Senate Bill No. 275
(By Senators Snyder, Bailey, Ball, Bowman and Wiedebusch)
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[Introduced March 10, 1997; referred to the Committee
on Government Organization.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact sections sixteen and seventeen,
article fifteen, chapter eight of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all
relating to rules for all examinations and probationary
appointments.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections sixteen and seventeen, article fifteen,
chapter eight of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 15. FIRE FIGHTING; FIRE COMPANIES AND DEPARTMENTS;
CIVIL SERVICE FOR PAID FIRE DEPARTMENTS.
§8-15-16. Rules for all examinations; probationary appointments.
The firemen's civil service commission in each municipality shall make rules
and regulations providing for both competitive
and medical examinations for appointments and promotions to all
positions in the paid fire department in
such the municipality,
and for
such other matters as are necessary to carry out the
purposes of the civil service provisions of this article. Any
such commission shall have the power and authority to require by
rules
and regulations a physical fitness examination as a part of
its competitive examination or as a part of its medical
examination:
Provided, That after the thirtieth day of June, one
thousand nine hundred eighty-one, the medical requirements for
appointment to all positions in the paid fire department in
such
the municipality shall include, but not be limited to, the
medical requirements stated in section sixteen, article twenty- two of this chapter. Due notice of the contents of
such the
rules
and regulations and of any modifications thereof shall be
given, by mail, in due season, to the appointing officer; and
said the rules
and regulations and any modifications thereof
shall also be printed for public distribution. All original
appointments to any positions in a paid fire department subject
to the civil service provisions of this article shall be for a
probationary period of
six months one year: Provided, That at
any time during the probationary period the probationer may be
discharged for just cause, in the manner provided in section twenty-five of this article. If, at the close of this
probationary term, the conduct or capacity of the probationer has
not been satisfactory to the appointing officer, the probationer
shall be notified, in writing, that he
he or she will not receive
absolute appointment, whereupon his
or her employment shall
cease; otherwise, his
or her retention in the service shall be
equivalent to his
or her final appointment.
§8-15-17. Form of application; age and residency requirements;
exceptions.
The firemen's civil service commission in each municipality
shall require individuals applying for admission to any
competitive examination provided for under the civil service
provisions of this article or under the rules
and regulations of
the commission to file in its office, within a reasonable time
prior to the proposed examination, a formal application in which
the applicant shall state under oath or affirmation:
(1) His
or her full name, residence and post-office address;
(2) His
or her United States citizenship, age and the place
and date of his
or her birth;
(3) His
or her state of health, and his
or her physical
capacity for the public service;
(4) His
or her business and employments and residences for
at least three previous years; and
(5)
Such Any other information as may reasonably be
required, touching upon the applicant's qualifications and
fitness for the public service.
Blank forms for
such the applications shall be furnished by
the commission, without charge, to all individuals requesting the
same. The commission may require, in connection with
such the
application,
such certificates of citizens, physicians and
others, having pertinent knowledge concerning the applicant, as
the good of the service may require.
No application for original appointment shall be received if
the individual applying is less than eighteen years of age or
more than thirty-five years of age at the date of his
or her
application:
Provided, That in the event any applicant formerly
served upon the paid fire department of the municipality to which
he
or she makes application, for a period of more than
six months
one year, and resigned from the department at a time when there
were no charges of misconduct or other misfeasance pending
against
such the applicant, within a period of two years next
preceding the date of his
or her application, and at the time of
his
or her application resides within the corporate limits of the
municipality in which the paid fire department to which he
or she
seeks appointment by reinstatement is located, then
such the
individual shall be eligible for appointment by reinstatement in the discretion of the firemen's civil service commission, even
though
such the applicant shall be over the age of thirty-five
years, and
such the applicant, providing his
or her former term
of service so justifies, may be appointed by reinstatement to the
paid fire department without a competitive examination, but
such
the applicant shall undergo a medical examination; and if
such
the individual shall be so appointed by reinstatement to the paid
fire department, he
or she shall be the lowest in rank in the
department next above the probationers of the department.
Any applicant for original appointment must have been a
resident for one year, during some period of time prior to the
date of his
or her application, of the municipality in which he
or she seeks to become a member of the paid fire department:
Provided, That if the commission
deems determines it necessary it
may consider for original appointment applicants who are not
residents of the municipality but who have been residents of the
county in which the municipality or any portion of the territory
thereof is located for a period of at least one year.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to change the
probationary period from six months to one year for paid fire
departments.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.