North Carolina § 58-80-1 - Purpose of Article; meaning of "State Fire Marshal".

§ 58-80-1. Purpose of Article; meaning of "State Fire Marshal".

The purpose of this Article shall be the creation of a State Volunteer Fire Department to provide protection for property lying outside the boundaries of municipalities, and to render assistance anywhere within the State of North Carolina, in municipalities or counties, in emergencies caused by fire, floods, tornadoes, or otherwise, in the manner and subject to the conditions provided in this Article. As used in this Article and elsewhere in the General Statutes, "State Fire Marshal" means the Commissioner of Insurance of the State of North Carolina. History (1939, c. 364, s. 1; 1985, c. 666, s. 66.) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2016-78, s. 2.3, provides: "The Office of State Fire Marshal, Department of Insurance, shall study, in consultation with the North Carolina State Firemen's Association [North Carolina State Firefighters' Association], the North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs, the North Carolina Association of Rescue and Emergency Medical Services, the North Carolina League of Municipalities, and the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, and make recommendations regarding the issue of declining recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters in North Carolina to the General Assembly on or before the convening of the 2018 Legislative Session. The recommendations shall include at least the following: "(1) Assessment of existing programs, initiatives, and efforts to increase the number of volunteer firefighters protecting their communities across the State. "(2) Assessment of other states' programs, initiatives, and efforts to increase the number of volunteer firefighters protecting their communities. "(3) Consideration of financial incentive programs that may be offered to encourage increased volunteer firefighter participation rates, including tax incentives, rebates, or other initiatives. "(4) The impact of current programs and viability of expansion of high school based programs providing firefighter training statewide. "(5) Other issues, initiatives, or matters deemed relevant to consideration of and action on this issue by the Office of State Fire Marshall and its collaborators. "(6) Recommendations for legislative action, if any, to address the issue of recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters statewide." Session Laws 2019-241, s. 7(a)-(c), provides: "(a) The North Carolina Policy Collaboratory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Collaboratory) shall create an inventory of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) used or stored by fire departments in North Carolina operated, managed, or overseen by units of local government, including those located at or serving airports. This inventory shall include, at a minimum, the following: "(1) The name and address of each fire department that owns or otherwise has on the premises of a fire station a firefighting vehicle that carries AFFF or a storage tank or other vessel for AFFF. "(2) The volume, trade name, and CAS number of AFFF used by each department in 2018 for fighting fires or firefighter training. "(3) The number of firefighting vehicles carrying AFFF and the volume of AFFF carried by each vehicle. "(4) Each fire department's annual cost of acquiring AFFF and last known purchases of AFFF. "(5) The volume, trade name, and CAS number of AFFF stored by each fire department or unit of local government for firefighting use and the portion of these AFFFs that are no longer utilized and could be removed from inventory for disposal. "(6) Other data deemed relevant by the Collaboratory to establish a statewide inventory of AFFF used for fighting fires or firefighter training. "The Office of the State Fire Marshal of the Department of Insurance and all units of local government shall provide any assistance requested by the Collaboratory to acquire and compile the data required by this section. "(b) The North Carolina Policy Collaboratory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Collaboratory) shall develop a proposal for identifying and collecting AFFF that is expired or no longer needed or wanted by each fire department in North Carolina operated, managed, or overseen by units of local government, including those located at or serving airports. This proposal should include recommendations on which State agency or agencies could oversee such a collection effort and cost estimates on this collection, stockpiling, and disposal. The Department of Insurance Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Public Safety shall provide any assistance requested by the Collaboratory to acquire and compile the data required by this section. "(c) The Collaboratory shall submit an interim report with the results of the studies required by subsections (a) and (b) of this section no later than April 1, 2020, and a final report no later than October 15, 2020, to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic Resources and the Environmental Review Commission."