[Adopted 12-11-2023 by Ord. No. 741 [1]. This ordinance also changed the title of Ch. 18 from
"Fire Companies" to "Fire Department" and the title of Art. I from
"Operations" to "Fire Supression/Prevention Systems."]
[1]
Editor’s Note: This ordinance also repealed former Art.
I, Operations, adopted 2-26-1951 by Ord. No. 22
A.
The Council of the Borough of Buena shall supervise and control all
fire suppression and prevention services within the Borough of Buena
and recognizes the Minotola Volunteer Fire Company (MFC) as and for
its sole fire suppression and prevention company with no other firefighting
organization to be formed within the Borough without the consent of
the Borough Council.
B.
The Borough Council shall appropriate such sums of money as shall
be deemed necessary to aid MFC in performing its duty on behalf of
the Borough.
A.
There shall be a Fire Chief elected by the membership of the MFC
that are eligible to vote pursuant to the bylaws of the MFC. The Fire
Chief shall serve for a one-year term.
B.
The Fire Chief shall have all of the following qualifications in
order to serve:
(1)
Must be qualified to serve as an active firefighter in the MFC and
documented experience in fire service for at least three consecutive
years.
(2)
Must be in good standing at the time of nomination.
(3)
Must have the ability to read, write and speak the English language.
(4)
Must have a valid New Jersey Driver's License during the entire
term of service as Chief.
A.
There shall be one Deputy Chief; One Assistant Chief, not more than
three Captains as determined by the Borough Council upon recommendation
of Fire Chief and not more than three Lieutenants as determined by
the Borough Council upon recommendation of Fire Chief.
B.
The Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief shall have all of the following
qualifications in order to serve:
(1)
Must be qualified to serve as an active firefighter in the MFC and
documented experience in fire service for at least three consecutive
years.
(2)
Must be in good standing at the time of nomination.
(3)
Must have the ability to read, write and speak the English language.
(4)
Must have a valid New Jersey Driver's License during the entire
term of service as Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief.
C.
The Captains and Lieutenants shall have all of the following qualifications
in order to serve:
(1)
Must be qualified to serve as an active firefighter in the MFC and
documented experience in fire service for at least three consecutive
years.
(2)
Must be in good standing at the time of nomination.
(3)
Must have the ability to read, write and speak the English language.
(4)
Must have a valid New Jersey Driver's License during the entire
term of service as Chief.
A.
Membership applications shall be open to all persons and application
forms approved by the Director of Public Safety shall be completed.
No person shall be discriminated against including race or gender,
who shall have acquired the following certifications: Fire Fighter
1, Hazardous Materials Awareness, Hazardous Materials Operations and
have receive the following required training: I-100 Introduction to
ICS, I-200 ICS for Single Resources and Initial Action Incidents (classroom
instructor led), I-700 National Incident Management System, An Introduction,
I-800 National Response Framework (both classes may be online). All
applications shall present a New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission Drivers
Abstract which shall be reviewed by the MFC trustees and recommendations
to accept or reject a candidate shall be made to Borough Council within
30 days of receipt of applications. Borough Council shall finally
approve or disapprove all members to MFC. All potential members shall
undergo background investigations and physical evaluations. No person
shall be approved as a member should there be a criminal conviction
on their record or physically unable to perform the duties of firefighter.
B.
On a yearly basis all members shall be evaluated in March by the
MFC trustees to determine if a member has maintained an activity level
of 20 LOSAP points for two consecutive years and to confirm that no
member has been convicted of any criminal activity.
C.
There shall be established the Junior Fireperson's Auxiliary
per N.J.S.A. 40A:14-95. Qualifications and eligibility for said membership
shall be in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40A:14-96.
D.
Exempt members. Any MFC member who holds a Borough-issued exempt
certificate or a qualifying certificate issued by the New Jersey State
Firemen's Association shall be entitled to be an exempt member
of the MFC. Exempt members shall have all of the rights and privileges
of active membership.
E.
