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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1378
January Session, 2025
LCO No. 4867
Referred to Committee on ENVIRONMENT
Introduced by:
(ENV)
AN ACT CONCERNING WILDFIRE RESPONSE AND MANAGEMENT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective from passage) Not later than February 1, 2026, the 1
Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection shall submit a 2
report to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having 3
cognizance of matters relating to the environment, in accordance with 4
the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. Such report shall 5
detail an assessment conducted by the commissioner of the state-wide 6
wildfire danger and shall include any recommendations for the 7
designation or reallocation of requisite resources to decrease such 8
wildfire danger and the attendant likelihood of threats to public safety 9
and the destruction of man-made improvements and natural resources. 10
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective from passage) The Commissioner of Energy 11
and Environmental Protection shall provide for the training of 12
firefighters, whether professional or volunteer, and emergency medical 13
services professionals on wildfire preparedness and response. The 14
commissioner shall post information on the department's Internet web 15
site indicating how any such person may obtain such training. Not later 16
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than February 1, 2026, the commissioner shall provide the joint standing 17
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 18
relating to the environment with legislative recommendations 19
concerning the further implementation of this section. 20
Sec. 3. Section 23-36 of the general statutes is repealed and the 21
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 22
The State Forest Fire Warden may take such action as said warden 23
deems necessary to provide for the prevention and control of forest fires. 24
Said warden may enter into agreements with federal agencies, with 25
cities, boroughs and fire districts and with forest protective associations 26
for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this section. Said 27
warden, if the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection 28
deems necessary, may prohibit open flames upon any or all lands under 29
the commissioner's control. Said warden shall divide the state into 30
districts for the purpose of preventing and controlling forest fires and 31
shall appoint within these districts such district fire wardens, not 32
exceeding two hundred and fifty, as said warden deems necessary, who 33
shall serve for two years or until their successors are appointed. The 34
State Forest Fire Warden shall have supervision of district fire wardens 35
and shall instruct them in their duties. Each district fire warden may, 36
with the approval of the State Forest Fire Warden, appoint deputies to 37
assist in extinguishing fires and to take charge of such extinguishing in 38
such district fire warden's absence, provided, in cities having paid fire 39
departments and whose boundaries are coterminous with the town 40
boundaries, the State Forest Fire Warden may appoint a district fire 41
warden and may assume responsibility for forest fires only upon the 42
written request of the mayor of such city and for such portions as may 43
be designated by such mayor. Cities without paid fire departments and 44
portions of towns outside of city limits shall be included in forest fire 45
districts and the State Forest Fire Warden may employ volunteer fire 46
companies under the conditions described in this section and sections 47
23-37 to 23-42, inclusive. The State Forest Fire Warden shall establish 48
rates of compensation for equipment usage, fire fighting materials and 49
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supplies expended and firefighter and laborer time expended in 50
extinguishing forest fires to be paid to such volunteer fire companies as 51
may be employed. In establishing such rates, the State Forest Fire 52
Warden may differentiate between various kinds of equipment and 53
material and supplies used and the provisions of section 23-39, as 54
amended by this act, shall apply to the establishment of rates of 55
compensation for firefighter and laborer time. Notwithstanding any 56
provision of the general statutes or any municipal ordinance, upon the 57
declaration by the Governor of the existence of a state of emergency due 58
to forest fire, the State Forest Fire Warden may assume direct authority 59
over efforts to extinguish any forest fire and may assign such authority 60
to any state forest fire control personnel. 61
Sec. 4. Section 23-39 of the general statutes is repealed and the 62
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 63
The compensation of district and deputy fire wardens, trained 64
firefighters organized in accordance with rules issued by the State Forest 65
Fire Warden and such laborers as said warden finds it necessary to 66
employ shall be fixed by said warden on an hourly basis, subject to the 67
approval of the Commissioner of Administrative Services. Volunteer 68
fire companies may be compensated in accordance with section 23-36, 69
as amended by this act. The chief of the fire department in any town, 70
city or borough who receives a regular salary shall be paid no additional 71
compensation when acting as a fire warden. District fire wardens shall 72
prepare their bills for services rendered by them and by the personnel 73
and automobiles and other apparatus employed or used by them in 74
extinguishing fires. The chief of any volunteer fire company may 75
prepare bills for services rendered by said company and by the 76
personnel and automobiles and other apparatus employed or used by 77
them in extinguishing forest fires, if said company is allowed by town 78
ordinance to receive payment for such bills. Such bills shall be on a form 79
prescribed by the State Forest Warden and shall be submitted to the 80
State Forest Fire Warden within one month after the services have been 81
rendered, and, if found correct and approved by said warden, shall be 82
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ordered paid by the State Comptroller. The State Forest Fire Warden 83
may extend such one-month submittal deadline due to an emergency. 84
A copy of each bill so paid on account of any fire within a city, as 85
provided in section 23-36, as amended by this act, shall be sent by the 86
State Forest Fire Warden to the city treasurer of the city in which the fire 87
occurred, except bills for which a railroad company is liable under the 88
provisions of section 23-42, and, on or before the tenth day of December 89
in each year, such city treasurer shall draw the treasurer's order in favor 90
of the State Treasurer for the full amount of such bills submitted during 91
the twelve months next preceding. The State Forest Fire Warden may 92
forgive such bills if the state would incur administrative costs in 93
collecting the debt owed that would exceed the actual debt owed. Bills 94
for expenses incurred or services rendered by district or deputy 95
wardens in the performance of duties other than fire fighting shall be 96
submitted to the State Forest Fire Warden on or before the tenth day of 97
December and the tenth day of June in each year. Upon approval by the 98
State Forest Fire Warden, such bills shall be ordered paid by the State 99
Comptroller from any sums available for the expenses of the State Forest 100
Fire Warden. All fire warden bills authorized by sections 23-37, 23-38, 101
23-40 to 23-42, inclusive, and this section shall show in detail the amount 102
and character of the services performed, the exact duration thereof and 103
all disbursements made by such wardens. 104
Sec. 5. Section 23-50 of the general statutes is repealed and the 105
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 106
Whenever it appears to the Governor that by reason of extreme 107
drought or other hazardous conditions there is danger of forest fires, 108
[he] the Governor may (1) proclaim that any or all sections of woodland 109
and brush land in the state shall be closed, for such time as [he] the 110
Governor may designate, to all persons except the owners or tenants of 111
such woodlands and their agents and employees, [and during such 112
period of closure] or (2) proclaim that no fire shall be kindled in the open 113
air in any or all areas of the state, or both. As soon as the woodland is 114
deemed free from the danger of fire, the Governor may revoke [his] any 115
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such proclamation. Any person who enters upon forest or brush land, 116
except as provided [herein] in this section, or who kindles or causes to 117
be kindled a fire in the open air, during the period covered by the 118
Governor's proclamation, shall be fined not less than five hundred 119
dollars nor more than one [hundred] thousand dollars or imprisoned 120
not more than six months or be both fined and imprisoned. 121
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 from passage New section
Sec. 3 from passage 23-36
Sec. 4 from passage 23-39
Sec. 5 from passage 23-50
Statement of Purpose:
To provide authority for the enhanced ability of the state to prepare for
and respond to the threat that wildfires present to the state and its
residents.
[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.]