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The last chance to register to submit comments is September 27th, 2024
November 12, 2024
OSHA is excited to announce that an informal public hearing on the Emergency Response proposed rule will begin on November 12, 2024 Federal Register :: Emergency Response Standard.
Emergency Response Rulemaking | Occupational Safety and Health
www.osha.gov/emergency-response/rulemaking?trk=public_post_comment-text
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NVFC TESTIFIES TO CONGRESS REGARDING OSHA’S EMERGENCY RESPONSE STANDARD AND DEVELOPS ONE-PAGER TO ASSIST WITH PUBLIC COMMENTS
June 18, 2024
Joe Maruca and Dave Denniston testifying to Congress regarding OSHA's Emergency Response Standard On June 4, the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) testified before the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee’s Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology regarding the impact that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) proposed Emergency Response Standard will have on volunteer fire departments.
OSHA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on February 5 to replace their Fire Brigade Standard with the proposed Emergency Response Standard. While there are many positive aspects of the proposed standard, it also contains multiple new requirements that would be very burdensome, and in many cases impossible, for volunteer fire departments to comply with.
The hearing had four witnesses, two offering the perspective of career firefighters and two offering the perspective of volunteer firefighters. The two witnesses who testified on the behalf of the volunteer fire service were Joe Maruca, NVFC Massachusetts director, and Dave Denniston, second vice president of the Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York.
In his testimony on behalf of the NVFC, Maruca commended OSHA’s efforts to promote firefighter safety by putting forth the proposed Emergency Response Standard. However, if adopted as written, the standard would be economically infeasible for volunteer fire departments to comply with and could cause many of these departments to shut down. It could also compromise the safety and emergency response capabilities of many small communities, particularly those in rural areas.
Maruca explained that in addition to the economic infeasibility, other factors that would be problematic include the incorporation by reference of industry consensus standards, numerous ambiguities on how volunteers would be covered, the lack of personnel expertise and availability to facilitate implementation, and an unrealistic proposed timeline for implementation.
For these reasons, the NVFC would like OSHA to exempt volunteer firefighters from this proposed standard and work with the organization on a better way to ensure volunteer firefighter safety.
View the Congressional hearing here and read the NVFC’s written testimony here.
The NVFC encourages volunteer responders to learn more about how the proposed standard will impact their department and submit a comment to OSHA explaining these concerns before the July 22 deadline.
To help, the NVFC maintains a landing page with tools and resources for submitting an effective comment. This includes a newly added one-pager that summarizes some of the most cost prohibitive provisions contained in the proposed standard.
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OSHA INFORMATION SUPPLEMENT Provided as a service from the Capital Area Fire District’s Association - CAFDA Newest information always at the top
In The United States There Are Approximately 60 Million, THAT’S MILLION Volunteer
Firefighters, Yet There Have Been Only Approximately 1800 Comments To The OSHA
Portal!!!!
Excellent Docket Response from South Carolina Firefighters Association
Open the Document at This Link:
https://cafda.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Docket-Comment-7-8-SCSFA-Response.docx
Joint Letter to OSHA from NYS Association of Counties, NYS Conference of Mayors, and the
NYS Association of Towns
Open the Document at This Link:
https://cafda.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/NYCOMNYSACAOTjointletter.pdf
What Are Your Pain Points, Put It In Writing And Submit Them To OSHA At Comments.
PAIN POINT FINANCIAL….
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
OSHA’s proposed rule would require NFPA 1582 Medical Exams be administered to all firefighters either annually or
bi-annually. OSHA estimates the cost of a required medical exam to be $620 each.
The Pain Point: A small-town fire department with two dozen members would have to find funding for a dozen
medical exams each year for a total cost of $7440.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA what your annual budget is and how you would have to raise $7440. For example, if your
department relies upon fundraising, tell OSHA how many extra spaghetti dinners you’d need to sell each year to raise
$7440.
Assuming a profit of $8 per dinner, you need to sell 930 spaghetti dinners each year to pay for medical exams. How
many people live in your town – does everyone need to buy two dinners? Explain this to OSHA.
