Indianapolis, In. — The House Veterans Affairs and Public Safety Committee has voiced support for Republican state representative from Greensburg Randy Frye’s legislation that could help Indiana fire departments struggling to fill much-needed positions.
“Currently, a fire department can only employ firefighters from the county their fire district is located in and the counties neighboring it,” Frye said. “This legislation would lift that restriction and allow fire departments to hire capable firefighters who reside within a 50-mile radius of the city, town or township their department serves.”
According to Frye, this would allow fire departments that border other states to recruit across state lines and fulfill the need to find qualified firefighters to serve communities.
According to Frye, the bill would also expand the definition of a public safety officer to include emergency management workers and division fire investigators. This would ensure family members of these public servants would qualify for the public safety officers’ special death benefits in the event an officer dies in the line of duty.
House Bill 1258 can now move to the full House of Representatives for further consideration. For more information about the 2019 Indiana General Assembly click here.
