2023 New York Laws › VIL - Village › Article 10 - Fire Department › 10-1006 - Volunteer Members of Village Fire Companies.

§  10-1006  Volunteer  members  of  village  fire  companies.  1.  The
volunteer members of a fire company shall be elected  and  appointed  as
provided in this section.
2.  The  board  of  fire  commissioners shall appoint residents of the
village as the volunteer members of any newly  organized  fire  company.
Thereafter, the fire company may elect other eligible persons, including
village  officers,  as volunteer members. The election shall be pursuant
to  the  by-laws,  if  any,  of  the  fire  company;  otherwise,  by   a
three-fourths vote of the members of the fire company present and voting
at a regular or special meeting thereof. The membership of any person so
elected  shall become effective when approved by resolution of the board
of fire commissioners. Membership shall be deemed to have been  approved
pursuant to this subdivision in the event that no action is taken by the
board  of  fire  commissioners, either approving or disapproving, within
forty days after servce of written  notice  of  election  to  membership
shall  have  been  made  by  the  secretary of the fire company upon the
village clerk, either personally or by mail.
3. Any person elected to membership as a volunteer member  as  a  fire
company  shall  be a resident of the village or of territory outside the
village which is afforded fire protection by the fire department of  the
village,  or  any  fire company thereof, pursuant to a contract for fire
protection, except as otherwise provided in subdivision six.
4. The membership of a  volunteer  member  of  a  fire  company  shall
terminate  when  he  ceases  to  be  a resident of the village or of any
territory outside the village which is afforded fire protection but  the
fire department of the village, or any fire company thereof, pursuant to
a  contract  for  fire  protection,  except  as  otherwise  provided  in
subdivision five.
5. Any fire company may authorize  the  continued  membership  of  any
volunteer  member where such member notifies the secretary of his or her
fire company (a) that he or she plans to change his or her residence  to
territory  which  is not in the village and is not protected by the fire
department of the village, or any fire company thereof,  pursuant  to  a
contract  for  fire  protection,  and  (b)  that by reason of his or her
residence in the vicinity or his or her usual occupation he or she  will
be  available to render active service as a volunteer firefighter in the
village or in territory outside  the  village  which  is  afforded  fire
protection  pursuant  to  a  contract  for  fire  protection by the fire
department of the village, or a fire company thereof. Such authorization
shall be pursuant to the by-laws, if any, of the fire company  of  which
he  or she is a member, otherwise by a three-fourths vote of the members
of such fire company present and voting at a regular or special  meeting
thereof.  Such  authorization shall not become effective unless approved
by resolution of the board of  fire  commissioners.  Such  authorization
shall  be  deemed  to have been approved pursuant to this subdivision in
the event that no action is taken by the board  of  fire  commissioners,
either  approving  or  disapproving,  within forty days after service of
written notice of  such  authorization  shall  have  been  made  by  the
secretary  of the fire company upon the village clerk, either personally
or by mail. Any membership continued pursuant to the provisions of  this
subdivision  shall  terminate  when  the  member  cannot meet either the
requirements of  this  subdivision  or  the  residence  requirements  of
subdivision  three  of  this  section.  In  the  case of a village which
adjoins another state, the term "vicinity", as used in this subdivision,
includes territory in this state and territory in the adjoining state.
6. A person who cannot meet the residence requirements of  subdivision
three of this section may be elected to membership as a volunteer member
of  any  fire  company of the fire department if by reason of his or her