OSHA PAIN POINTS – ADDITIONAL, OSHA’S PROPOSED RULE:
The proposed OSHA rules incorporate by reference twenty-one NFPA standards. This adds about 3000 pages of text
to the rules.
The Pain Point: Small fire departments don’t have the legal or administrative capabilities to read, interpret, and
comply with this much new regulation.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA that there is no administrative or legal staff available at your fire department to read, interpret,
and comply with 3000 pages of NFPA standards. Tell OSHA how small or non-existent your administrative staff and
budget is.
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
The proposed OSHA rules will require all fire chiefs to have NFPA Fire Officer 3 training.
The Pain Point: Half of the state fire training academies don’t offer Fire Officer 3 training and there is no practical way
to get the training. Even in states that offer the training, it will typically require unpaid volunteer chiefs or part-time
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chiefs to take classes on weekdays when they have to take time off from their full-time jobs or travel long distances
to night and weekend classes.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA that Fire Officer 3 training isn’t available or readily available to your department and why.
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
The proposed OSHA rules incorporate by reference twenty-one NFPA standards.
The Pain Point: NFPA standards are not readily available, and this makes commenting on them difficult. You have to
purchase them for $149 each or purchase a subscription to access them for $12/month.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA that before they close the comment period and make these standards law, OSHA needs to
provide free copies of the these standards to the public.
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
The proposed OSHA rules will require all fire chiefs to have NFPA Fire Officer 3 training.
The Pain Point: Half of the state fire training academies don’t offer Fire Officer 3 training and there is no practical way
to get the training. Even in states that offer the training, it will typically require unpaid volunteer chiefs or part-time
chiefs to take classes on weekdays when they have to take time off from their full-time jobs or travel long distances
to night and weekend classes.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA that Fire Officer 3 training isn’t available or readily available to your department and why.
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
The proposed OSHA rules use the 2022 Firehouse Magazine Run Survey as the basis for defining the scale and
financial resources of the volunteer fire service.
The Pain Point: The Firehouse Magazine Run Survey is created for entertainment purposes and should not be used
the way OSHA has used it to create regulations. The Firehouse Magazine Run Survey is a small set of data without
knowing who or why the data was created, except for fun and to see your department named in the magazine.
The Firehouse Magazine Data says that the average volunteer fire department:
· Has a budget of $
· Responds to ____ emergency calls per year
· Has ___ volunteer members
Tell OSHA:
Tell OSHA that it's old data about the size and financial resources of volunteer fire departments is wrong. Tell
them about your department budget, the size of your town, how many calls you go to, and why this is so different
than the Firehouse data. Tell them about the other departments in your area.
OSHA’s Proposed Rule:
The proposed OSHA rules will incorporate by reference twenty-one NFPA standards.
The Pain Point: NFPA standards are not required to be based upon data or scientific evidence. NFPA standards are the
collective opinions of the committees that write them. Unlike OSHA, NFPA standards are not required to address only
significant risks to the health and safety of firefighters. Making these standards into law reaches way beyond the
mission of OSHA. Tell OSHA:
Tell OSHA that their use of NFPA standards is arbitrary, because many of the standards themselves, or
parts of the standards are arbitrary.
1. “Have you had time to completely read and analyze the new proposed OSHA standard 1910.156 rule and the
effects it would have on your organization?
If not, click here and tell OSHA that 165 days has not been
adequate to review a document that took them years to write.”
2. "Do your captains and lieutenants hold Fire Officer I training? Do your assistant chiefs hold Fire Officer II
training? The new proposed OSHA 1910.156 rule would require this. Click here and tell OSHA why this would
be problematic for your organization.
Does your fire department have an annual budget of less than 1.7 million dollars? OSHA is under the
assumption that the average fire department budget for volunteer or combination depts is 1.7 million dollars.
If your budget is less, click here, and tell OSHA what your budget is and that you believe their data is
inaccurate.
