LCO No. 2509 1 of 2
General Assembly Proposed Bill No. 6624
January Session, 2025
LCO No. 2509
Referred to Committee on PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY
Introduced by:
REP. BUCKBEE, 67th Dist.
REP. PISCOPO, 76th Dist.
AN ACT CONCERNING FIREFIGHTER RECRUITMENT AND
RETENTION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
That the general statutes be amended to: (1) Increase funding to 1
capital reserve funds established for the purpose of funding fire training 2
schools; (2) require the Department of Emergency Services and Public 3
Protection to develop an advertising campaign designed to (A) attract 4
people to apply for both paid and volunteer firefighter positions, and 5
(B) increase the number of applications submitted by females for such 6
positions; (3) establish a Fire Service Youth Program Advisory Board to, 7
among other things, develop a high school curriculum on the 8
importance of public safety and community service, create a plan for 9
public safety tracks at technical high schools, implement such tracks in 10
one technical high school and make such plan available to other schools; 11
(4) require the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public 12
Protection to appoint a firefighter recruitment and training coordinator 13
in each emergency preparedness region designated by the Division of 14
Emergency Management and Homeland Security within the 15 Proposed Bill No. 6624
LCO No. 2509 2 of 2
Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection; (5) require 16
the State Fire Administrator to develop facilities across the state where 17
people can train for and take the candidate physical ability test for 18
firefighters; (6) require the Department of Emergency Services and 19
Public Protection to provide instructors and facilities sufficient to 20
conduct training for at least three classes of recruits at the state fire 21
school each year; (7) require the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority 22
to develop and administer a mortgage assistance program for 23
uniformed members of paid or volunteer fire departments; (8) waive the 24
payment of tuition (A) at any college or university that is part of the 25
state system of public higher education for (i) paid or volunteer 26
firefighters with at least two years of service, and (ii) the dependent 27
children of paid or volunteer firefighters with at least five years of 28
service, and (B) for any student enrolled in a college, university or 29
regional community-technical college that is part of the state system of 30
public higher education who attends the state fire school as part of a 31
program offered in coordination with the college, university or regional 32
community-technical college in which such student is enrolled; (9) 33
require the State Retirement Commission to establish a volunteer 34
firefighter length of service award program; and (10) require the 35
Commission on Fire Prevention and Control to study the different levels 36
of training and certification of firefighters and the benefits available to 37
firefighters and recommend changes to recruit and retain firefighters. 38
Statement of Purpose:
To support the hiring and retention of volunteer and paid firefighters in
the state.