Workers' Comp funding
    SB 65SO1: LODD in-state tuition for FF and LE.
    SB 172: Medicaid Transport Reimbursement

    Still in play:
    SB 119: Prescription Database Rev.
    SB 234: Fire prev. Board Amendments
    HB 343: Communications Task Force
    HB 292: BEMS Peer Review Board
    HB 288SO3: LODD insurance for FF and LE.
    HB 285: Fire Code revisions

    We have had a very successful session so far, however the (6) bills that are still in play are very important and are our focus going into the final week. They all
    are in good shape to be passed. We will be there throughout to insure so.

    Thank you to everyone for your support and assistance as we passed SB 135 (Presumptive Cancer for FF"s)!! It is a bigger win than most will realize.
    Our bill sponsors Senator Karen Mayne and Representative Paul Ray were outstanding for us!!

    Next weekend I will do a detailed legislative update (session wrap up) and send out.
    PFFU Huddle is this Wednesday at 1000 hours in Capitol room #105.
    Fraternally,


    Jack Tidrow
    President
    Professional Fire Fighters of Utah


     




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