4. OSHA believes the impact of the proposed 1910.156 rule would be less than 1%. Is this true for you? Several
fire departments have analyzed the proposal and this would increase their budgets by over 40%. Click here
and tell OSHA why a substantial tax increase is not feasible;
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5. Does your organization do weekly vehicle inspections or within 24 hours of each run? That’s what the
proposed OSHA 1910.156 rule would require. Click here and tell OSHA why that is problematic for your
organization.
6. ;Do you clearly mark control zones for every emergency incident to establish a cold zone, warm zone, hot
zone and no entry zone? The proposed OSHA 1910.156 rule would require this. If this would be problematic
for your organization, click here and tell OSHA why this is not feasible.
7. Do you provide annual physicals for your firefighters that include comprehensive behavioral health
evaluations, skin cancer screenings, and bi-annual mammograms for firefighters over 40? The Incorporation
of NFPA 1582 in the proposed OSHA standard 1910.156 rule would require this. If you are not currently
performing physicals at this level, click here and tell OSHA why that would be problematic for your
organization.
8. “Does your organization have $620 per member for annual or bi-annual medical exams? If not, click here and
explain to OSHA what your budget is for medical exams.”
9. “Did you know the proposed OSHA rule incorporates by reference twenty-one NFPA standards, which are
NOT free to comment on. Click here to tell OSHA to give free copies of these standards to the public.
Have Your Voice Heard – Are The Proposed Updates to The Emergency Response Standards
Going to Negatively Affect Your Department – If Yes Speak Up
Yesterday we sent an email explaining the urgency and need for more public comments on the proposed OSHA
1910.156 Emergency Response Standard. Many individuals and organizations have stepped up and written excellent
comments, sharing their concerns with OSHA and our elected officials.
Now is the chance to have our voices heard.
Currently there is no indication, or even a hint, from OSHA that there will be any further extension of the comment
period beyond the current July 22, 2024 deadline. We have only a few days left to have our concerns heard. Please do
not only tell OSHA what you can’t do, tell them what you can or are already doing to reduce emergency responder
injuries and deaths. They are looking for solutions. Tell your story and be heard.
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Here is the link to submit a comment: Federal Register :: Emergency Response Standard
Download our guide on how to navigate the portal and file a comment here.
Additional info can also be found at:
Home - Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York (afdsny.org)
Home | NVFC
Together, we can help craft a document that will help save emergency responder injuries and deaths and be both
economically and technically feasible to achieve.
Stay safe,
Dave Denniston
Write an Effective Comment to OSHA: 5 Pain Points to Address
LET OSHA KNOW HOW THE PROPOSED EMERGENCY RESPONSE STANDARD WILL IMPACT YOUR DEPARTMENT!
HERE ARE FIVE ‘PAIN POINTS’ THAT YOU CAN ADDRESS IN YOUR COMMENTS.
PAIN POINT #1
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: All Emergency Service Organizations shall conduct a community or facility vulnerability and
risk assessment for its service area, for the purpose of establishing its standards of response and determining the
ability to match the community or facility’s risks with available resources.
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The Pain Point: Does your fire department conduct hazard assessments (or pre-plans) to all commercial businesses?
Does your department conduct hazard assessments to all vacant structures? Does your department pre-plan facilities
that are subject to reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
(EPCRA)? Does your department have an incident plan for each of the hazard assessments for an emergency
incident? If not, then you will not be compliant with the OSHA Proposed Ruling.
Tell OSHA: This is economically infeasible and there is no local funding for the hazard assessments of all buildings in
your area. Let OSHA know what the cost would be to add one or more employees to be able to comply with
conducting the yearly assessments. Be blunt – tell them you have no administrative staff to do this.
PAIN POINT #2
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: OSHA’s inclusion of NFPA 1582: Standard on Comprehensive Occupational Medical Program
for Fire Departments, which requires annual medical evaluations proving fit for duty.
The Pain Point: The pain point comes in finding a doctor who can perform and meet the requirements of the
standard, the cost to the fire and emergency services department, extra time requirements for a volunteer, and the
administrative burden of scheduling and tracking exams.
Tell OSHA: This is economically infeasible. Tell OSHA what your budget is and if you don’t have administrative staff to
schedule and track medical exams. Tell OSHA if you are in a rural area with poor access to occupational medical care
or are unable to find a doctor who can perform all the requirements found in NFPA 1582 or that are willing to sign
off.
Tell OSHA about volunteer firefighters traveling hours out of their way to get the physicals or the added costs of
having an organization come to the department to perform the physicals. The cost of a NFPA 1582 physical for each
member can range from several hundred to several thousand dollars. Tell OSHA what this would cost your
department. Tell OSHA about the time constraints with NFPA-compliant physicals – are they only available during the
workday when volunteers are working their primary jobs?
PAIN POINT #3
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: OSHA Is seeking guidance on whether an action level of 15 exposures to combustion products
within a year trigger medical surveillance consistent with NFPA 1582 is too high, too low, or an appropriate threshold.
The Pain Point: After each incident, in addition to an incident report, do you record what level of smoke or exposure
to combustion products is experienced by every firefighter or officer who responded? If the number per year exceeds
15, or whatever number OSHA determines, are you prepared or capable of placing them under medical monitoring
against a baseline physical also required meeting NFPA 1582?
Tell OSHA: There is no defined number of exposures that are determined to be the right number, so just as requiring
annual exams is arbitrary and not based on science, so is the number of exposures. Tell OSHA that “exposure to
combustion products” is not defined. Ask OSHA does it mean any smoke, such as from a brush fire or burnt bacon on
the stove, or does it have to be an IDLH atmosphere?
PAIN POINT #4
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: OSHA’s Proposed Rule is seeking input on whether the proposed rule should specify
retirement ages for personal protective equipment (PPE). Current NFPA standards call for 10 years.
The Pain Point: Are all your firefighters using gear under 10 years of age? Can you afford to replace gear older than
10 years of age?
Tell OSHA: While 10 years seems reasonable for firefighters actively engaged in structural firefighting, do we rule out
or discard gear 11 years of age even though it shows minimal signs of wear? How about others who perform support
functions, or extrication, etc.? Some firefighters wear the same structural fire helmet for their entire career spanning
20 – 30 years. Is there statistical evidence by OSHA that helmets over 10 years of age are causing head injuries or
burns? Gear that is used to run 600 calls per year doesn’t have the same wear and tear as gear that is used to run 85
calls per year.
PAIN POINT #5
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: If approved, the new OSHA rules would require your fire department to conduct annual
fitness for duty testing, essentially an annual physical ability test that includes dragging dummies, hitting targets with
axes, and forcing a door or breaching a wall.
The Pain Point: Most small fire departments have no training props. They have no facility for conducting a fitness for
duty test, especially one that meets many legal requirements of consistency and fairness for all participants. This
means hiring vendors to do the test or having firefighters drive hours to a test.
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Tell OSHA: If your fire department can conduct a physical ability test each year. Tell them how far away the nearest
facility for a test is. Tell them what props or facilities you have and don’t have. Tell them your budget and what this
will cost.
PAIN POINT #6
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: The proposed OSHA rules will require all personnel treating a patient in the back of an
ambulance to wear a harness so they are belted and can move around.
The Pain Point: Harness systems for EMS in the back of the ambulance are rare. These systems have not been
perfected and there is no standard for them. Ambulances would have to be retrofitted.
Tell OSHA: If you have an ambulance, tell OSHA if you have a harness system, or if your seatbelts don’t allow for
treating patients. Tell OSHA that there is no industry standard or agreed-upon technology for a harness that allows
freedom of moment for treating patients. Tell OSHA how long it will be before you can purchase a new ambulance
with a harness (when they become available), or what it would take to retrofit your current ambulances.
PAIN POINT #7
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: At least 21 NFPA standards are incorporated in OSHA’s proposed rules.
The Pain Point: While NFPA standards are available to view for free online, printed copies of these standards are not
free. An $11.99 a month NFPA membership would be required to print these standards, plus the cost of ink and
paper. The NFPA also sells printed copies of their standards. For example, a printed copy of NFPA 1021 costs $149.00.
