The Firemen’s Association of the State of New York will conduct its annual RecruitNY campaign this weekend in an effort to recruit more volunteer firefighters and EMTs.
This year’s RecruitNY is Saturday and Sunday, with participating fire departments and ambulance services conducting open houses and inviting the public to learn more about becoming a volunteer.
These area fire departments are listed as taking part Saturday:
• Ischua Fire Department, 5534 Route 16, will have an open house from 8 a.m. to noon. At 10 a.m. members will demonstrate their new hydraulic rescue tool, or “jaws of life.”
• Little Valley Fire Department, 101 3rd St., open house from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Membership applications will be available for firefighters, EMS personnel, the auxiliary, the junior firefighters program and social memberships.
• Randolph Volunteer Fire Department, 70 Main St., from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; there will be a parade, a helicopter fly-in by MercyFlight of Buffalo, open house, equipment demonstrations including the “jaws of life” and the 93-foot tower truck, extensive recruitment displays and refreshments.
FASNY reports that the number of volunteer firefighters statewide declined from 140,000 in the early 1990s to less than 90,000 just a few years ago.
Volunteer emergency medical technicians (EMTs) experienced a decline from more than 50,000 to 35,000 during the same period, with some rural counties experiencing as much as a 50% depletion of EMT ranks.
“New York state as a whole relies heavily on volunteer fire departments,” FASNY stated. “Of its 1,795 municipal fire departments, 89% are volunteer.”
The organization noted that volunteer firefighters are most prevalent in smaller, rural communities that have a lesser tax base than larger towns and cities.
“That these communities rely on volunteers testifies to cost savings from volunteer departments, and conversion to paid departments would be a particular burden for these localities,” FASNY stated.
With 4,100 volunteers lost over the past two years, FASNY is calling on New York state legislators to increase the state’s income tax credit for volunteers from the current $200, which was set in 2006, to $800.
State Sen. Tom O’Mara, R-Chemung County, whose 58th District includes much of Allegany County, noted that he and Assembly members Phil Palmesano, R-Corning, and Chris Friend, R-Big Flats, have long sponsored legislation known as the Omnibus Emergency Services Volunteer Incentive Act to provide a series of tax and other incentives to help address the recruitment and retention challenge.
They point to their legislation as part of ongoing state-level efforts by FASNY and others to keep drawing attention to a challenge that many believe poses a property tax crisis in waiting and other crises for many rural, Upstate communities.
A FASNY study on tax savings and economic value of volunteer firefighters in New York state found that the state’s 100,000 volunteer firefighters save taxpayers nearly $4 billion annually, while an additional 31,000 career firefighters would be necessary to convert to an all-paid service statewide at annual cost $4.7 billion.
There would also be a one-time cost of $8.2 billion to acquire existing stations/structures, vehicles and equipment, the study noted. Approximately 1,300 stations would have to be built new or reconstructed property taxes statewide would rise an average of 28.4%.
“The challenge of recruiting volunteer firefighters and EMTs, especially in our rural, upstate communities, deserves all of the attention it gets,” O’Mara said. “Keeping our corps of emergency services volunteers strong must be a statewide priority. Our volunteer fire departments have long been the foundation of public safety and security, and the center of community service and civic pride, and we can’t risk their decline.”