By Lynda Guydon Taylor and Shari L. Berg
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania)
Copyright 2006 P.G. Publishing Co.
Like struggling volunteer fire departments everywhere, the fire companies in Mars and Valencia are doing what they must to survive.
The two companies announced this month they will merge Jan. 1 to form the Adams Area Fire District, serving Adams, Mars, Seven Fields and Valencia.
“I believe consolidation is the only way smaller fire departments will be able to survive in the near future,” said Jeremy Nickl, chief of Mars Volunteer Fire Co. “In a growing community such as ours, we should adapt to the changes to provide the best fire protection available.”
Bill Rooker, chief of the Valencia Volunteer Fire Department, agreed.
“While we can’t forget the past, the fire service must do what it takes to continue meeting the needs of our growing community,” he said.
The two volunteer departments aren’t alone in their struggle to remain viable.
One problem fire companies face is difficulty in attracting volunteers, especially in Pennsylvania, where more than 90 percent
of the 2,462 fire departments are volunteer, according to a report to the state Senate in 2004. The national average is 73 percent.
The number of volunteers in the state has been falling for 30 years, from 300,000 in 1976 to 72,000 today.
To encourage more people to volunteer, U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart, R-Bradford Woods, in May
introduced the Volunteer Firefighter Recruitment and Retention Act. It would provide a $1,000 yearly federal income tax credit for up to seven years for those who spend at least three years on a volunteer firefighting force. When a volunteer reaches eight years of service, the credit would increase to $1,500.
The Joint Committee on Taxation has yet to figure out the cost in terms of lost tax revenue.
A 2001 Pennsylvania Fire and Emergency Services Institute Study estimated the value of services provided by volunteer firefighters statewide at $6 billion annually, based only on firefighter salaries and benefits.
The Hart bill is in the House Ways and Means Committee, where she serves. Her bill is not the only one offering an incentive to volunteer firefighters. Four other congressional bills calling for tax credits, three in the House and one in the Senate, have been proposed. Other bills addressing the need for volunteers have been proposed in the state General Assembly.
“I think [the congressional bills] are all good. Anything that shows the community values service by providing something of value to people, whether with finances or time, is a good thing,” Ms. Hart said.
Her legislation has been endorsed by a number of fire companies and the National Association of Towns and Townships.
In addition to dealing with fewer volunteers, fire companies are facing increased challenges, such as chemical hazards and terrorism, she said.
The work is dangerous and requires time away from family, Ms. Hart said. The tax credit is in direct relation to what volunteers lose as a result of giving of their time, she said. “It’s a good way to tell them, ‘Thank you.’ ”
State Fire Commissioner Ed Mann agreed that anything that can be done for those who are willing to donate their service would be beneficial. Lots of legislation, including death benefits, tuition reimbursement and pension and insurance incentives, has been introduced in the state, but little of it has been passed, Mr. Mann said.
The Mars and Valencia merger, approved by the two departments Aug. 9, is expected to improve service for Adams, Mars, Seven Fields and Valencia by controlling costs and improving training for firefighters.
The transition from two departments to one will be overseen by the Breakneck Valley Joint Fire Services Oversight Board, which was assembled in 2004 to oversee a possible merger of the Mars, Valencia and Callery fire departments. Callery has not agreed to be part of the merger at this time.
The five-member board is made up of local business professionals. The Mars and Valencia departments will work with the board for the first couple of months following the merger to decide on how to share equipment, train members and choose a chief.
Rather than merging with another department, a Washington County fire company has switched from an all-volunteer force to a combination volunteer and paid force.
The change in South Strabane was prompted by the increase in fire calls brought about by growth, fire Chief Scott Reese said.
In the early 1990s, South Strabane firefighters answered 100 to 200 calls a year. Last year, the number more than doubled to 580.
In North Strabane, the township has agreed to beef up the fire department by conducting testing for the hiring of a deputy fire chief in charge of training, who would report to the volunteer chief.
Mr. Mann noted that the number of volunteer firefighters has declined for a number of reasons, including an increase in the number of families in which both adults work and more activities competing for people’s time.
“Volunteers are a dying breed,” Chief Reese said. “People don’t have the time to give.”
North Strabane Supervisor Brian Spicer summed up the value of those who volunteer for the dangerous job of firefighting: “It’s well known that volunteer firefighters are the best buy a township can have.”