This limited access to printed NFPA standards is particularly problematic since many volunteer fire departments in
rural areas lack reliable internet access or funding to purchase printed copies.
Tell OSHA: Let OSHA know what your department budget is and the burden it would be to purchase NFPA standards.
Also let OSHA know if your department does not have reliable internet access to view these standards. It is wrong for
OSHA to mandate standards that are not reasonably available to view for free.
PAIN POINT #8
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: The proposed OSHA rules incorporate by reference 21 NFPA standards. This adds about 3000
pages of text to the rules.
The Pain Point: Small fire departments don’t have the legal or administrative capabilities to read, interpret, and
comply with this much new regulation.
Tell OSHA: Tell OSHA that there is no administrative or legal staff available at your fire department to read, interpret,
and comply with 3000 pages of NFPA standards. Tell OSHA how small or non-existent your administrative staff and
budget is.
PAIN POINT #9
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: All fire officers/chiefs must be trained to NFPA 1021, Standard for Fire Officer Professional
Qualifications.
The Pain Point: Much of the required information in NFPA 1021 courses is well beyond the scope of the small
department. Can your fire department provide this level of training to all your current and future officers? Does your
budget support this? Are there classes available on nights and weekends? How far will your officers have to travel?
Tell OSHA: This training is a one size fits all approach and contains material that is often not relevant to small
volunteer fire departments. Due to the time constraints and pressures volunteers face, any additional training must
be tailored to the risks small volunteer departments face. Additional training that is not relevant would create
additional burdens on volunteers and additional barriers to joining and remaining in the fire service, exacerbating
ongoing recruitment and retention issues in the fire service.
PAIN POINT #10
OSHA’s Proposed Rule: All fire chiefs must receive NFPA 1021 Fire Officer III training.
The Pain Point: The Fire Officer III certification is only offered in approximately 25 states. Chief officers would face
significant hardship in getting the required training and certification. Unpaid volunteer chiefs or part-time chiefs
would be required to take classes on weekdays when they have to take time off from their full-time jobs, or they
would have to travel long distances to night and weekend classes.
Tell OSHA: The cost of accessing NFPA 1021 Fire Officer III training will place a financial burden on volunteers. In most
cases, this class is not offered on a schedule that is friendly for volunteers. Many volunteer officers will be required to
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travel to a state where they can receive training, taking time away from their primary job and requiring funds that are
often not available. All required training must be widely accessible and, when possible, virtually available.
Find more resources, including a template comment letter, here.
SUBMIT YOUR COMMENTS BY JULY 22 HERE.
Want to talk to someone at the NVFC regarding the proposed standard or how to write an effective comment? Join
Ryan Woodward, NVFC chief of legislative and regulatory affairs, for a Help Desk on the following dates and times:
July 2 from 9-10am ET
July 12 from 12-1pm ET
July 16 from 5-6pm ET
July 22 from 10-11am ETou can edit text on your website by double clicking on a text box on your website. Alternatively, when you select a text box a settings menu will appear. Selecting 'Edit Text' from this menu will also allow you to edit the text within this text box. Remember to keep your wording friendly, approachable and easy to understand as if you were talking to your customer. You can edit text on your website by double clicking on a text box on your website. Alternatively, when you select a text box a settings menu will appear. Selecting 'Edit Text' from this menu will also allow you to edit the text within this text box. Remember to keep your wording friendly, approachable and easy to understand as if you were talking to your customer
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Volunteer Fire Departments Warn Proposed OSHA Regulations Will Be Costly, Drive Volunteers Away
Two people were displaced and a house was destroyed in a blaze on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Mattydale Fire Department)
Jon Moss – syracuse.com
Syracuse, N.Y. —
Volunteer fire officials across New York state are concerned about the cost of meeting what would be the largest overhaul in decades of federal safety regulations for firefighters.
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration late last year released its proposed Emergency Response standard, which would set workplace protections for emergency responders such as firefighters and paramedics. It would replace rules from 1980 covering only firefighters.
