FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 1863

C 308 L 17

Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description: Concerning the national fire incident reporting system.

Sponsors: House Committee on Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives Gregerson, Stokesbary, Appleton and Stambaugh).

House Committee on Local Government

House Committee on Appropriations

Senate Committee on Local Government

Senate Committee on Ways & Means

Background:

National Fire Incident Reporting System.

The National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) is a standard reporting system developed by the United States Fire Administration that fire departments use to report on their activities. The NFIRS serves as a database to collect uniform fire incident information. After a fire department responds to an incident, they submit information through the NFIRS database pertaining to the nature of the call, the actions firefighters took in response to the call, and the outcome, including firefighter and civilian casualties and property loss estimates. The fire department then provides this information to the state agency responsible for collecting the NFIRS data, which then reports the data to the United States Fire Administration. The Chief of the Washington State Patrol (WSP), through the Director of Fire Protection (Director), collected the NFIRS data until 2011 when the program was eliminated.

Fire Reporting.

The chief of each fire department, or the sheriff or other designated county official having jurisdiction over areas not within the jurisdiction of any fire department, is required to report statistical information and data on each fire occurring within their jurisdiction to the Chief of the WSP, through the Director. Fire departments must report any deaths resulting from a fire within two business days. The reports must be consistent with the NFIRS and the rules established by the WSP, through the Director. The Director must analyze the information and data reported, compile a report, and distribute the report annually to each chief fire official by July 1.

Summary:

Subject to the availability of funds appropriated for this purpose, the WSP, through the Director, must administer the NFIRS, or the state equivalent as selected by the Director. The Director's administration of the NFIRS includes, but is not limited to:

• purchasing equipment to operate the program, including software;

• establishing procedures, standards, and guidelines pertaining to the statistical information and data reported by fire departments through the NFIRS;

• providing training and education to fire departments pertaining to the NFIRS; and

• employing staff, as needed, to administer the NFIRS.

Rules established by the WSP, through the Director, must require the departments to report data on the age of any structure involved in a fire when that information is available.

Votes on Final Passage: