[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Boonton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Uniform construction codes — See Ch. 62.
Fire prevention — See Ch. 88.
[Adopted 12-14-1981 by Ord. No. 295]
A Fire Department is hereby established in the Township of Boonton, in the County of Morris, to serve the Township within the boundary lines thereof.
[Amended 11-28-1988 by Ord. No. 395; 11-13-2006 by Ord. No. 732]
The Fire Department of the Township of Boonton shall consist of a Chief, Deputy Chief, two Captains and two Lieutenants, to be known as the "Board of Fire Chiefs" and members of such Department. The Township Committee shall appoint the members of said Fire Department. The Chief, Deputy Chief, two Captains and two Lieutenants shall be elected by and from the members of the Department and shall thereafter be confirmed by the Township Committee. All members of the Board of Fire Chiefs must have served for a period of at least two years as a fire fighter in the Township of Boonton. In addition, they must meet all training requirements of the State of New Jersey and produce documentation evidencing that they have met those requirements prior to appointment by the Township Committee. In the event that any nominations are not approved by the Committee, then it may appoint such officers. The number of members of such Department, their ages and periods of service shall, at all times, be in accordance with the laws of the State of New Jersey. The officers and members so elected and appointed shall constitute the Fire Department of the Township of Boonton.
[Amended 11-28-1988 by Ord. No. 395]
A. 
The Chief, the Deputy Chief, two Captains and two Lieutenants shall hold office for a period of one year; in the event that any vacancy occurs, such vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the year in the manner herein provided.
[Amended 11-13-2006 by Ord. No. 732]
B. 
The members of the Fire Department shall appoint from their membership a Clerk and such other officers as they may deem necessary and may make rules and regulations for the operation of the Department subject to the approval of the Township Committee.
Any vacancies existing in the Fire Department shall be filled by the members thereof after the original appointments by the Township Committee, subject to the approval of the Committee.
The Board of Fire Chiefs shall supervise and attend to any and all fire equipment and apparatus committed to its charge, subject to the order and directions of the Township Committee.
[Amended 3-14-2022 by Ord. No. 903]
A. 
No person shall become a member of the Fire Department unless he shall agree to perform the duties of a fireman during his term of service
B. 
All prospective members will be subjected to a one-time background check. This check will include a criminal history check by the Boonton Township Police Department, as well as any other check deemed necessary by the Boonton Township hiring policies. The information that is gathered by these checks will be used to base a decision on a prospective member's application to the Boonton Township Fire Department. Criminal history record information shall be limited in use solely by the individual(s) for which it was obtained, and shall not be disseminated to persons or organizations not authorized to receive the records.
(1) 
Disqualification. A prospective member will be disqualified as an applicant if he or she has ever been convicted of any crime or disorderly persons offense, including violations which occurred either in or outside of the State of New Jersey, including but not limited to:
(a) 
Involving danger to the person, meaning those crimes and disorderly persons offenses set forth in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1 et seq., 2C:12-1 et seq., 2C:13-1 et seq., 2C:14-1 et seq. or 2C:15-1 et seq.;
(b) 
Against the family, children or incompetents, meaning those crimes and disorderly persons offenses set forth in N.J.S.A. 2C:24-1 et seq.;
(c) 
Involving theft as set forth in Chapter 20 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes;
(d) 
Involving any controlled dangerous substance analog as set forth in Chapter 35 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes except Paragraph 4) of Subsection a of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-10.
(2) 
Appeal. A prospective member may appeal the disqualification by filing a written notice of appeal with the Township Administrator no later than ten days after receiving the determination. Once an appeal notice is received, a meeting with the Appeal Committee, comprised of the Township Administrator, Police Chief, and Fire Chief, shall be scheduled.
(a) 
Challenge for accuracy. A prospective member may challenge the accuracy of the criminal history record, and may obtain a detailed criminal history check for the purpose of the appeal.
(b) 
Rehabilitation. A prospective member may provide evidence that they have been rehabilitated. The committee may consider:
[1] 
The nature and responsibility of the position which the convicted person would hold, or has held, as the case may be;
[2] 
The seriousness of the offense;
[3] 
The circumstances under which the offense occurred;
[4] 
The date of the offense;
[5] 
The age of the person when the offense was committed;
[6] 
Whether the offense was an isolated or repeated incident;
[7] 
Any social conditions which may have contributed to the offense;
[8] 
Any evidence of rehabilitation, including good conduct in prison or the community, counseling or psychiatric treatment received, acquisition of additional academic or vocational schooling, successful participation in correctional work-release programs, or the recommendation of those who have had the person under their supervision.
(c) 
If it has been determined by the Appeals Committee that the disqualified person has been successfully rehabilitated, the person shall be included on the list of qualified employees and volunteers.
(3) 
The determination of the Appeal Committee shall be final and not subject to any further appeal. The Township will not take any action to unnecessarily or unduly delay the appeal process and will make a determination on any appeal within 30 days from the date of written notification of the appeal.
C. 
Every member appointed to the Fire Department shall reside within two miles of a boundary line of the Township of Boonton at the time of his appointment and may continue to serve as a volunteer fireman or officer so long as such person shall reside within two miles of a boundary line of the Township of Boonton.
D. 
Every member of the Fire Department shall receive a certificate of membership signed by the Chairman and Clerk of the Township. He shall receive, during his term of service, from the Township Clerk, a badge showing such person to be a member of the Department, which shall be surrendered to the Township Clerk when such person has ceased to be a member of the Department.
A. 
The Board of Fire Chiefs shall examine, at least once in each month and at such other times as may be necessary, all fire apparatus and equipment and make report and recommendations to the Township Committee relative to the fire apparatus and equipment.
B. 
The Board of Fire Chiefs shall keep an accurate record of the names of the officers and members of the Fire Department and of appointments, showing the commencement of each term of service, transfers, resignations and removal of firemen, as shall take place from time to time, and such other information as may be necessary and proper.
C. 
The Board of Fire Chiefs shall keep a record of all fires, the cause thereof and the amount of loss, when the same can be ascertained, and submit the same to the Township Committee once each month, or more often, if required by the Committee.
A. 
The Deputy Chief, two Captains and two Lieutenants shall be under the supervision and direction of the Chief at any and all fires.
[Amended 11-28-1988 by Ord. No. 395; 11-13-2006 by Ord. No. 732]
B. 
The Board of Fire Chiefs of the Fire Department shall be responsible for the care of any and all fire apparatus and equipment entrusted to it by the Township Committee. In the absence of the Chief, the assistants shall act as such in their respective order.
C. 
The firemen, at any fire, shall accept orders relating to fire apparatus and equipment and the operation thereof under the direction of the Chief and shall not leave any fire without his permission. On the extinguishment of any fire, the fire apparatus and equipment shall be immediately returned to the firehouse or place of storage.
All members of the Fire Department shall prevent all persons not members thereof from entering any building or handling any apparatus and equipment belonging to the Township.
The Chief of the Fire Department shall have the right to form fire lines at such distance from any fire as he may deem necessary and advisable. Any person who shall, during a fire, enter any prohibited area or drive over any hose or other apparatus shall be subject to a fine as hereinafter set forth.
[Amended 11-28-1988 by Ord. No. 395; 5-8-1989 by Ord. No. 405]
No member of the Fire Department shall be entitled to a certificate as an exempt fireman unless it shall appear that, at the time such fireman was appointed, he resided within two miles of a boundary of the Township, was a citizen of the United States, of good moral character, between the ages of 18 and 45 years, and that, during the seven years he served in said Department, he performed 60% of fire duty in the Department during each of said seven years. The Chief of the Fire Department shall keep a complete record of the fire duties performed by the members of the Fire Department at all times. Members shall be physically fit to perform the duties of a fireman, evidenced by a certificate to that effect by a practicing physician of the State of New Jersey.
