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Governmetal Affairs Committee |
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GAC Resources
HELP THE GAC!
Dear FAMA/FEMSA member: In January, you received an e-mail from the FAMA/FEMSA Governmental Affairs Committee (GAC) asking you to complete a survey that will help the GAC and its consultants learn what congressional relationships FAMA/FEMSA member companies have established. This information is essential to the GAC’s work to increase FAMA/FEMSA’s dialogue with federal government agencies in an effort to educate key officials on the important role our industry plays in providing equipment and services to the nation’s first responders. To help us enhance these efforts, we once again ask you to take a few moments to complete the enclosed survey. Specifically, this survey will help the GAC compile a comprehensive list of FAMA/FEMSA members’ locations and the congressional senators and representatives for those locations, an important step in establishing an educational network with the members of Congress and the administration. Please note that the survey can be conveniently completed online here. We also ask that the survey be completed as soon as possible. We have tried to keep this survey as simple and straightforward as possible. We thank you in advance for your assistance in this important effort. Sincerely, FAMA/FEMSA Governmental Affairs Committee
Subscribe to the Fire Grant Data website Success Stories RSS (Real Simple Syndication) news feed. Click here.
The FAMA / FEMSA GAC would like to thank all the members who participated in the 2006 Home Day Program. Many of you had incredible results, and we encourage you to share those experiences with your fellow members. The GAC has posted a small website with information about some of the Home Day activities by FAMA and FEMSA member companies. Remember - Every Day is Home Day! Please click here to see the site.
Upcoming Events CFSI Annual Dinner. March 28-29, 2007. Washington, DC Hilton. Get your tickets early! Click here for more information.
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Commercial Equipment Direct Assistance Program (CEDAP) An Open Letter from NFFF on the America's Fire Heroes Whistle Stop Tour Common Fireground Noise May Cause Unintelligibility of Digital Radio Transmissions Firefighters face heart risks in a blaze DHS Officials Testify on Threat of Radicalization Emergency Response Records Kept from Public, Test Reveals Security and Privacy Not At Odds, Chertoff Says William Jackson | It’s time to dump the Real ID Act IMPORTANT WEB ADDRESS: CFSI updates the Congressional Fire Services Caucus member list. Make sure your local representative is on it! Click Here Commercial Equipment Direct Assistance Program (CEDAP) CEDAP helps meet the equipment needs of smaller jurisdictions by providing communications interoperability, information sharing, chemical detection, sensors, personal protective equipment, technology, and training in using the equipment, devices, and technology. Awards are made to law enforcement and emergency responder agencies not currently eligible for funding through the Department’s Urban Areas Security Initiative grant program. CEDAP has awarded more than $35.2. million worth of equipment and training to local law enforcement and fire departments. For more information about CEDAP, including a detailed equipment catalog and application information, please visit the Responder Knowledge Base (RKB) or contact the Centralized Scheduling and Information Desk at 1-800-368-6498 or askcsid@dhs.gov. New! The application period for the more than $32 million in equipment available under the FY 2006 CEDAP opened on August 16, 2006 and will close September 22, 2006. Read the announcement here. Source: DHS An Open Letter from NFFF on the America's Fire Heroes Whistle Stop Tour Dear FAMA & FEMSA Members,
Recently, I sent you a letter announcing The America’s Fire Heroes Whistle-Stop Tour. I am now sending you a more detailed plan for the entire project. I hope you and your organization will take advantage of this historic fire service event as we cross the United States to promote the Firefighters Life Safety Initiatives, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the need to reduce the occurrences of fire in our country. After reviewing this briefing document, feel free to give me a call should you have any questions or wish to get more involved with the tour. The Tour will involve fire departments, the general public, local, state, and federal officials, and the media in 20 stops across the country. Presentations regarding the 16 Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives, Everyone Goes Home™ program and the Courage To Be Safe…So Everyone Goes Home™ training class will be directed at the firefighter audience. An important part of these presentations will be the Untold Story of the Survivors in their own words. The public fire safety message will be delivered, and important information and other resources will be available. The Tour will begin in San Francisco on April 5th and conclude in Boston on May 12th. A proclamation identifying the period of the Tour as a period for “Firefighter Appreciation” has been introduced to the Fire Service Caucus through Congressional Fire Services Institute Executive Director Bill Webb at the request of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. Chief Ronald Jon Siarnicki Source: NFFF Common Fireground Noise May Cause Unintelligibility of Digital Radio Transmissions Fairfax, Va., Mar. 20, 2007... The International Association of Fire Chiefs is alerting its members to a potential issue and soliciting their input to a solution. The IAFC has received reports of firefighters experiencing unintelligible audio communications while using a digital two-way portable radio when operating in close proximity to the low-pressure alarm of their self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). In addition, other common fireground noise, including powered tools, apparatus and PASS devices, may affect voice intelligibility. This