Relates to the establishment of special districts for general ambulance services and requires a report on issues of volunteer firefighter and ambulance services staffing.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1577
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 15, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. JONES, WOERNER, COOK, RIVERA, BLAKE, STEC,
D'URSO, CROUCH, BYRNE, MORINELLO, BLANKENBUSH -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Local Governments
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to the establish-
ment of special districts for general ambulance services; and to amend
the executive law, in relation to a report on volunteer firefighter
and ambulance services staffing
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraphs (d), (e) and (f) of subdivision 1 of section
2 122-b of the general municipal law, as amended by chapter 303 of the
3 laws of 1980, are amended to read as follows:
4 (d) Establish a special district for the financing and operation of
5 general ambulance services as set forth by this section, whereby any
6 county, city, town or village, acting individually, or jointly with any
7 other county, city, town and/or village, through its governing body or
8 bodies, following applicable procedures as are required for the estab-
9 lishment of fire districts in article eleven of the town law or follow-
10 ing applicable procedures as are required for the establishment of joint
11 fire districts in article eleven-A of the town law, with such special
12 district being authorized by this section to be established in all or
13 any part of any such participating county or counties, town or towns,
14 city or cities and/or village or villages;
15 (e) Employ any combination of the methods authorized in paragraph (a),
16 (b) [or], (c) or (d);
17 [(e)] (f) No contract shall be entered into pursuant to the provisions
18 of this section for the services of an emergency rescue and first aid
19 squad of a fire department or fire company which is subject to the
20 provisions of section two hundred nine-b of [the general municipal law]
21 this chapter;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03140-01-9
A. 1577 2
1 [(f)] (g) Consider prehospital emergency treatment as that care
2 provided by certified emergency medical technicians or certified
3 advanced emergency medical technicians certified pursuant to the
4 provisions of article thirty of the public health law.
5 § 2. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 719 to read
6 as follows:
7 § 719. Report on volunteer firefighter and ambulance services staff-
8 ing. 1. On or before the first day of January two thousand twenty, the
9 commissioner, in consultation with the state office of fire prevention
10 and control, shall prepare and publish a report on the staffing of
11 volunteer firefighter and ambulance services in New York state. Such
12 report shall examine and evaluate the challenges and issues concerning
13 the recruiting and maintenance of trained, available staffing by volun-
14 teer fire departments, districts and companies as well as for volunteer
15 ambulance districts and companies. Such report shall specifically exam-
16 ine and evaluate the challenges and issues that are particular to rural
17 areas of the state and areas with geographic challenges such as moun-
18 tains, waterways or limited transportation networks.
19 2. In addition to identifying challenges and issues concerning the
20 recruiting and maintenance of trained, available staffing by volunteer
21 fire departments, districts and companies as well as for volunteer ambu-
22 lance districts and companies across New York state, as required by
23 subdivision one of this section, such report shall also make recommenda-
24 tions on how to address and remediate the challenges and issues identi-
25 fied, with such recommendations being submitted to the governor, the
26 temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the
27 chair of the senate standing committee on local government and the chair
28 of the assembly standing committee on local government at the time of
29 the publishing of the report.
30 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