Honorary members. Upon a vote of 2/3 of the membership, a MFC member
may be granted an honorary membership who is an exempt member and
who holds a qualifying certificate or who has been a member of the
MFC for 20 years or more. Honorary members shall not be required to
comply with fire duty attendance requirements, except such member
shall not qualify for LOSAP unless he/she has met the LOSAP point
requirements as set forth herein.
It is recognized that the membership of the MFC are also considered
quasi-employees of the Borough of Buena when acting in their capacity
as firefighters and therefore, the bylaws of MFC shall be submitted
for the approval of Borough Council and review by the Borough Solicitor
and insurance carrier. Any amendments recommended by the MFC Trustees
shall be submitted to the Public Safety Director and Borough Council
for review and approval.
A.
Building ownership and use. The land and improvements within which
the MFC operates is and shall remain the property of the Borough of
Buena. The Borough shall maintain insurance thereon including liability
and property damage coverage as provided through the Borough insurance
carrier. Notwithstanding said ownership, no person shall be permitted
in any area of the building not otherwise open to the public without
first notifying the Chief or his representative and without being
accompanied by or having special permission by the Chief or his representative.
The Borough may utilize other portions of the building for public
purposes provided it does not substantially interfere with proper
firefighting services. No use of the building or grounds shall be
permitted for private purposes without express consent of the Public
Safety Director and Borough Council and only upon notification to
and with the approval of the Borough's insurance carrier.
B.
Firefighting equipment, clothing and apparatus.
(1)
All firefighting equipment, clothing, apparatus purchased by the
Borough, or the predecessor Fire Commissioners shall remain the property
of the Borough of Buena. Except as may be authorized by Borough Council,
no person shall use any fire equipment or apparatus for any private
purpose. No person shall willfully and without authority take away
or conceal any asset specified herein.
(2)
No fire apparatus of the Borough shall be permitted to leave the
Borough of Buena without the consent of the Chief and Borough Public
Safety Director except in response to a call for in a neighboring
community or official business relating to firematic services, including
training. No apparatus is to leave the Borough on official business
except in response to a fire call without the consent of the Chief
and Public Safety Director, but in no event shall any equipment be
permitted outside of the Borough if, in the judgment of the Chief,
in doing so would jeopardize the protection of the Borough and its
residents.
(3)
The use of fire equipment and apparatus for Borough-sponsored events,
such parades or public relations events is permitted, provided it
is first approved by the Chief and Public Safety Director and the
Borough's insurance carrier.
C.
Location and storage of fire equipment and apparatus. Except for
gear assigned to each firefighter, all Borough equipment and apparatus
shall be safely and conveniently housed by the MFC at the Minotola
Fire Station, or such other building as approved by Borough Council
and the Fire Chief.
D.
The Borough has one or more "command vehicles" authorized by Borough
Council and the Public Safety Director which are used solely by the
Chief and such line officers assigned to said vehicle by the Chief.
Command vehicles are vehicles used solely for the purposes of transportation
to and from fire scenes or for official fire business and are permitted
to be taken by the Chief and line officers to their home and other
locations to allow for immediate response to fire calls; however,
the command vehicles shall not be used for personal use. Command vehicles
may also contain such equipment as is necessary for proper operation
of the MFC.
A.
Chief of Department. In addition to all of the duties and responsibilities
of all members of the MFC, the Chief shall:
(1)
Timely review and submit all NFIRS reports as required by the State
of New Jersey.
(2)
Develop a schedule of the testing and certification of the following:
(a)
SCBA Training (January).
(b)
RTR Training (January).
(c)
Cascade Training (January).
(d)
Fit-testing (January).
(e)
Blue Light Awareness refresher (January).
(f)
Emergency Action Plan (EAP) review/awareness (January).
(g)
Bloodborne Pathogens/HazMat Awareness (February).
(h)
SOG/SOP Review (March).
(i)
Ladder Testing.
(j)
Hose Testing.
(k)
Pump Testing.
(l)
SCBA Air Testing.
(m)
SCBA Equipment Testing Hydro-Static Testing for SCBA (as required).
(n)
Apparatus Maintenance (as required).
