Gov. Andrew Cuomo vetoed a bill recently that would have allowed volunteer fire companies to recover up to $10,000 from certain transporters of hazardous materials, as reimbursement for the fire company's costs in responding to a release or threatened release of hazardous materials. However, according to the governor's office, because the bill does not make career fire departments, the 60 county haz-mat teams or other municipal, industrial, federal and not-for-profit entities that operate hazardous materials units eligible for such reimbursement, the bill was disapproved.
New York State Association of Fire Chiefs