A. 
Any person who shall willfully hinder or molest the Fire Department, the members thereof or the operation of any apparatus and equipment of the Fire Department at any time shall be subject to the penalty as hereinafter set forth.
B. 
Any person who shall transmit in any way a false alarm of fire shall, for each offense, be subject to a fine as hereinafter provided.
[Amended 5-8-1989 by Ord. No. 405; 4-9-2007 by Ord. No. 739]
Any person who shall violate any section or provision of this chapter shall be subject, upon conviction, to the penalties provided in § 1-15 of this Code.
[Adopted 6-28-1993 by Ord. No. 482]
There is hereby established an auxiliary to the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department, to be known as the Junior Firemen's Auxiliary, which shall operate under and pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:14-95 et seq.
[Amended 10-9-2012 by Ord. No. 815]
Any person who is a resident of the Township of Boonton or who resides within two miles of a boundary line of the Township of Boonton and is between 16 and 18 years of age shall be eligible for membership in the Junior Firemen's Auxiliary. No individual shall become a member of the Junior Firemen's Auxiliary unless written permission is obtained from such individual's parents or legal guardian. Said written permission shall be in a form approved by the Township Committee and shall be acknowledged or approved in the manner required by law for deeds to real estate to be recorded. Members of the Junior Firemen's Auxiliary shall also be required to obtain working papers from the New Jersey Department of Labor. The original written permission and working papers shall be retained by the Township Clerk, who shall forward a copy to the Department Chief.
Members of the Junior Firemen's Auxiliary shall be provided with the same insurance coverage as provided for the regular volunteer firemen of the Township of Boonton.
The Junior Firemen's Auxiliary program shall be under the guidance of a Standing Committee within the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department. The Standing Committee shall be appointed annually by the Board of Fire Chiefs and shall consist of three regular Fire Department members, at least one of whom shall presently hold or have previously held a firematic officer's position within the Department.
The Township Committee hereinafter establishes the following rules and regulations designed to govern the activities of the Auxiliary and to provide for the training of its members with a view toward their eventual membership in the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department.
A. 
No junior fireman shall be required to perform duties which would expose the junior fireman to the same degree of hazard as a regular member of the Volunteer Fire Department.
B. 
No junior fireman shall be permitted to engage in fire fighting or be in the immediate vicinity of a hazardous condition involving the handling of dangerous or poisonous acids or dyes or injurious quantities of toxic or noxious dust, gases, vapors or fumes.
C. 
A junior fireman shall be on probation until the age of 18 years and may be expelled from the Auxiliary for just cause.
D. 
A junior fireman shall comply with the constitution and bylaws of the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department, as well as any bylaws that may be established by the Auxiliary itself.
E. 
A junior fireman shall obey the commands of the Fire Chief or any other officer of the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department.
F. 
Training shall include instruction concerning industrial fire systems; breathing apparatus; municipal water systems; hydrants and alternate water sources; care, testing and handling of fire hose; type and uses of hand-held fire extinguishers; procedures for handling alarms; radio procedures; care, cleaning and basic maintenance of apparatus; preparation of knots for hoisting equipment; safety measures for riding on apparatus; use of personal safety equipment and hand tools; and theory of pumps and hydraulic fire systems and the use of ladders, including their care and testing. Actual use of the equipment shall be encouraged whenever it shall be deemed advisable by the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department, provided that a junior fireman shall not be exposed to any danger. Adequate supervision shall be provided and all possible safety precautions shall be taken.
G. 
Junior firemen may apply for an adult class of membership in the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department upon achieving the age of 18 years by completing the appropriate application forms in accordance with the Fire Department's procedures.
H. 
Subject to the approval of the Township Committee, these rules and regulations may be supplemented by the Boonton Township Volunteer Fire Department.