[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3592 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3592
To provide additional funding for firefighter staffing and safety
grants, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 7 (legislative day, February 3), 2022
Mr. Sanders introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide additional funding for firefighter staffing and safety
grants, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Firefighter Staffing and Support
Act''.
SEC. 2. FIREFIGHTER SAFETY GRANTS.
Section 33 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974
(15 U.S.C. 2229) is amended--
(1) in subsection (d), by striking paragraph (4);
(2) in subsection (q)(1)--
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by
inserting ``, and there is appropriated,'' after
``appropriated'';
(B) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(C) in subparagraph (B)--
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ``2023'' and inserting ``2022''; and
(ii) in clause (ii), by striking the period
at the end and inserting a semicolon; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) $913,000,000 for fiscal year 2023; and
``(D) for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028,
an amount equal to the amount authorized for the
previous fiscal year increased by the percentage by
which--
``(i) the Consumer Price Index (all items,
United States city average) for the previous
fiscal year, exceeds
``(ii) the Consumer Price Index for the
fiscal year preceding the fiscal year described
in clause (i).''; and
(3) by striking subsection (r).
SEC. 3. SAFER GRANTS.
Section 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974
(15 U.S.C. 2229a) is amended--
(1) in subsection (j)(1)--
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by
inserting ``, and there is appropriated,'' after
``appropriated'';
(B) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(C) in subparagraph (I)--
(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ``2023'' and inserting ``2022''; and
(ii) in clause (ii), by striking the period
at the end and inserting a semicolon; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(J) $913,000,000 for fiscal year 2023; and
``(K) for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028,
an amount equal to the amount authorized for the
previous fiscal year increased by the percentage by
which--
``(i) the Consumer Price Index (all items,
United States city average) for the previous
fiscal year, exceeds
``(ii) the Consumer Price Index for the
fiscal year preceding the fiscal year described
in clause (i).''; and
(2) by striking subsection (k).
SEC. 4. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.
The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2201
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 38. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.
``In addition to amounts made available under sections 33(q)(2) and
34(j)(2), there is authorized to be appropriated, and there is
appropriated, to provide technical assistance to qualified entities
described in sections 33(c)(1) and 34(a) to prepare and submit an
application for a grant under section 33(e) or 34(b)--
``(1) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2023; and
``(2) for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028, an amount
equal to the amount authorized for the previous fiscal year
increased by the percentage by which--
``(A) the Consumer Price Index (all items, United
States city average) for the previous fiscal year,
exceeds
``(B) the Consumer Price Index for the fiscal year
preceding the fiscal year described in clause (i).''.
SEC. 5. REPORTS FROM FEMA AND UNITED STATES FIRE ADMINISTRATION.
Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the
Administrator of the United States Fire Administration shall submit to
Congress and make publicly available--
(1) a report on plans to improve the application process
for grants under sections 33 and 34 of the Federal Fire
Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229, 2229a) to
ease access to those grant funds; and
(2) a report on the challenges specific to rural and
volunteer fire departments, as defined in section 33 of the
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C.
2229), which shall include an action plan to address these
challenges through the grants described in paragraph (1) and
other administrative action.
SEC. 6. PROTECTIONS FOR VOLUNTEERS FROM EMPLOYER DISCRIMINATION.
The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2201
et seq.), as amended by section 4 of this Act, is amended by adding at
the end the following:
``SEC. 39. VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER AND EMS PERSONNEL JOB PROTECTION.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Emergency; major disaster.--The terms `emergency' and
`major disaster' have the meanings given those terms in section
102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122).
``(2) Qualified volunteer fire department.--The term
`qualified volunteer fire department' has the meaning given
such term in section 150(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.
``(3) Volunteer emergency medical services.--The term
`volunteer emergency medical services' means emergency medical
services performed on a voluntary basis for a fire department
or other emergency organization.
``(4) Volunteer firefighter.--The term `volunteer
firefighter' means an individual who is a member in good
standing of a qualified volunteer fire department.
``(b) Termination of Employment of Volunteer Firefighters and
Emergency Medical Personnel Prohibited.--
``(1) Termination prohibited.--No employee may be
terminated, demoted, or in any other manner discriminated
against in the terms and conditions of employment because such
employee is absent from or late to the employee's employment
for the purpose of serving as a volunteer firefighter or
providing volunteer emergency medical services as part of a
response to an emergency or major disaster.
``(2) Deployment.--The prohibition in paragraph (1) shall
apply to an employee serving as a volunteer firefighter or
providing volunteer emergency medical services if such
employee--
``(A) is specifically deployed to respond to the
emergency or major disaster in accordance with a
coordinated national deployment system such as the
Emergency Management Assistance Compact or a pre-
existing mutual aid agreement; or
``(B) is a volunteer firefighter who--
``(i) is a member of a qualified volunteer
fire department that is located in the State in
which the emergency or major disaster occurred;
``(ii) is a member of a qualified fire
department that has a mutual aid agreement with
a community affected by such emergency or major
disaster; and
``(iii) has been deployed by the emergency
management agency of such State to respond to
such emergency or major disaster.
``(3) Limitations.--The prohibition in paragraph (1) shall
not apply to an employee who--
``(A) is absent from the employee's employment for
the purpose described in paragraph (1) for more than 14
days per calendar year;
``(B) responds to the emergency or major disaster
without being officially deployed as described in
paragraph (2); or
``(C) fails to provide the written verification
described in paragraph (5) within a reasonable period
of time.
``(4) Withholding of pay.--An employer may reduce an
employee's regular pay for any time that the employee is absent
from the employee's employment for the purpose described in
paragraph (1).
``(5) Verification.--An employer may require an employee to
provide a written verification from the official of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency supervising the Federal response to
the emergency or major disaster or a local or State official
managing the local or State response to the emergency or major
disaster that states--
``(A) the employee responded to the emergency or
major disaster in an official capacity; and
``(B) the schedule and dates of the employee's
participation in such response.
``(6) Reasonable notice required.--An employee who may be
absent from or late to the employee's employment for the
purpose described in paragraph (1) shall--
``(A) make a reasonable effort to notify the
employee's employer of such absence; and
``(B) continue to provide reasonable notifications
over the course of such absence.
``(c) Right of Action.--
``(1) Right of action.--An individual who has been
terminated, demoted, or in any other manner discriminated
against in the terms and conditions of employment in violation
of the prohibition described in subsection (b) may bring, in a
district court of the United States of appropriate
jurisdiction, a civil action against the employer of the
individual seeking--
``(A) reinstatement of the individual's former
employment;
``(B) payment of back wages;
``(C) reinstatement of fringe benefits; and
``(D) if the employment granted seniority rights,
reinstatement of seniority rights.
``(2) Limitation.--The individual shall commence a civil
action under this subsection not later than 1 year after the
date of the violation of the prohibition described in
subsection (b).
``(d) Enforcement.--The Administrator of FEMA, in coordination with
the Secretary of Labor, shall have the authority to issue rules to
enforce this section.''.
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