1-1 By: Gallegos S.B. No. 382
1-2 (In the Senate - Filed January 24, 2001; January 29, 2001,
1-3 read first time and referred to Committee on Intergovernmental
1-4 Relations; April 19, 2001, reported adversely, with favorable
1-5 Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0;
1-6 April 19, 2001, sent to printer.)
1-7 COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 382 By: Lindsay
1-8 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-9 AN ACT
1-10 relating to the powers and duties of the Texas Commission on Fire
1-11 Protection.
1-12 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-13 SECTION 1. Section 419.021, Government Code, is amended to
1-14 read as follows:
1-15 Sec. 419.021. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-16 (1) "Aircraft rescue [fire fighting] and [rescue] fire
1-17 protection personnel" means permanent, full-time local governmental
1-18 employees who, as a permanent duty assignment, fight aircraft fires
1-19 at airports, stand by for potential crash landings, and perform
1-20 aircraft crash rescue.
1-21 (2) "Fire department" means a department of a local
1-22 government that is staffed by permanent, full-time employees of the
1-23 local government and that is organized to prevent or suppress
1-24 fires.
1-25 (3) "Fire protection personnel" means:
1-26 (A) permanent, full-time law enforcement
1-27 officers designated as fire and arson investigators by an
1-28 appropriate local authority;
1-29 (B) aircraft [crash and] rescue and fire
1-30 protection personnel; or
1-31 (C) permanent, full-time fire department
1-32 employees who are not secretaries, stenographers, clerks, budget
1-33 analysts, or similar support staff persons or other administrative
1-34 employees and who are assigned duties in one or more of the
1-35 following categories:
1-36 (i) fire suppression;
1-37 (ii) fire inspection;
1-38 (iii) fire and arson investigation;
1-39 (iv) marine fire fighting;
1-40 (v) aircraft rescue and [crash] fire
1-41 fighting [and rescue];
1-42 (vi) fire training;
1-43 (vii) fire education;
1-44 (viii) fire administration; and
1-45 (ix) any other position necessarily or
1-46 customarily related to fire prevention or [and] suppression.
1-47 (4) "Local government" means a municipality, a county,
1-48 a special-purpose district or authority, or any other political
1-49 subdivision of the state.
1-50 (5) "Marine fire protection personnel" means
1-51 permanent, full-time local governmental employees who work aboard a
1-52 fireboat and fight fires that occur on or adjacent to a waterway,
1-53 waterfront, channel, or turning basin.
1-54 (6) "Protective clothing" means garments, including
1-55 turnout coats, bunker coats, bunker pants, boots, gloves, trousers,
1-56 helmets, and protective hoods, worn by fire protection personnel in
1-57 the course of performing fire-fighting operations, to include
1-58 wildland fire suppression.
1-59 (7) "Structure fire protection personnel" means
1-60 permanent, full-time local government employees who engage in
1-61 fire-fighting activities involving structures and may perform other
1-62 emergency activities typically associated with fire-fighting duties
1-63 such as rescue, emergency medical response, confined space rescue,
1-64 hazardous materials response, and wildland fire fighting.
2-1 SECTION 2. Section 419.040, Government Code, is amended to
2-2 read as follows:
2-3 Sec. 419.040. PROTECTIVE CLOTHING. (a) A fire department
2-4 shall purchase, provide, and maintain a complete ensemble of
2-5 appropriate protective clothing for each of its fire protection
2-6 personnel who would be exposed to hazardous conditions from fire or
2-7 other emergencies or where the potential for such exposure exists
2-8 [local governmental agency providing fire protection shall provide
2-9 and maintain protective clothing for all of its fire protection
2-10 personnel or provide allowances to these fire protection personnel
2-11 to cover the purchase and maintenance of protective clothing and
2-12 require the fire protection personnel to maintain the clothing to
2-13 meet minimum standards. The protective clothing must comply with
2-14 minimum standards of the National Fire Protection Association or
2-15 its successor].
2-16 (b) The protective clothing shall be suitable for the task
2-17 that the individual is expected to perform and must comply with the
2-18 minimum standards of the National Fire Protection Association or
2-19 its successor [National Fire Protection Association standard
2-20 applicable to an item of clothing is the standard in effect when
2-21 the agency contracts for the item. An agency may continue to use
2-22 clothing in use or contracted for before a change in a standard
2-23 unless the commission determines that the continued use constitutes
2-24 an undue risk to the wearer, in which case the commission shall
2-25 order that the use be discontinued and shall set an appropriate
2-26 date for compliance with the revised standard].
