Brief Summary of Bill

• Provides wildland fire fighter training.

• Requires reimbursement to fire districts and cities of at least $3 per hour for a maximum of 200 hours of training.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 9 members: Representatives Haigh, Chair; Miloscia, Vice Chair; Armstrong, Ranking Minority Member; Shabro, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Hunt, McDermott, Nixon, Tom and Wallace.

The Washington State Patrol provides fire fighter training at its training academy in North Bend. Fire departments may use the training academy or acquire training services from some other source. In 1999 the Legislature amended RCW 43.43.934, Washington's fire training and education master plan, to provide a basic uniform level of training throughout Washington's fire protection districts and city fire departments. The State Fire Protection Policy Board of the Washington State Patrol was charged with developing and adopting a plan providing fire fighter one level training to all fire fighters in the state. The plan included a minimum reimbursement of $2 for every hour of fire fighter one training received, up to 150 hours.

House Bill 1109 amends current fire fighter one training reimbursement statutes to include wildland fire fighting training. The bill would also increase reimbursement dollar amounts from $2 to $3 per hour of instruction along with increasing the maximum reimbursed instructional hours from 150 to 200.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: Provides essential wildland training as an option for fire departments and fire protection districts throughout the state. This is not a mandatory training, but an option for those fire fighters who wish to be trained in wildland fire protection. The funding and the training would offer access to those districts and departments that would utilize wildland training skills.

Testified: Mark Kahley, Department of Natural Resources; and Ryan Spiller, Washington Fire Commissioners Association.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 23 members: Representatives Sommers, Chair; Fromhold, Vice Chair; Sehlin, Ranking Minority Member; Pearson, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Alexander, Boldt, Clements, Cody, Conway, Cox, DeBolt, Dunshee, Hunter, Kagi, Kenney, Linville, McDonald, McIntire, Miloscia, Ruderman, Schual-Berke, Sump and Talcott.

Summary of Recommendation of Committee On Appropriations Compared to Recommendation of Committee On State Government:

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: If we expand the fire fighter one training to include wildland fire fighter training, it will save money. The fire districts don't intend to come back and ask for extra funds to pay for this training, but rather they will live within the balance in the Fire Service Training Account. This training will not be provided at the academy, but rather by local fire districts and other municipalities.