is an industry-wide issue and is not specific to any one manufacturer’s radios. There are indications that any digital voice communication product utilizing parametric voice encoders could be affected by this problem. The IAFC does know the problem is not related to any specific radio spectrum, as it is not a frequency of operation issue, or a particular communication standard. Due to these reports, the IAFC board of directors has asked the Communications Committee to form a working group to work with other IAFC committees and sections and other appropriate organizations to investigate and provide recommendations to address this concern. The specific focus of the group will be to: The IAFC is asking you to contact the Communications Working Group if you have experienced similar issues. Go to www.iafc.org/digitalproblem to learn more about the tests you can conduct to provide the working group the information it needs to study the issue and make recommendations. Your input is vital to ensure that digital radio technology can be effectively utilized in fireground applications. The IAFC fully understands that many fire departments are using digital radio systems with success, but there may be issues related to voice transmission being interfered with or overridden when common fireground noise is in the background. We appreciate your assistance in testing your systems and reporting back to us. Source: IAFC DHS Officials Testify on Threat of Radicalization Secretary Chertoff and other top DHS officials last week testified about what the department is doing to counter the threat of radicalization of individuals and groups within the United States. Addressing the issue is important to preventing violence against the United States and its citizens, the secretary said. In his prepared testimony, Chertoff said DHS is taking a three-pronged approach to addressing radicalization: (1) developing a better understanding of the phenomenon; (2) enhancing the capacity of the department and its partners to counter it; and (3) engaging with key communities to promote civic engagement and protect civil liberties. Concerning the second prong, Chertoff said DHS is using existing relationships and organizational structures, such as fusion centers and states’ homeland security networks, to improve understanding of the radicalization process, to report immediate threats, and to train the DHS workforce to meet the highest standards of professionalism as they interact with religious and ethnic minorities. Concerning the outreach effort to religious and minority groups, Chertoff said that the DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) has released a training video for DHS personnel on basic aspects of Arab American and Muslim American cultures and beliefs. In addition, he said the DHS Chief Learning Officer, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, and training officers at the components are focusing training resources on these issues. The secretary’s complete testimony and that of Chief Intelligence Officer and Assistant Secretary Charles Allen, and CRCL Officer Daniel Sutherland is available at: Source: DHS Firefighters face heart risks in a blaze By ALICIA CHANG, AP Science WriterWed Mar 21, 7:02 PM ET About 100 firefighters die in the line of duty each year and previous research has shown that nearly half of the deaths are due to heart disease. The vast majority — about 70 percent — of the nation's roughly 1 million firefighters are volunteers. Experts say diet and exercise should be priorities at the firehouse. "You may not be able to prevent all these deaths, but to the degree you can prevent some deaths by paying attention to underlying risk factors and better fitness programs, that's the goal," said Dr. Linda Rosenstock, dean of the UCLA School of Public Health, who was not involved in the study. The study, published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, doesn't address whether firefighters have an overall higher risk of dying from heart disease than the general population. Rosenstock said fire departments could do more to improve health by requiring annual physicals and fitness tests. Departments also should have wellness and fitness programs to reduce heart disease risk factors such as obesity and high blood pressure, she said. Firefighting is a physically demanding job that involves heavy lifting of equipment and exposure to toxic chemicals. Recruits are generally healthy and physically fit, but their health can decline over time because many firehouses don't require regular exercise or yearly medical exams. Also, the health requirements are usually less stringent for volunteers, who tend to continue firefighting as they age, a time when most heart problems occur. In the Harvard study, researchers examined a federal registry of 1,144 on-duty firefighter deaths between 1994 and 2004. Excluded were the 343 firefighters who perished in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Nearly 40 percent — or 449 — of the on-duty deaths during that period were due to heart disease. Thirty-two percent of the heart-related deaths occurred while fighting blazes; 13 percent responding to an alarm; 17 percent returning from a call and 13 percent during physical training. The researchers also calculated the odds of dying from a heart attack by taking into account the estimated amount of time spent performing different duties. They found the risk of death from heart disease was highest during active firefighting — up to 100 times greater than the risk of dying during administrative work — though firefighting made up no more than 5 percent of a firefighters' time. Increased risk of death was also found for other emergency duties such as responding to a call and returning from the scene of a fire. Researchers believe mental stress and overexertion combined with factors such as being overweight and in poor shape may increase the risk of dying from heart disease. "There's direct evidence to support that certain specific activities that firefighters do could trigger coronary heart disease events," said