A.
Establishment. There shall be a Department of Fire, the head of which
shall be the Director of the Fire Department, who shall be appointed
by the Mayor, with the advice and consent of the Council. The Chief
of Fire may also serve as Director of the Department of Fire.
C.
Jurisdiction; function.
(1)
The Fire Department shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the control,
fighting and the extinguishment of any conflagration which occurs
within the City limits.
(2)
The Fire Department shall:
(a)
Designate and fix the location of fire alarm, telegraph, signal
and alarm stations, and construct, install, operate, repair and maintain
the fire alarm, telegraph and signal systems.
(b)
Investigate the cause, circumstances and origin of fires and
report to the County Prosecutor every case of suspicion of arson.
(c)
Inspect and test any automatic or other fire alarm system or
fire extinguishing equipment.
(d)
Be authorized to enter upon, without fee or interference, all
premises, grounds, structures, buildings, vessels and passages whenever
necessary, in the performance of its duties.
(e)
Operate a training program to maintain and improve the firefighting
efficiencies of the members of the Fire Department.
D.
Director and Chief.
(1)
The Director shall be the administrative head of the Fire Department,
under the direction of the Mayor, and be responsible for the proper
administration of fire affairs. He or she shall govern and control
the Fire Department and prescribe its rules and regulations.
(2)
The Director shall also have the following duties and powers:
(a)
Make, administer and enforce rules and regulations for the control,
disposition and discipline of the Department and its officers and
employees.
(b)
Establish procedures for the hearing and determination of charges
of violations of Departmental rules and regulations by any member
of the Fire Department, provided that a member may be fined, reprimanded,
removed or suspended as punishment or dismissed from the Department
only on written charges made or proffered against him or her, after
such charges have been examined, investigated and heard by the Director,
and upon such reasonable notice to the member charged and according
to such practice, procedure and manner as may be prescribed by the
rules and regulations of the Department in accordance with law.
(c)
Deduct and withhold any salary, within his or her discretion,
from any member of the Fire Department on account of absence, for
any cause, without leave.
E.
Prohibited activities.
(1)
No member of the Fire Department shall accept or solicit anything
of value as consideration for or in connection with the discharge
of his or her official duties.
(2)
No member of the Fire Department, without the written permission
of the Director, shall solicit or cause to be solicited, whether directly
or indirectly, any money or other thing of value, for the benefit
of any organization or any member of any organization. This prohibition
shall not apply to regular dues or assessments of the Firemen's Benevolent
Organizations, or other purposes authorized by the rules and regulations
of the Fire Department.
[Added 7-11-2016 by Ord.
No. O-13-16[1]]
A.
Any and all special-duty assignments for fire personnel shall be
determined and approved by the Chief of Fire or his or her designee.
No fire personnel shall perform special-duty assignments for private
parties or non-law enforcement entities for compensation other than
through the procedure set forth in this article. The Chief of Fire
or his or her designee shall obtain such information as he or she
determines necessary and is authorized to approve such special-duty
fire work in accordance with this article. The Chief of Fire or his
or her designee may assign a fire vehicle for use in performing special
duty if and in the event it is determined that the use of a fire vehicle
is necessary to perform the contracted duty. A separate fee shall
be charged for the use of such fire vehicle. The Chief of Fire or
his or her designee may deny the assignment or use of firemen vehicles
and/or may impose any condition or requirement as in his or her sole
discretion and determination is in the best interest of the City or
public safety. The Chief of Fire or his or her designee shall be guided
by the nature of the assignment and may refuse to approve those with
conflict of interest and/or significant risk of injury. This section
does not apply to assignments or work performed for or at the direction
of any special task force or similar assignments by other law enforcement
or firefighting agencies.
B.
Assignments to be voluntary. Fire personnel may volunteer to participate
in the special-duty jobs program. All special assignments shall be
administered by the Chief of Fire or his or her designee in accordance
with a fair and reasonable system, which shall take into account the
seniority of the fire personnel, unless exigent circumstance such
as time constraints or special skills dictate otherwise. Work assignments
under the program shall be considered voluntary, and participants
shall be compensated in accordance with the rates set forth herein.
C.
Fire personnel on duty; agreement; payment and costs. Fire personnel
engaged in special-duty assignments shall be deemed on duty for all
purposes, including, but not limited to, worker's compensation, public
liability and third-party claims for damages and shall conform to
all Fire Department rules, regulations and procedures. All such agreements
for special-duty assignments shall be contracted for in writing by
the completion of a form available from the Fire Department, which
contracts shall be kept on record as other such public documents.
Delinquent parties shall be liable for all costs, fees and attorneys'
fees associated with the collection of any amounts due. Private parties
or attorneys who utilize fire personnel in civil cases by subpoena
will be responsible to reimburse the City for the costs incurred for
the fire personnel's time while complying with the subpoena. The time
incurred will be billed by the City to the requesting private attorney
or party at the rate established for special-duty assignments. Fire
personnel will continue to be compensated by the City as per past
practice and the collective bargaining agreement for time responding
to subpoena(s). This section does not apply to internal administrative
or disciplinary matters in which reimbursement to the City is not
applicable.
D.
