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May 19, 2010
To The President and Members of
The Council of the City of Philadelphia:
For the following reasons, I am returning herewith to your Honorable Body as disapproved Bill No. 100214, which was passed by Council at its session on May 6, 2010.
Bill No. 100214 adds to the City's Fire Code a provision stating that the Fire Department official in charge at the scene of a fire has the authority to direct uniformed Fire Department personnel, including paramedics, to engage in fire rescue, fire abatement, and emergency medical services. Based on this description of their potential duties, the bill then purports to draw a legal conclusion as to the status of paramedics under the Pennsylvania Policemen and Firemen Collective Bargaining Act, Act of 1968, P.L. 237, No. 111, 43 P.S. §§ 217.1 to 217.10 ("Act 111").
Decisions about how to deploy Fire Department personnel are decisions committed to the highest levels of the chain of command of the Fire Department, both as a matter of policy and a matter of law. As a matter of policy, paramedics have not been authorized to engage in fire rescue and fire abatement work. Accordingly, contrary to the statement in the ordinance, the Fire Department official at the scene of a fire does not have the authority to direct paramedics to fight fires. Nor should such officials have such authority. Firefighting requires particularized training that is currently not required of our paramedics.
Moreover, it is clear, and I have been so advised by the City Solicitor, that our City Charter vests authority for making determinations regarding the role of Fire Department personnel exclusively with the Fire Department itself. Section 1-101(1) of the Home Rule Charter provides that "The executive and administrative power of the City . . . shall be exclusively vested in and exercised by a mayor and such other officers, departments, boards and commissions as are authorized in this charter." In general, Cou...
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