residence in the vicinity or his or her usual occupation he or she  will
be  available to render active service as a volunteer firefighter in the
village or in territory which is afforded fire protection pursuant to  a
contract  for fire protection by the fire department of the village or a
fire company thereof. Such election shall be pursuant to the by-laws, if
any, of the fire company; otherwise  by  a  three-fourths  vote  of  the
members  of  the fire company present and voting at a regular or special
meeting thereof. The membership of  any  person  so  elected  shall  not
become  effective  unless  approved  by  resolution of the board of fire
commissioners. Membership shall be deemed to have been approved pursuant
to this subdivision in the event that no action is taken by the board of
fire commissioners, either approving  or  disapproving,  within  seventy
days  after  service  of  written notice of election to membership shall
have been made by the secretary of the fire  company  upon  the  village
clerk,  either  personally  or  by mail. The membership of any volunteer
member elected pursuant to the  provisions  of  this  subdivision  shall
terminate  when  the  member cannot meet either the requirements of this
subdivision or the residence requirements of subdivision three  of  this
section.  In the case of a village which adjoins another state, the term
"vicinity", as used in this  subdivision,  includes  territory  in  this
state and territory in the adjoining state.
7.  The membership of any volunteer firefighter shall not be continued
pursuant to subdivision five of this section, and persons shall  not  be
elected  to  membership pursuant to subdivision six of this section, if,
by so doing, the percentage of such non-resident  members  in  the  fire
company  would  exceed forty-five per centum of the actual membership of
the  fire  company,  provided  however,  that  the  provisions  of  this
subdivision shall not apply to the membership of the village of Blasdell
volunteer fire department, provided however, that the provisions of this
subdivision shall not apply to the membership of the village of Delanson
volunteer   fire   company   in  the  village  of  Delanson,  county  of
Schenectady, provided however, that the provisions of  this  subdivision
shall  not  apply  to  membership  of the village of Port Dickinson Fire
Department,  within  the  village  of  Port  Dickinson,  Broome  County,
provided  however,  that  the  provisions  of this subdivision shall not
apply to  the  membership  of  the  village  of  Briarcliff  Manor  fire
department,   within   the   village  of  Briarcliff  Manor,  county  of
Westchester, provided however, that the provisions of  this  subdivision
shall  not  apply  to the membership of the village of Ardsley volunteer
fire department, within the village of Ardsley, county  of  Westchester,
provided  however,  that  the  provisions  of this subdivision shall not
apply to the membership of the Buchanan Engine Company No. 1, within the
village of Buchanan, county of Westchester.
8. The board of trustees, or the board of fire  commissioners  subject
to  approval  of  the  board of trustees, by resolution may restrict the
membership of volunteer members in any or all of the fire  companies  of
the  fire  department  to residents of the village. Any volunteer member
who then resides in territory outside the village shall cease  to  be  a
member of any fire company to which the restriction is applicable unless
the  resolution  provides  that his membership shall continue during the
existence of any contract for fire protection to such territory  by  his
company  or  the  fire  department  or during the period in which he may
continue to meet the requirements of subdivision three, five or six.
9. Residents of outside territory protected pursuant to a contract for
fire protection who have  been  elected  to  volunteer  membership,  and
non-residents   whose  volunteer  memberships  have  been  continued  or
authorized pursuant to subdivision five or six of  this  section,  shall
have  all  the  powers,  duties,  immunities, and privileges of resident

volunteer members, except (1) non-residents of  the  state  may  not  be
appointed  or  elected  to  any  office  in  the  fire  company  or fire
department, and (2) a non-resident of this state  whose  membership  has
been  continued  pursuant  to  subdivision  five  of  this section, or a
non-resident of this state who was elected  to  membership  pursuant  to
subdivision  six  of  this  section,  shall  not  be  considered  to  be
performing any firemanic  duty,  or  to  be  engaged  in  any  firemanic
activity,  as a member of the fire company while he or she is outside of
this state unless and until he or she has first reported to the  officer
or firefighter in command of his or her fire department, or any company,
squad  or  other  unit  thereof,  engaged  or to be engaged in rendering
service outside this state, or has received orders or authorization from
an officer of the fire department or fire company to participate  in  or
attend authorized activities outside of this state in the same manner as
resident members of the fire company.
10.  A  person  shall  not be eligible to volunteer membership in more
than one fire company at one time.
11. The term "contract for fire protection" as used  in  this  section
means one under which a cash consideration is received by the village or
by  the  fire department or a fire company thereof for the furnishing of
fire protection to an area outside the village. Any such contract  shall
be  deemed  in full force and effect for the purposes of this section if
negotiations are pending for the renewal thereof.
12. In a village where there is no board of  fire  commissioners,  the
board  of  trustees shall have the powers and perform the duties of such
board which are prescribed in this section.
13. The provisions of this section shall not be  deemed  to  authorize
the  election  of  any  person  as  a  member  of  a fire company or the
continuance of membership in a fire company as herein provided  if  such
election  or continuance of membership shall be contrary to the by-laws,
rules or regulations of the fire company or of the  fire  department  of
the village.
14.  A  village  may  not  adopt  a  local  law  changing, amending or
superseding this section.
15. Any person:
(1) who was recognized prior  to  the  first  day  of  July,  nineteen
hundred  fifty-four,  as  a  volunteer  member  of any fire company of a
village subject to the provisions  of  this  article  by  the  board  of
trustees  or  board  of  fire  commissioners  of  the  village or by the
officers and members of his fire company, and
(2) who rendered active service with such fire company prior  to  such
date, and
(3)  who  was,  at the time of his or her nomination for membership, a
resident of the village or of territory outside of the village which was
afforded fire protection by the fire department of the village,  or  any
fire  company thereof, pursuant to a contract for fire protection, shall
for all purposes in law be considered to have been  duly  nominated  and
appointed  to  membership  in  such  fire company as of the date of such
appointment, if any,  and,  if  none,  then  as  of  the  date  of  such
nomination;  notwithstanding  that there may have been some legal defect
in such nomination, or the proceedings precedent thereto, or  a  failure
of  the board of fire commissioners or board of trustees to appoint such
member, as provided by law in force at the time of such nomination,  and
the  status  of such person as a volunteer firefighter as of the date of
such appointment  or  nomination  is  hereby  legalized,  validated  and
confirmed.  An  election to membership in a fire company shall be deemed
equivalent to a nomination for  membership  for  the  purposes  of  this
subdivision  in  the  event  that a formal nomination for membership was

