NYSAFC’s two-day leadership development program for current and aspiring company officers will feature lectures by Battalion Chief John Salka (FDNY); Lieutenant John Lewis (Passaic [NJ] Fire Department) and Chief Robert Moran (Brewster [MA] Fire Department); and Lieutenant Gary Benedict (FDNY) and Chief Dave Campbell (Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department). COLT 2022 will be held in Fulton (January 21-22), Monroe (February 25-26), and Erie (March 11-12) Counties. New for 2022 – online registration is available! Pre-registration is encouraged. On-site registration will be accepted if space permits.

Chief/Commissioner Michael Lombardo (Buffalo Fire Department) will deliver the NYSAFC 2022 Seminar Series “The Five Points of Command.” Three-hour seminars will be held in Albany (October 24), Broome (January 19), Cattaraugus (April 7), Chautauqua (October 26), Chemung (November 17), Clinton (March 28), Cortland (January 27), Dutchess (May 18), Erie (January 5), Fulton (September 7), Genesee (September 19), Jefferson (September 8), Monroe (March 10 – two sessions), Oneida (March 21), Onondaga (October 4), Orleans (February 15), Otsego (October 3), Rockland (October 5), Schenectady (November 15), Steuben (January 29), Suffolk (February 3 and November 2), Ulster (March 14), Westchester (February 2 – two sessions), and Wyoming (April 13) Counties. Seating is limited at some sites, so pre-registration is encouraged. On-site registration will be accepted if space permits. New for 2022 – online registration is available!

Applications are now being accepted for the NYSAFC Scholarship Program and the Chief Neil McNeight Hands-On Training Award. Nominations are being accepted for the Chief Fred Singer Fire Educator of the Year Award, James Wright Public Education Award, and New York State Fire Chief of the Year Awards. The deadline for submitting required materials is April 1, 2022.

For the third year, the Public Employer Risk Management Association (PERMA) and NYSAFC have partnered for the Firefighter Risk Reduction MiniGrant Program. Grants are available to financially assist department members in obtaining gear washers and dryers, which remove carcinogens from turnout gear while maintaining gear durability. To be eligible, applicants must be members of both PERMA and NYSAFC (Department Members only). A total of five $5,000 grants will be awarded. The online application deadline is December 13, 2021.

State Assemblyman Billy Jones joined fire and EMS officials to call for passage of the Fair Play Ambulance Cost Recovery Act, which would enable fire departments to recover costs associated with providing ambulance services.

Property owners who repeatedly violate building codes and fail to correct potentially dangerous conditions will face mandatory penalties under a law signed by Governor Kathy Hochul.

Legislation expands disability benefits for State Division of Military and Naval Affairs firefighters.

New York state seized control of fire and safety enforcement in the village and deputized Rockland County government with the authority to conduct inspections and prosecute violators.

Two village building department officials have been indicted on felony charges involving the filing of false inspection reports resulting from an investigation into the March fatal fire at the Evergreen Court Home for Adults. Firefighter Jared Lloyd and facility resident Oliver Hueston died during the fire.

On March 3, Firefighter Peyton Morse experienced a medical emergency at the academy.

Neighbors watched in horror as historic Long Island home erupted into flames that ripped through the three-story structure and left five dead.

Six New York firefighters were suspended for four weeks without pay following an incident between on-duty firefighters and an elected official's staff, according to a statement from a department spokesperson.

Firefighters in Amsterdam are concerned about the current staffing shortage facing the city.

City Manager Stephen Jellie said that he will be looking to fill the fire chief position sometime in 2022, a position he has held since July of 2020.

Otsego County recently unveiled its new ambulance service. The county is using federal stimulus funding from the American Rescue Plan to pay for the pilot program.

The question the courts will decide is whether Scott Martin's rights under the Compassionate Care Act trump the rules in the collective bargaining agreement.

Federal mandatory vaccine rules released; Lights and sirens Quality Improvement project.

The 47th Fire and Life Safety Educators’ Conference has been officially scheduled for May 13-15, 2022! This event is hosted by the New York State Office of Fire Prevention & Control and NYSAFC at the New York State Academy of Fire Science. It returns following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadline for submitting a presentation proposal is December 10, 2021.

The new exposition and educational event hosted by NYSAFC and the Islip Town Fire & EMS Museum will be held February 11-13, 2022, at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, NY. It will feature a variety of vendor displays, plus 15 one-hour fire/EMS educational seminars. The attendee registration fee is $20 per person, per day (includes entry to the expo and seminars). Tickets can be purchased on-site. Parking is free!

The IAFC Volunteer & Combination Officers Section has announced the release of an important new resource for first responders, the 2021 Yellow Ribbon Report Update. The original report was released in 2017 and based on feedback for the need for more life-saving information, VCOS compiled this completely new document as a supplement to the original.

View the NYSAFC calendar of events.