lead author Dr. Stefanos Kales of the Harvard School of Public Health. The study was funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Massachusetts Public Employees Retirement Administration Commission. Kales and another author have served as paid expert witnesses in workers' compensation cases, including some involving firefighters. Fire Sgt. Jeff Brause of Michigan had a heart attack in 2004 while responding to a house fire. Brause, who was 45 at the time, didn't have a family history of heart disease. "I started getting a burning sensation in my chest," he recalled. "I thought I must be getting old or maybe pulled a muscle." The pain worsened during the ride to the scene and Brause sought an ambulance. On the way to the hospital, paramedics had to deliver a defibrillation shock to restart his heart. Doctors later told Brause he had a blockage in his heart. Before his heart attack, Brause said he often ate greasy fast food and didn't exercise regularly. "I didn't eat the world's greatest," he admitted. Since then, Brause has given up junk food and hits the treadmill and lifts weights three times a week. Firefighter groups are increasingly taking notice of heart risk. The National Volunteer Fire Council in 2003 began an awareness program promoting fitness and nutrition, and volunteers offer free health screening and demonstrate healthy cooking and fitness techniques. ___ On the Net: New England Journal of Medicine: http://www.nejm.org Harvard School of Public Health: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu Copyright © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Source: AP Emergency Response Records Kept from Public, Test Reveals Journalists and members of the public took part in a test designed to see whether or not they could access emergency planning information for their communities from local officials – and more than half of officials failed the test. According to an article by Jessica Azulay on the New York News Standard website, the test was part of something known as “Sunshine Week,” a project led by the American Society of Newspaper Editors and funded by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation of Miami. Azulay says during the test, “volunteers approached 404 Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) in 37 states and Puerto Rico. The LEPCs are required by federal law to design local plans for responding to hazardous-material emergencies. The federal Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act, which mandated the local emergency-planning committees, also requires those committees to notify the public once a year that the plans are publicly available.” The organizers of Sunshine Week released a report that found only 44 percent of local officials provided the full plans to volunteers who requested them. “Another 20 percent provided incomplete plans, and 36 percent refused to give the plans to the requestors. The report noted that many officials cited concerns over national security as a reason for not releasing the plans, while others appeared to be unaware that they were required to make the plans publicly accessible,” Azulay says. To read the full article, click here: Source: Disaster Resource Guide Security and Privacy Not At Odds, Chertoff Says The Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to create standardized, data-chipped drivers licenses has met with much criticism from privacy advocates, worried security is trumping privacy. Now DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff is speaking out about the concerns, saying the two are not at odds. In an article on the Info World website, writer Grant Gross says Chertoff made the remarks last week in a speech to the Northern Virginia Technology Council. Chertoff said the same technology that makes the information on ID cards can also help protect privacy. “It’s my contention that properly used technology ... actually protects privacy,” he told the crowd. “We should not allow folks to be captivated by the argument that every time we do something with a computer, it invades privacy.” Gross says Chertoff was referring to privacy concerns surrounding the Real ID Act, a law Congress passed in 2005 requiring states to create machine-readable ID cards containing the name of the holder, the data of birth, a digital photograph and other information. “Privacy groups, including the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), have said that the DHS hasn’t come up with rules on how the information on the cards should be protected,” Gross says. But Chertoff told attendees those raising privacy concerns about the use of IT in the government’s domestic security efforts create a false tension between security and privacy. “This kind of Luddite attitude ... is exactly wrong,” he said. “Security and privacy are very much the same type of value. I don’t think they're mutually exclusive, they’re mutually reinforced.” To read the full article, click here: Source: Disaster Resource Guide William Jackson | It’s time to dump the Real ID Act 03/19/07 Cybereye Bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to repeal the law or extend the deadline for compliance, respectively, and resolutions have been introduced in 25 states either urging Congress to repeal or reform the law, or expressing a refusal to comply with it. So far only one state, Maine, has passed a resolution of refusal to comply. There are lots of reasons to dislike the law, which sets rigid standards for licenses and IDs issued by states. It is an unfunded mandate being administered by a department that apparently is ill-equipped for the job. The deadline for implementing the law is May 2008, but the Homeland Security Department has yet to release regulations for compliance, which were due last year. The National Conference of State Legislatures, the National Governors Association and the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators estimate the act will cost states more than $11 billion over five years, but Congress has appropriated only $40 million for assistance to states. My personal peeve is that