2-27 (c) The fire department shall develop and maintain a
2-28 standard operating procedure covering the proper use, selection,
2-29 care, and maintenance of all of its protective clothing.
2-30 SECTION 3. Section 419.041, Government Code, is amended to
2-31 read as follows:
2-32 Sec. 419.041. SELF-CONTAINED BREATHING APPARATUS. (a) A
2-33 fire department shall furnish all of its fire protection personnel
2-34 who engage in operations where they might encounter atmospheres
2-35 that are immediately dangerous to life or health, where the
2-36 potential for such exposure exists, or where the atmosphere is
2-37 unknown with self-contained breathing apparatus [Each local
2-38 governmental agency providing fire protection shall furnish all of
2-39 its fire protection personnel who engage in fire fighting with
2-40 self-contained breathing apparatus that complies with a nationally
2-41 recognized standard approved by the commission for self-contained
2-42 breathing apparatus for use by fire protection personnel].
2-43 (b) All self-contained breathing apparatus shall comply with
2-44 the minimum standards of the National Fire Protection Association
2-45 or its successor [At least once in each 30-day period the agency
2-46 shall test each self-contained breathing apparatus used in the
2-47 agency according to the testing procedures included in a nationally
2-48 recognized standard approved by the commission for self-contained
2-49 breathing apparatus].
2-50 (c) A fire department shall develop and maintain a standard
2-51 operating procedure covering the proper use, selection, care, and
2-52 maintenance of all of its breathing apparatus [that uses compressed
2-53 breathing air compressors or any other breathing air systems,
2-54 including air purchased from private sources, to refill
2-55 self-contained breathing apparatus air bottles used by fire
2-56 protection personnel shall have samples of compressed air from
2-57 those systems tested at least twice annually by a competent testing
2-58 laboratory or facility that has equipment designed to test
2-59 compressed breathing air. The tests must include a check of the
2-60 percentages of oxygen, water, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, carbon
2-61 dioxide, and gaseous hydrocarbons in the compressed breathing air.
2-62 The quality of the compressed breathing air and the tests of the
2-63 compressed breathing air quality must conform with the quality and
2-64 testing procedures included in a nationally recognized standard
2-65 approved by the commission for self contained breathing apparatus].
2-66 (d) A fire department shall require each self-contained
2-67 breathing apparatus used by the department to be inspected at least
2-68 monthly. The inspection shall be done in a manner that complies
2-69 with the minimum standards of the National Fire Protection
3-1 Association or its successor.
3-2 (e) A fire department shall require each self-contained
3-3 breathing apparatus used by the department to be tested annually
3-4 for overall condition and proper functioning. The tests shall be
3-5 done in a manner that complies with the minimum standards of the
3-6 National Fire Protection Association or its successor.
3-7 (f) A fire department that uses self-contained breathing
3-8 apparatus shall have samples of the breathing air used to refill
3-9 the cylinders of the self-contained breathing apparatus tested at
3-10 least every six months by a competent testing laboratory that has
3-11 equipment designed to test compressed breathing air. The quality
3-12 of the compressed breathing air and the laboratory conducting the
3-13 tests of the compressed breathing air quality must conform with the
3-14 quality and testing procedures established by the National Fire
3-15 Protection Association or its successor.
3-16 SECTION 4. Section 419.042, Government Code, is amended to
3-17 read as follows:
3-18 Sec. 419.042. PERSONAL ALERT SAFETY SYSTEMS [COMMISSION
3-19 ENFORCEMENT]. (a) A fire department shall purchase, provide, and
3-20 maintain a personal alert safety system for each fire protection
3-21 personnel who would be exposed to hazardous conditions from fire or
3-22 other emergencies or where the potential for such exposure exists.
3-23 (b) The personal alert safety system must comply with
3-24 minimum standards of the National Fire Protection Association or
3-25 its successor.
3-26 (c) The fire department shall develop and maintain a
3-27 standard operating procedure covering the proper use, selection,
3-28 care, and maintenance of all of its personal alert safety systems
3-29 [The commission shall enforce Sections 419.040 and 419.041 and may
3-30 adopt minimum standards consistent with those sections for
3-31 protective clothing and self contained breathing apparatus for fire
3-32 protection personnel].
