Adopted by House February 16, 2012

SB343 HFA White 2/16 #1

    Delegate White moved to amend the bill on page two, following the enacting section, by striking the remainder of the bill in its entirety and inserting in lieu the following:

ARTICLE 15. FIRE FIGHTING; FIRE COMPANIES AND DEPARTMENTS; CIVIL SERVICE FOR PAID FIRE DEPARTMENTS.

§8-15-8a. Eligibility for allocation from municipal pensions and              protection fund and the Fire Protection Fund.

    (a) In order to be eligible to receive revenues allocated from the municipal pensions and protection fund or the Fire Protection Fund, each volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department must meet the following requirements: listed in subdivisions (a) through (c) of this section.

    Each volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department must:

    (a) (1) Submit and maintain current submission of fire loss data to the State Fire Marshal, including verification, by notarized statement, if no fire loss has occurred;

    (b) (2) Complete or be in the process of receiving firefighters training, including section one of the West Virginia University fire service extension or its equivalent. Such The fire company or department must have at least ten members certified as having completed such the training or if a volunteer fire company or department has twenty or fewer members, fifty percent of the active volunteer members must have completed such training; and

    (c) (3) Comply with all applicable federal and state laws.

    (b) Each volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department shall have a grace period of ninety days, beyond the allocation date in which to comply with submission requirements to the State Fire Marshal. The State Fire Marshal shall notify each volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department of the due date for submitting the information required by this section and the grace period by certified mailing requiring signature and a return receipt.

    (c) When the records of a volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department are destroyed by a fire or other natural disaster, then the affected volunteer or part volunteer fire company or department is exempt from the provisions of subdivision (1), subsection (a) of this section, for the three months period immediately following the destruction of the records.