A.
Any person, 18 years of age or older, is eligible for membership
in a company as a regular member. Persons must apply and be accepted
by the company to which application is made according to its rules
and regulations and the Code of Virginia. Participation by members
must be in accordance with the company rules and regulations and the
Code of Virginia.
B.
Applicants for membership shall be subject to a background check.
Applications for membership shall require, for the background check,
the submission of fingerprints and personal descriptive information,
to be processed in accordance with the following:
(1)
Any person who applies to be a volunteer with a company shall submit
fingerprints and provide personal descriptive information to be sent
directly by the Department to (i) the State Board of Health to be
forwarded by Central Criminal Records Exchange to the Federal Bureau
of Investigation or (ii) the Central Criminal Records Exchange to
then be forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in either
case for the purpose of obtaining criminal history records information
for the applicant, in accordance with Code of Virginia § 32.1-111.5.
(2)
Upon the receipt of the results of the state and national criminal
history records search, the System Chief, as designee of the County
Administrator, shall notify the company and Office of Emergency Medical
Services regarding the applicant's eligibility to serve as a
volunteer.
(3)
Information provided to the Office of Emergency Medical Services
shall be limited to notification as to whether the applicant is eligible
to serve as a volunteer in accordance with requirements related to
disqualifying offenses set forth in regulations of the State Board
of Health, and shall not include information regarding whether the
applicant has been found ineligible to serve as a volunteer due to
any additional exclusionary criteria established by the County.
C.
This section is in accordance with the Code of Virginia, 1950, as
amended, §§ 15.2-1503.1, 19.2-389, and 32.1-111.5.
Pursuant to the provision of § 40.1-79.1 of the Code
of Virginia, any person 16 or 17 years of age, with parental or guardian
approval, is authorized to work with or participate in activities
of the volunteer companies, provided that such person has attained
certification under National Fire Protection Association 1001, Level
One, Firefighter Standards, as administered by the Virginia Department
of Fire Programs. Nothing in this section shall prohibit participation
by such persons in nonhazardous activities of a volunteer company,
including fire prevention efforts and training courses approved by
the Virginia Fire Services Board that are designed to provide situational
awareness.