never presented to a board of fire commissioners or board of trustees as
provided by the law in force prior to the first day  of  July,  nineteen
hundred  fifty-four,  and,  for  the  purposes of this subdivision, such
election,  and the proceedings precedent thereto, shall be considered to
have been held and  conducted  in  the  manner  required  by  law.  This
subdivision  shall  not  apply  to  a  person,  if  any, whose volunteer
membership in a  fire  company  was  declared  invalid  by  a  court  of
competent  jurisdiction  prior  to  the  first  day of January, nineteen
hundred fifty-five.
16. Any person:
(1) who was recognized on and after the first day  of  July,  nineteen
hundred  fifty-four  and prior to the first day of January, two thousand
eleven, as a volunteer member of any fire company of a  village  subject
to  the  provisions of this article by the board of trustees or board of
fire commissioners of the village or by the officers and members of  his
fire company, and
(2)  who  rendered  active service with such fire company between such
dates, and
(3) who was, at the time of his  or  her  election  to  membership,  a
resident  of  the  village or of territory outside the village which was
afforded fire protection by the fire department of the village,  or  any
fire company thereof, pursuant to a contract for fire protection, or who
was a non-resident who was elected to membership or who was continued as
a member, pursuant to the provisions of subdivisions five or six of this
section,  shall  for all purposes in law be considered to have been duly
elected and approved, or continued, as a member in such fire company  as
of  the date of such approval, if any, and, if none, then as of the date
of such election or, in the case of a continuance, as of the date of the
approval, if any, by the board of fire commissioners  or  the  board  of
trustees,  and,  if none, as of the date of authorization of continuance
by the fire company; notwithstanding that there may have been some legal
defect in such election, or the  proceedings  precedent  thereto,  or  a
failure  of  the  board  of  fire  commissioners or board of trustees to
approve such member, or approve the continuance of  membership  of  such
member, as provided by the law in force at the time of such election, or
continuance, and the status of such person as a volunteer firefighter as
of   the  date  is  hereby  legalized,  validated  and  confirmed.  This
subdivision shall not  apply  to  a  person,  if  any,  whose  volunteer
membership in a fire company was disapproved by the board of trustees or
board  of fire commissioners or declared invalid by a court of competent
jurisdiction prior to the first day of January, two thousand eleven.
17. (a) It shall  be  an  unlawful  discriminatory  practice  for  any
volunteer fire department or fire company, through any member or members
thereof,  officers,  board of fire commissioners or other body or office
having power of  appointment  of  volunteer  firefighters  in  any  fire
department  or  fire  company  pursuant  to this section, because of the
race, creed, color, national  origin,  sex  or  marital  status  of  any
individual,  to  exclude  or to expel from its volunteer membership such
individual, or to discriminate against any of its members because of the
race, creed, color, national origin,  sex  or  marital  status  of  such
volunteer members.
(b)  Any person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory
practice pursuant to this section may by himself or his attorney at  law
make,  sign and file with the state division of human rights, a verified
complaint which shall set forth the particulars of the alleged  unlawful
discriminatory  practice  and  contain  such  other  information  as the
division of human rights may require. The division shall thereupon cause

to be made an investigation and disposition of the charges  pursuant  to
the provisions of article fifteen of the executive law.
18.  A  person who has been convicted of arson in any degree shall not
be eligible to be elected or appointed as a volunteer member of  a  fire
company.  The membership of any volunteer member of a fire company shall
immediately terminate if he is convicted of arson in any degree while  a
member of a fire company.
19.  Upon  application  by any person for membership in a fire company
operating pursuant to this section,  the  fire  chief  shall  cause  the
applicant's  background  to be checked pursuant to section eight hundred
thirty-seven-o of the executive law for a criminal history  involving  a
conviction for arson and conviction of a crime which requires the person
to register as a sex offender under article six-C of the correction law.
Where  such  criminal history information includes conviction of a crime
which requires the person to register as a sex  offender  under  article
six-C  of  the correction law, a fire company shall determine whether or
not such person shall be eligible  to  be  elected  or  appointed  as  a
volunteer  member of such fire company. Such determination shall be made
in accordance with the criteria established in  sections  seven  hundred
fifty-two and seven hundred fifty-three of the correction law.