II 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2399 

To prohibit termination of employment of volunteers firefighters and emergency medical personnel responding to emergencies, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 9, 2006 

Mr. CARPER (for himself and Mr. DEWINE) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To prohibit termination of employment of volunteers firefighters and emergency medical personnel responding to 

emergencies, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Volunteer Firefighter 

5 and EMS Personnel Job Protection Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) EMERGENCY.—The term ‘‘emergency’’ has 

9 the meaning given such term in section 102 of the 


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1 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

2 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122). 

3 (2) MAJOR DISASTER.—The term ‘‘major dis4 aster’’ has the meanings given such term in section 

5 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 

6 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122). 

7 (3) QUALIFIED VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPART8 MENT.—The term ‘‘qualified volunteer fire depart9 ment’’ has the meaning given such term in section 

10 150(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

11 (4) VOLUNTEER EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERV12 ICES.—The term ‘‘volunteer emergency medical serv13 ices’’ means emergency medical services performed 

14 on a voluntary basis for a fire department or other 

15 emergency organization. 

16 (5) VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER.—The term 

17 ‘‘volunteer firefighter’’ means an individual who is a 

18 member in good standing of a qualified volunteer 

19 fire department. 

20 SEC. 3. TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT OF VOLUNTEER 

21 FIREFIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL 

22 PERSONNEL PROHIBITED. 

23 (a) TERMINATION PROHIBITED.—No employee may 

24 be terminated, demoted, or in any other manner discrimi25 nated against in the terms and conditions of employment 


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1 because such employee is absent from or late to the em2 ployee’s employment for the purpose of serving as a volun3 teer firefighter or providing volunteer emergency medical 

4 services as part of a response to an emergency or major 

5 disaster. 

6 (b) DEPLOYMENT.—The prohibition in subsection (a) 

7 shall apply to an employee serving as a volunteer fire8 fighter or providing volunteer emergency medical services 

9 if such employee— 

10 (1) is specifically deployed to respond to the 

11 emergency or major disaster in accordance with a 

12 coordinated national deployment system such as the 

13 Emergency Management Assistance Compact or a 

14 pre-existing mutual aid agreement; or 

15 (2) is a volunteer firefighter who— 

16 (A) is a member of a qualified volunteer 

17 fire department that is located in the State in 

18 which the emergency or major disaster oc19 curred; 

20 (B) is not a member of a qualified fire de21 partment that has a mutual aid agreement with 

22 a community affected by such emergency or 

23 major disaster; and 


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1 (C) has been deployed by the emergency 

2 management agency of such State to respond to 

3 such emergency or major disaster. 

4 (c) LIMITATIONS.—The prohibition in subsection (a) 

5 shall not apply to an employee who— 

6 (1) is absent from the employee’s employment 

7 for the purpose described in subsection (a) for more 

8 than 14 days per calendar year; 

9 (2) responds on the emergency or major dis10 aster without being officially deployed as described 

11 in subsection (b); or 

12 (3) fails to provide the written verification de13 scribed in subsection (e) within a reasonable period 

14 of time. 

15 (d) WITHHOLDING OF PAY.—An employer may re16 duce an employee’s regular pay for any time that the em17 ployee is absent from the employee’s employment for the 

18 purpose described in subsection (a). 

19 (e) VERIFICATION.—An employer may require an em20 ployee to provide a written verification from the official 

21 of the Federal Emergency Management Agency super22 vising the Federal response to the emergency or major dis23 aster or a local or State official managing the local or 

24 State response to the emergency or major disaster that 

25 states— 


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1 (1) the employee responded to the emergency or 

2 major disaster in an official capacity; and 

3 (2) the schedule and dates of the employee’s 

4 participation in such response. 

5 (f) REASONABLE NOTICE REQUIRED.—An employee 

6 who may be absent from or late to the employee’s employ7 ment for the purpose described in subsection (a) shall— 

8 (1) make a reasonable effort to notify the em9 ployee’s employer of such absence; and 

10 (2) continue to provide reasonable notifications 

11 over the course of such absence. 

12 SEC. 4. RIGHT OF ACTION. 

13 (a) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An individual who has been 

14 terminated, demoted, or in any other manner discrimi15 nated against in the terms and conditions of employment 

16 in violation of the prohibition described in section (3) may 

17 bring, in a district court of the United States of appro18 priate jurisdiction, a civil action against individual’s em19 ployer seeking— 

20 (1) reinstatement of the individual’s former em21 ployment; 

22 (2) payment of back wages; 

23 (3) reinstatement of fringe benefits; and 

24 (4) if the employment granted seniority rights, 

25 reinstatement of seniority rights. 


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1 (b) LIMITATION.—The individual shall commence a 

2 civil action under this section not later than 1 year after 

3 the date of the violation of the prohibition described in 

4 section 3. 

5 SEC. 5. STUDY AND REPORT. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Labor shall conduct 

7 a study on the impact that this Act could have on the 

8 employers of volunteer firefighters or individuals who pro9 vide volunteer emergency medical services and who may 

10 be called on to respond to an emergency or major disaster. 

11 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor 

13 shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees 

14 a report on the study conducted under subsection (a). 

15 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.— 

16 In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com17 mittees’’ means the Committee on Health, Education, 

18 Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Small Busi19 ness and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Com20 mittee on Education and the Workforce and the Com21 mittee on Small Business of the House of Representatives. 

Æ 


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