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General Assembly Committee Bill No. 5455
January Session, 2019
LCO No. 5704
Referred to Committee on PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY
Introduced by:
(PS)
AN ACT CONCERNING QU ALIFIED FOREST FIRE FIGHTERS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 23-37 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 2
(a) State forest fire control personnel and district and deputy fire 3
wardens shall, under the supervision of the State Forest Fire Warden, 4
use all necessary means to prevent and extinguish forest fires. 5
(b) Such state forest fire control personnel shall assist the fire chief 6
or the fire officer-in-charge in the control and direction of all persons 7
and apparatus while engaged in extinguishing forest fires in their 8
respective districts, or in other districts under the instructions of the 9
State Forest Fire Warden. 10
(c) Such state forest fire control personnel and fire wardens may 11
destroy fences, plow land or, in an emergency, close roads, with or 12
without detours, and set backfires to hasten the control of any fire. 13
[(d) Such state forest fire control personnel may summon any 14
resident of the state between the ages of eighteen and fifty years to 15
assist in extinguishing fires, and may also require the use of 16
Committee Bill No. 5455
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equipment, motor vehicles and other property needed for such 17
purposes. Any person so summoned, who is physically able, who 18
refuses or neglects to assist or to allow the use of equipment, motor 19
vehicles or other material or property, or wilfully interferes with or 20
hinders any warden or other person having authority under this 21
section, shall be fined not more than two hundred dollars.] 22
(d) If the state forest fire warden determines that additional state 23
forest fire control personnel are required to assist in extinguishing a 24
forest fire in this state, the state forest fire warden may temporarily 25
supplement state forest fire control personnel with temporary 26
emergency workers who meet the training and qualification 27
requirements of the National Wildfire Coordinating Group's National 28
Incident Management System: Wildland Fire Qualification System 29
Guide, as amended from time to time. The Department of 30
Administrative Services shall assist the state fire warden in developing 31
appropriate classifications for such temporary emergency workers. 32
(e) No action for trespass shall lie against any person crossing or 33
working upon lands of another to extinguish fire or for investigation 34
thereof. 35
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2019 23-37
Statement of Purpose:
To allow the state forest fire warden to supplement existing staff
resources with individuals who meet certain federal forest fire fighter
training and qualification requirements.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
not underlined.]
Co-Sponsors: REP. BUCKBEE, 67th Dist.
H.B. 5455