SUMMARY
Requires any employer who employs a firefighter to provide safety ropes and
system components for use by such firefighter; requires the employer to
routinely inspect such safety ropes and system components; exempts employers in
the city of New York.
BILL NUMBER: A7785
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the labor law, in relation to
requiring employers to provide safety ropes and system components to
firefighters
PURPOSE:
This bill would require public employers except those in a city of one
million or more to provide firefighters with safety ropes and system
components that
meet standards set forth by the National Fire
Protection Association (NFPA)
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
This bill amends Section 27-a of the New York State Labor Law.
Section 1 of the bill amends subdivision 1 by defining "system
Components" as life safety harnesses, belts, ascending devices,
carbiners, descent control devices, rope grab devices and snap-links.
Section 2 adds a new paragraph (c) to subdivision 4, which provides
that public employers provide firefighters with safety ropes and
system components that meet the standards, codes and recommended
practices established by the most recent edition of the NFPA 1983,
Standard for Fire Service Life Safety Ropes and System Components.
Moreover, public employers not in a city of a million or more are
required to ensure the adequacy of the ropes and the component
equipment by inspecting such and ensuring it complies with the
established safety standards.
JUSTIFICATION:
On January 23, 2005, six New York City firefighters were caught on the
fourth floor of a burning building in he Bronx. Due to a department
order dating back to 2000, the firefighters were not equipped with
safety ropes and the accompanying equipment. Sadly, the six
firefighters were forced to jump from the building, falling four
stories to the street below. As a result, four of the firefighters
were seriously injured, and two of the firefighters, Lieutenant Curtis
W. Meyran and Firefighter John G. Bellew, died.
This bill must be enacted to prevent similar tragedies from occurring
in the future. Safety ropes and accompanying system components can be
used to save the lives of victims, as well as provide a means to
escape for firefighters of this state that they be equipped with this
necessary apparatus.
To date, the Commissioner of the Department of Labor has not made it
mandatory that public employers provide safety ropes and system
components. This bill addresses this oversight by explicitly requiring
the Commissioner to adopt standards, codes, and recommended practices
promulgated by the NFPA in order to ensure the health and safety of
the firefighters of this state. By adopting NFPA standards, this bill
attempts to ts can be
used to save the lives of victims, as well as provide a avoid uncertainty and ensure uniform application.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
Similar to A.6056A of 2005: veto 11
Similar to A.10694A; of 2006: veto 224
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Minimal.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Sixty days after having become law.
Here is a link to the Bill Text
with links to additional information higlighted in red.
More information is also available online at the New York State Association of Fire Chiefs web site.
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