There’s an email circulating among volunteer firefighters in West Virginia this morning.

The email says legislation — introduced last Thursday — would give county commission’s extraordinary authority over volunteer fire departments. I made some phone calls and was told by a legislative staff member that the document was only a “rough draft,” and the language in dispute “won’t likely see the light of day.” Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper already is fielding complaints about the proposal, and he said he would adamantly oppose it. The draft bill would allow county commissioners to hire and fire officers at volunteer fire companies, and give commissioners control of firehouse equipment, vehicles and construction.

“That’s not the proper role of county commissioners,” Carper said. “There are too many county commissioners who don’t have the slighest idea how to manage a fire department. They need it to keep their noses out of it.”

Carper is investigating to determine who came up with the proposal — which also would give tax breaks to VFDs.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 23, 2012 at 12:40 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.