Mississippi § 45-11-203 - Employment of persons not completing training standards prohibited; training standards.

§ 45-11-203. Employment of persons not completing training standards prohibited; training standards.

After January 1, 1991, no person shall be employed as a full-time fire fighter by any local government fire fighting unit for a period exceeding one (1) year, nor for a cumulative time exceeding two thousand eight hundred (2,800) compensated hours, unless that person is certified as completing the mandatory training requirements in subsection (2). Any state agency or political subdivision that employs a person as a fire fighter who does not meet the requirements of subsection (2) of this section is prohibited from paying the salary of such person, and any person violating this subsection shall be personally liable for making such payment. The Mississippi Fire Personnel Minimum Standards and Certification Board may grant an extension to individuals employed within the guidelines as established by the board not to exceed an additional year. Fire fighters serving as full-time employees prior to January 1, 1991, in a local fire fighting unit shall not be required to meet the minimum requirements in subsection (2). The uniform training standards for all paid fire fighters shall consist of satisfactory completion of a training program administered by the State Fire Academy or local governments that have the proper facilities and have been certified by the Mississippi Fire Personnel Minimum Standards and Certification Board which shall utilize National Fire Protection Association fire service professional qualification standards.