[Adopted 4-10-1974 by Ord. No. 19; Amended by Ord. No.
16-021]
[Ord. No. 16-021]
The Fire Department of the Borough of Roosevelt shall consist
of the Roosevelt Volunteer Fire Company, Inc. or such other companies
as may be authorized by resolution of the Borough Council. The Fire
Department shall function under the control and supervision of the
Borough Council and shall be subject to such rules and regulations
as the Borough Council may enact.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
Every person seeking to join the Fire Department shall make
application to the company which he or she desires to join. The Fire
Chief shall then make a recommendation to the fire company regarding
the suitability of the applicant for membership in the Fire Department.
The fire company may then by a majority vote of those present and
voting at a duly convened meeting, elect the applicant to membership.
The applicant's name shall then be submitted to the Borough Council
for confirmation. Upon confirmation, the applicant shall become a
member of the Fire Department.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
The fire company shall provide a list of its members, directors
and officers to the Borough Clerk and shall promptly update the list
upon the occurrence of any change. The Borough Clerk shall maintain
a list of the members of the Fire Department in the Borough records.
Every firefighter shall be given a badge of membership in his
or her company by the Borough Council. The badge shall be worn at
all times when on fire duty. If a firefighter is for any reason suspended
from duty, or if he or she ceases to be a member of the Fire Department,
he or she shall immediately deliver his or her badge either to the
Fire Chief or to the Borough Clerk.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
The members of the Fire Department shall no less frequently
than annually elect a Fire Chief and an Assistant Fire Chief. The
members of the Fire Department may also elect other line officers
at the same time and in the same manner as the election of the Fire
Chief and Assistant Fire Chief. The Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief
and all other line officers shall take office upon confirmation by
the Borough Council and shall serve until their successors have been
elected and confirmed. The control and management of the Fire Department,
subject to such rules and regulations as the Borough Council may enact,
shall be exercised by the Fire Chief and he or she shall be entrusted
with the command of the Fire Department at all fires and other emergencies
and at all drills. He or she shall be empowered to schedule drills.
In his or her absence, his or her powers and duties shall devolve
upon the Assistant Fire Chief.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
The members of the Fire Department, including all line officers,
shall serve without compensation. However, they may annually receive
such allowances as may be fixed by the Borough Council to cover any
loss of time or other loss incurred in attending upon and putting
out fires in the Borough of Roosevelt.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
No person shall become a member of the Fire Department unless
he or she is at least 18 years of age, a citizen of the United States,
and resides within the Borough of Roosevelt or anywhere within five
miles of any border of the Borough of Roosevelt. He or she shall be
physically fit to perform the duties of a firefighter. The Fire Chief
or the Borough Council may require any firefighter or applicant to
produce a certificate issued by a practicing physician of the State
of New Jersey indicating that he or she has been examined by said
physician and found physically fit to perform fire duty. No person
shall be denied membership consistent with the New Jersey Law Against
Discrimination.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
Fire duty shall consist of actual attendance at, and participation
in, fire-fighting and drills. The Fire Chief shall maintain a record
of the percentage of fire duty performed by each firefighter and shall,
in January of each year, file a report containing this information
with the Borough Clerk. In computing the percentage, the Chief may
take into account no more than 20 drills and must use the same standards
for all firefighters.
[Ord. No. 16-021]
Firefighters may be suspended or expelled from the Fire Department
by the Fire Chief or the Borough Council for malfeasance, neglect
of duty or other good cause. Line officers may also be removed from
line officer positions by the Borough Council by resolution. The Borough
Council shall be entitled to reinstate any person who has resigned
or been suspended or expelled from the Fire Department and fire company.
Subject to the rights of the Borough Council in the immediately preceding
sentence, no person shall continue to be a member of the Fire Department
if he or she has failed entirely to perform fire duty during the previous
calendar year.
No person who is not a member of the Fire Department may be
a member of a fire company within the Department, unless such person
is in the process of applying for membership in the Fire Department.
This provision notwithstanding, no fire company shall be prevented
from electing former members of the Fire Department to honorary membership.
[New]
The Water/Sewer Utility Department is established in Chapter
15, Water and Sewer.