The firefighter of today is expected to respond to situations that require training and experience. State and federal regulations mandate many hours of training in preparation for a variety of response situations. Volunteers and paid on-call firefighters in all departments must make a substantial commitment of personal time for this training. The state and federal government should fund these mandated training requirements.
When a property owner is conducting a legal burn, the property owner should not be responsible for costs incurred by an unnecessary fire truck dispatch.
Local units of government have begun charging farms a fee for emergency preparation inspections. These inspections are completed by a local fire department to comply with requirements authorized by MIOSHA. We believe local units of government should consider the following:
Farms already provide for fire protection service through the levy of property taxes.
Farms currently pay a tax on fertilizer and pesticides purchased to support the voluntary emergency tube program (E-Tube) through the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program administered by conservation districts.
Therefore, we support policy that prohibits local units of government and fire authorities from charging for emergency preparation inspections. Furthermore, the E-Tube shall suffice as an appropriate level of information.
Per the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act, we encourage producers to comply with Tier II reporting of any threshold planning quantity materials (Environmental Protection Agency listed chemicals) to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy on or before March 1 of each year.
Firefighters are welcome to visit farms to be prepared for emergency planning and firefighter safety, but at their own expense.