CHILI, N.Y. — Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill over the weekend that quadruples the state tax credit for volunteer firefighters and ambulance crews in New York.
The new law increases the tax credit for individuals from $200 to $800 and for married couples from $400 to $1,600. This marks the first time the tax credit has been raised since it was created 20 years ago. During that period, the Firefighters Association of the State of New York (FASNY) said the number of volunteer firefighters dropped by 33%.
“I hear over and over again that, you know, existing firefighters, I would have loved to have gone to that call, but my spouse was out working and I had to stay home, you know, watch the kids or take the kids to some other obligation. Free tuition. Again, you know, the less people have to work and worry about economics, the more that frees them up to become volunteers,” said FASNY Association Secretary Chris D’Alessandro.
Along with the tax credit boost, some volunteers will also receive a local property tax exemption. The new credit will be available starting in the 2027 tax year, meaning it can be claimed while filing taxes in 2028.
Other legislation aimed to recruit and retain volunteers
Several other bills are moving through the New York State Legislature to help address the shortage of volunteer firefighters. These include updating employment protections for volunteers, increasing disability benefits for those who get injured and providing call response stipends. These proposals are still in the early stages in the State Senate committee. Below is a breakdown of the bills:
Senate Bill S5432: This bill would raise several benefit amounts for volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers in New York. It increases payments for permanent total disability, temporary total disability, permanent partial disability, and temporary partial disability, and it also raises the maximum amount for certain disfigurement awards. Currently in Senate Finance Committee. Senate Bill S10597: This bill would let certain local governments authorize nominal fees for volunteer firefighters who respond to emergency calls or take part in standby activities. It says these payments can be made as pay per call or paid on call stipends, and that they do not change a firefighter’s volunteer status. Currently in Senate Local Government Committee. Senate Bill S4300: This New York State Senate bill would add a new section to the labor law to protect volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers from being fired or otherwise discriminated against at work because they responded to an emergency. The bill says this protection applies when they are traveling to the emergency, working at it, and traveling back, as long as the response is tied to their fire department, fire company, ambulance department, or ambulance company. Currently in Senate Labor Committee. Assembly Bill A4414A: This bill would let volunteer firefighters and emergency medical services personnel take time off for required training without being discharged, penalized, or having wages withheld, as long as certain notice and documentation rules are met. Currently in Assembly Committee.“We’ve got a whole entire legislative program. In fact, in regards to recruitment and retention, FASNY has a 14-point legislative plan. We call it the Volunteer Optimization Legislation Initiative, or VALI, and it has 14 different things that the state can do to try to alleviate that economic burden on people, thus enabling them to have more time to volunteer at their local fire department,” said D’Alessandro. You can find FASNY’s 14-point plan below:
The-Concept-of-Providing-Nominal-Compensation-for-Volunteer-FirefightersDownloadThe tax credit boost signed over the weekend was the first proposal on FASNY’s list. The state also expanded its stipend program to cover the costs of five training courses for volunteers.
New York increases state tax credit for volunteer first responders to support recruitment and retention WHEC.com.
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