Work to be done within municipality; outside assistance. All special-duty
assignments shall be within the City, unless specific written approval
is given by the Chief of Fire and/or the Business Administrator to
the fire personnel to work outside of the City. The Chief of Fire
or his or her designee may contact adjoining municipal fire departments
to see if they are willing to perform such special assignments. This
does not apply to assignments crossing municipal boundaries in which
the work is partially performed within the City.
E.
Special fund.
(1)
All payments for special-duty assignments shall be deposited in and
be made through a special fire trust fund established by the City's
Chief Financial Officer, from which payment shall be made to the individual
fire personnel performing such service. All payments from the trust
fund shall be made to the fire personnel in a timely manner as provided
by law, subject to required deductions and an administrative fee to
be retained by the municipality. Any dispute between the contractor
and the fire personnel on assignment as to services required or compensation
due shall be determined by the Chief of Fire or his or her designee.
The Chief of Fire's decision, or that of his or her designee, shall
be final and binding.
(2)
All requests by private and/or non-law enforcement parties for special-duty services shall be made no later than 1600 hours on the day prior to the scheduled workday, except in the event of exigent circumstances. This time period may be waived by the Chief of Fire or his or her designee. Upon filing the request, the requesting party shall deposit with the City, or have on deposit, in the Special Duty Fire Trust Fund at least sufficient funds to pay for the services requested, including all administrative charges. The amount required to be deposited shall be subject to the determination and approval of the Chief of Fire or his or her designee and must at all times be sufficient to pay for special-duty services before said services are rendered, and no services shall be rendered unless prepaid. In the event that the request for special services was not made by 1600 hours on the day prior to the scheduled workday, the emergency traffic/security rates as enumerated in § 5-73E(5) herein shall come into effect.
(3)
Parties that utilize special-duty services on a regular basis for
a week or longer shall maintain a minimum balance of the average weekly
expenditure in the fund. Parties that utilize special-duty services
on a regular or frequent basis shall maintain a minimum deposit of
$500 in the fund. The Chief of Fire or his or her designee shall have
the authority to determine the appropriate minimum balance for a particular
party utilizing services to ensure adequate funds are on deposit to
timely pay the officers and administrative fees for services provided.
The Chief of Fire or his or her designee, with the approval of the
Business Administrator, may waive or adjust the minimum balance required
for assignments for municipalities, government agencies, utilities
or nonprofit organizations.
(4)
No services shall be rendered for any party that does not have funds
on deposit sufficient to cover the services. No services shall be
rendered to any party that is delinquent on payment for past services
rendered. Delinquent parties shall be liable for interest at 18% per
annum on any funds noticed to the party as delinquent, together with
any damages or attorneys' fees or costs incurred by reason of their
delinquency. If the Chief of Fire or his or her designee determines
a detail poses a hazardous condition or a concern for public safety
when not properly staffed, he or she may cancel any proposed assignment.
The Chief of Fire or his or her designee shall have the right to cancel
special-duty job services when a party is delinquent in payment.
(6)
Any work performed on the following days shall be paid at a rate
of time and a half; in excess of eight hours shall be paid at a rate
of double time:
(7)
The hourly rate/charge payable for fire vehicles shall be an additional
$15 per hour, or portion thereof, per each vehicle used. The City
shall also charge $12 per hour as a surcharge for administrative costs,
to be retained by the City. The Chief of Fire or his or her designee
may waive the minimum hours on a particular assignment should he or
she determine this is in the interests of the City. In continuing
assignments, the Chief of Fire or his or her designee may waive the
hourly minimum on a continuing basis. The Chief of Fire or his or
her designee, with the approval of the Business Administrator, may
waive or adjust the administrative fee for assignments for municipalities,
government agencies or nonprofit organizations.
(8)
Hours will be billed in full-hour increments only. If fire personnel
work 15 minutes or greater into an hour, a full hour will be billed.
F.
Cancellation. Any assignment which is canceled on less than two hours'
notice shall be charged against the party. Upon cancellation, the
contractor shall be responsible for the minimum payment of four hours,
per each fire personnel assigned plus vehicle and administrative fees,
at the specified rate plus any administrative fees that may apply.
G.
Authority to terminate assignment. The Chief of Fire or his or her
designee has the authority to order any fire personnel to vacate or
terminate any special-duty assignment in response to emergency situations
or whenever the assignment creates an unacceptable risk to health,
safety and welfare of fire personnel and/or public in the sole determination
and discretion of the Chief of Fire or his or her designee. The contractor
shall not be responsible for any compensation for the time that fire
personnel is away from the special-duty assignments and shall have
no claim for any costs or damages against the municipality, the Chief
of Fire or his or her designee or any firemen arising from the termination
of any special-duty assignment other than the prorated return of any
fees prepaid to the City for the time.
H.
Insurance coverage. The City shall be responsible to provide all
necessary insurance coverage as required by law for all special-duty
assignments for fire personnel, including but not limited to workers'
compensation, public liability and claims for damage or personal injury,
including death or damage to property, which may arise as a result
from the City's performance under the contract.
I.
Conformance with agreement. All special-duty assignments and related
work shall be performed in accordance with the agreement for special-duty
assignment of fire personnel entered into between the contractor and
the municipality.
J.
The Chief of Fire or his or her designee, subject to the approval
of the Business Administrator, has the authority to set reasonable
rules and regulations for fire personnel, as well as contractors/vendors,
for the administration of the special-duty jobs program.