The new rules would increase training requirements for firefighters, and ensure they receive thorough medical screenings at least every two years. They would also have departments more frequently inspect vehicles and create written plans for responding to emergencies.
The larger time requirement could mean some volunteer firefighters have to drop out, said David Denniston, a Cortland firefighter and a top official with the Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York, in an interview this week with syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.
That would be hard for departments already struggling to attract enough volunteers, he said.
The changes also will be costly for fire departments with limited options to raise more money, he said.
More than 1,000 fire departments in New York state are run and staffed by more than 80,000 volunteers. In Onondaga County there are more than 50 volunteer departments. Paid fire departments cover most cities while suburban and rural areas are typically covered by volunteers.
Training can vary for volunteer firefighters, according to Denniston, a third-generation firefighter from Cortland County. He said they are often only taught about the specific tasks they do — working inside or outside a structure fire, or even just driving a fire engine to an incident.
It’s not clear how much training would be required under the draft rules, Denniston said, but he thinks it could be as much as double the 124 hours he currently puts firefighters through. That would be around the same as the minimum 229 hours needed to be certified as a professional firefighter in New York state.
Denniston and other volunteer fire officials from New York state held a news conference Wednesday morning at the OnCenter in downtown Syracuse about the proposed rule changes.
Federal officials have worked for more than a decade to write the draft regulations.
Denniston said he agrees with OSHA that improvements are needed to firefighter safety rules. But he also thinks the proposed regulations are not doable for small departments.
“We agree that a lot of the stuff that’s in there is good,” he said. “There’s some things in there that we don’t think OSHA has proven how that would really affect firefighter safety.”
Career firefighter groups have welcomed the proposed rules. An official with the IAFF firefighter union testified at a U.S. House subcommittee hearing this month that “just because it’s costly doesn’t mean we need to shy away from safety.”
An OSHA spokesperson said in a statement that the agency proposed the rule to try and better protect emergency responders from cancers and other hazards that have made the profession so dangerous. The agency is also planning to hold a multi-day hearing to gather more input.
The state Office of Fire Prevention and Control is closely reviewing the proposal, according to spokesperson Chet Lasell. He said it’s working to ensure firefighter safety “without compromising the ability of departments to operate.”
While the core section of the rules is about 40 pages long, OSHA has also decided to incorporate about 20 standards from the National Fire Protection Association.
The documents, which can run into the hundreds of pages, are considered to be the best-in-class practices for firefighters, according to Chris Dubay, the NFPA’s vice president for engineering and research. He said the standards are meant to reflect consensus among both volunteer and career firefighters, training academies and other groups.
Dubay said some local fire departments already implement part or all of some NFPA standards. They can tweak some sections if they choose, and OSHA could do the same, he said.
Denniston said smaller departments, due to tighter budgets and fewer people, would likely not be able to meet all of these standards. It would be better if OSHA instead picked out the parts it considers most essential and listed them directly, he said.
He said one standard not mandated by OSHA would require fire vehicles to come to a complete stop at intersections, which could help prevent crashes. Vehicle collisions were the second-leading cause of firefighter fatalities in 2022, according to statistics from the U.S. Fire Administration.
Fire services can be structured in several ways in New York state, but many are organized into fire districts run by an elected board of fire commissioners. Districts are almost entirely dependent on local property taxes for their budget; half brought in $500,000 or less in revenue in 2022, according to data from the state comptroller’s office.
The federal government has grant programs to help pay for firefighter training and equipment, though they have been cut in recent years despite a large number of applications.
Districts also face a spending limit under state law, though it can be raised by voters through a ballot referendum. Denniston said he is concerned that, like with school district budgets, voters could choose to sink a budget that includes a tax increase or increased spending.
Denniston emphasized he is in favor of doing anything possible to help improve firefighter safety, but wants to make sure the finalized OSHA rules are attainable for departments.
“We’re kind of like owner-operators,” he said. “We’re doing the fire fighting, we’re doing the job. But we’re also trying to figure out where the funds are coming from, and then ultimately we’re the taxpayers in these areas that are paying for all of this, as well.”