the Real ID Act requires interconnected databases of personal information on each of the 245 million people receiving cards, with absolutely no safeguards on that data or restrictions on how it can be used. The law is supposed to bolster national security but instead endangers the privacy and personal security of almost every U.S. citizen and resident. Newly introduced Senate and House bills would correct the most egregious of the problems in the law. The Senate bill, S 563, would extend the deadline for implementation, giving states until two years after final promulgation of regulations. The House bill, HR 1117, would repeal the Real ID Act and establish a negotiated rule-making process for ID standards in its place. “It is not enough merely to delay implementation of this deeply flawed law,” Rep. Tom Allen (D-Maine) said when he introduced the House legislation. “Congress must replace it with legislation that does not infringe on the privacy rights of Americans, that does not put their personal information at risk ... and does not impose the burden of an unfunded financial mandate on state taxpayers.” Both bills would include state representatives and third-party experts on privacy and civil liberties in the negotiation of final rules, and both would prohibit the commercial use of the collected data by third parties. The Senate bill requires the final rules to “protect the security of all personal information maintained in electronic form.” The House bill requires that data be encrypted during transmission but says nothing about protecting data at rest in the databases. Although neither bill is perfect, either would be better than the current law. But rather than merely delaying or reshaping the Real ID Act, Congress needs to engage in a full debate on the advisability of establishing a national ID. The Real ID Act was passed without that debate—it was slipped into a spending bill that provided funding for troops and tsunami relief. Only if the American people and their representatives agree that such a step is warranted, does Congress have to worry about implementing it in a way that is fair, reasonable and secure. Source: GCN Trade Policy U.S.-Korea Trade. On Tuesday, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement negotiations. Trade agreements open markets to U.S.-manufactured goods. Korea is the world's 10th largest economy, and our seventh-largest trading partner. The NAM submitted a statement favoring the agreement. Court Cases Affecting Manufacturers OSHA Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Payment Mandate. On Mar. 5, the NAM joined other business groups to urge a federal court to reject an attempt by the AFL-CIO to force OSHA to issue a new rule that would require employers to pay for nearly all personal protective equipment on the job. While many companies already pay, new OSHA rules would establish another regulatory and litigation labyrinth. The brief argues that OSHA does not have authority to issue a rule that transfers costs and interferes with collective bargaining. Who pays for safety equipment is irrelevant to whether the employer is providing a safe workplace. Even if OSHA has authority to issue a regulation, it has the discretion to tackle more significant safety issues first. In a related development, on Mar. 6, Rep. Roybal-Allard (D-CA) introduced H.R. 1327, which would require that OSHA issue a previously drafted PPE rule within 30 days of enactment. On Mar. 14, DOL told the court it will publish a final PPE payment rule in November. If the rule is published, an industry challenge is likely. Source: NAM The United States Fire Administration (USFA) has received notice of the following firefighter fatality: Name: Lucien Dale Breaux Fire Department: Crowley Fire Department Telephone: (337) 788-4106 Incident Description: Captain Breaux was awakened by the central alarm system in his station when another station had been dispatched for extrication operations at the scene of a Motor Vehicle Collision. He woke up not feeling well and had cold sweats. Breaux contacted central dispatch to summon EMS to his station. EMS began patient care and was loading him in the ambulance for transport to the hospital when he went into cardiac arrest. He was resuscitated and transported to the hospital. Breaux went into cardiac arrest a second time while in route to the hospital and care continued during the remainder of the transport and at the hospital until he was pronounced. Funeral Arrangements: Visitation is being held until 10 p.m. today, and will begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday, March 20 at Geesey Ferguson Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church. Interment will be held in Woodlawn Cemetery. Memorial Fund Contact and Address: Pending Tribute is being paid to Captain Lucien Dale Breaux at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/ To date, 20 firefighter fatalities have been reported to USFA in 2007 as a result of incidents that occurred in 2007. Please note, running totals of firefighter fatalities used on these initial notices do not necessarily reflect the number of firefighter fatalities used in totals for the (provisional) monthly year-to-date USFA firefighter fatality reports, or year-end (provisional) reports posted online (http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/statistics/ff_stats.shtm ). Firefighter fatalities in USFA reports are summarized by date/year-of-incident. Initial notices posted online (http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/) and distributed via USFA listserve do not represent the final "on-duty" firefighter fatality determination by USFA for such reports, nor Line-of-Duty-Death (LODD) determination made by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (http://www.FireHero.org) for names added each subsequent year to the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, MD, they are the beginning of a research process for each firefighter fatality reported so that such determinations can be made. Source: USFA |
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