(o)
Monthly Drill Schedule.
(p)
Aerial Testing.
(q)
CPR Training/Certification (as required).
(r)
CPR Training/Certification (as required).
(s)
Turn-out gear Inspection (as required).
(t)
Turn-out gear Cleaning/Maintenance (as required).
(u)
Any other required testing/certifications of any new equipment
purchased.
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Scheduling of testing and certifications set forth herein above
may be modified subject to scheduling and availability in the discretion
of the Chief provided said scheduling does not impact the proper operation
of the MFC and its members.
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(3)
The Chief shall submit the schedule of testing and certification
to the Director of Public Safety for submission to Borough Council.
(4)
The Chief shall have general supervision of the MFC at all times,
including, but not limited to, responding to an alarm at drills and
at such other times when the MFC membership is assembled. The Chief
shall always take prompt and efficient measures to control the fire
scene and shall have full power and control and command over all apparatus
and members of the MFC and all fire, rescue. In the absence of the
Chief, the command shall devolve pas per the bylaws of the MFC.
(5)
The Chief shall keep and maintain all records as to attendance at
all alarms and drills for each member. The Chief shall also be responsible
to certify LOSAP points for all members to the Borough for qualification
for LOSAP.
(6)
The Chief shall provide monthly reports on the second Monday of each
month during the regular meeting of Borough Council of all matters
regarding the maintenance and operation of MFC as well as all reports
of alarms and attendance to calls. Written reports shall be submitted
to the Director of Public Safety prior thereto.
(7)
The Chief shall provide an annual report with recommendations, if
any, for the improvement of the effectiveness of the MFC.
(8)
The Chief shall transmit to the Borough Council and Chief Financial
Officer on or before November 1 of each year a proposed annual budget
in the form as presented by the CFO.
B.
Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief. The Deputy Chief and Assistant
Chief are directly responsible to the Chief and shall have general
supervision at all fire calls, alarms, hazardous material emergencies
and fire drills in the absence of the Chief.
C.
Captains and Lieutenants. The Captains and Lieutenants shall be directly
responsible to the Chief and shall have general supervision at all
fire calls, alarms, hazardous material emergencies and fire drills.
Captains and Lieutenants shall have such other duties as required
in the MFC bylaws.
A.
Program established. Whereas, the Commissioners of Fire District
No. 1 and No. 2, now dissolved, have adopted resolutions creating
the Length Of Service Award Program (LOSAP) to provide tax deferred
income benefits from the Borough to active volunteer members of the
existing fire companies within the Borough and have created a points
system that reflects the range of volunteer services that may be provided
to the MFC and Landisville Fire Company members. Upon the dissolution
of Fire District No. 1 and its Commissioners, evaluation and redistribution
of annual LOSAP qualification points was assigned to Fire District
No. 2. The following sets forth the established criteria which shall
be adopted as follows:
B.
Criteria. The LOSAP shall provide for annual contributions to each
eligible member who meets the criteria as follows:
C.
Categories, distribution and assignment of annual qualification points.
The Commissioners of Fire District No. 2 adopted Resolution No. 2020-016
setting forth the categories, distribution and assignment of LOSAP
annual qualification points. The following sets forth the established
criteria which shall be adopted as follows.
(1)
Incidents. One and one half points shall be awarded for each fire
call member response between the hours of 0700 hrs-2259hrs and 2.5
points shall be awarded for each fire call member response between
the hours of 2300 hours and 0659 hours. No maximum.
(2)
Drills. Two points shall be awarded for each drill attended: no maximum.
(3)
Training. One point shall be awarded for the first hour of training
and 0.25 points for each additional one-half hour attended-30 point
maximum.
(4)
Meetings. One point for each meeting attended-10-point maximum.
(5)
Special assignments. One point for the first hour of the special
assignment and 0.25 points for each additional one-half hour attended-10
points maximum.
(6)
Any person completing Firefighter II after January 1, 2021, shall
be eligible to receive 80 points upon successful completion of the
course and receipt of state certification. Said points shall be awarded
once in the year attaining such certification.