3-33 SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 419, Government Code, is
3-34 amended by adding Section 419.043 to read as follows:
3-35 Sec. 419.043. APPLICABLE NATIONAL FIRE PROTECTION
3-36 ASSOCIATION STANDARD. The National Fire Protection Association
3-37 standard applicable to protective clothing, self-contained
3-38 breathing apparatus, or personal alert safety systems is the
3-39 standard in effect when the agency contracts to purchase the item.
3-40 An agency may continue to use an item that was in use or contracted
3-41 for before a change in a standard unless the commission determines
3-42 that the continued use constitutes an undue risk to the wearer, in
3-43 which case the commission shall order that the use be discontinued
3-44 and shall set an appropriate date for compliance with the revised
3-45 standard.
3-46 SECTION 6. Subchapter B, Chapter 419, Government Code, is
3-47 amended by adding Section 419.044 to read as follows:
3-48 Sec. 419.044. INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. (a) A fire
3-49 department shall develop and maintain an incident management
3-50 system. The system shall include a written standard operating
3-51 procedure for the management of emergency incidents. The system
3-52 shall require operations to be conducted in a manner that
3-53 recognizes hazards and prevents accidents and injuries.
3-54 (b) A fire department shall require all fire protection
3-55 personnel to be trained in and to use the incident management
3-56 system. The system shall also be applied to all drills, exercises,
3-57 and other situations that involve hazards similar to those
3-58 encountered at actual emergency incidents.
3-59 (c) The incident management system shall comply with the
3-60 minimum standards established by the National Fire Protection
3-61 Association or its successor.
3-62 SECTION 7. Subchapter B, Chapter 419, Government Code, is
3-63 amended by adding Section 419.045 to read as follows:
3-64 Sec. 419.045. PERSONNEL ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM. (a) A fire
3-65 department shall develop and maintain a standard operating
3-66 procedure for personnel accountability. The system shall provide a
3-67 rapid accounting of all personnel at an emergency incident.
3-68 (b) A fire department shall require all personnel to be
3-69 trained in and to use the personnel accountability system.
4-1 (c) The personnel accountability system shall comply with
4-2 the minimum standards established by the National Fire Protection
4-3 Association or its successor. If the National Fire Protection
4-4 Association standard applicable to personnel accountability systems
4-5 is revised, the fire department shall comply with the new standard
4-6 within one year from the effective date of the new standard.
4-7 SECTION 8. Subchapter B, Chapter 419, Government Code, is
4-8 amended by adding Section 419.046 to read as follows:
4-9 Sec. 419.046. FIRE PROTECTION PERSONNEL OPERATING AT
4-10 EMERGENCY INCIDENTS. (a) A fire department shall develop,
4-11 maintain, and use a standard operating procedure covering fire
4-12 protection personnel operating at emergency incidents. The
4-13 procedure shall specify an adequate number of personnel to safely
4-14 conduct emergency scene operations. The procedure shall limit
4-15 operations to those that can be safely performed by the personnel
4-16 available at the scene.
4-17 (b) A fire department shall require all personnel to be
4-18 trained in and to use the standard operating procedure pertaining
4-19 to fire protection personnel operating at emergency incidents.
4-20 (c) The minimum standards established by the National Fire
4-21 Protection Association or its successor for operating procedures
4-22 for fire protection personnel operating at an emergency incident
4-23 may be used as a guideline for fire departments when developing
4-24 standard operating procedures.
4-25 (d) The standard operating procedures for structure fires
4-26 shall comply with the Occupational Safety and Health
4-27 Administration's final rule, 29 C.F.R. Section 1910.134(g)(4)
4-28 (Procedures for interior structural fire fighting), of July 1,
4-29 1998.
4-30 SECTION 9. Subchapter B, Chapter 419, Government Code, is
4-31 amended by adding Section 419.047 to read as follows:
4-32 Sec. 419.047. COMMISSION ENFORCEMENT. The commission shall
4-33 enforce Sections 419.040-419.046 and this section. The commission
4-34 may adopt minimum standards consistent with those sections for
4-35 protective clothing, self-contained breathing apparatus, personal
4-36 alert safety systems, incident management systems, personnel
4-37 accountability systems, fire protection personnel operating at
4-38 emergency incidents, and applicable National Fire Protection
4-39 Association standards for fire protection personnel.
4-40 SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
4-41 * * * * *