4th District Report

Pursuant to Article VI, Section 7 of the Constitution & By-Laws of the International Association of Fire Fighters, I respectfully submit the following report of my activities as Vice President of the 4th District to General President Edward A. Kelly, General Secretary-Treasurer Frank V. Lima, the IAFF Executive Board, and the officers and delegates assembled at the 58th Convention of the International Association of Fire Fighters, held in Arlington, Texas, August 10–14, 2026. 

Since our last Convention, I have traveled throughout Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Delaware, and Washington, D.C., in support of the locals and state organizations that comprise the 4th District. I attended state conventions, legislative conferences, executive board meetings, committee meetings, district conferences, and numerous affiliate functions while carrying out assignments delegated to me by the General President and Executive Board. 

During this reporting period, I continued serving on numerous IAFF committees and boards, including Finance (Chair), Legal Services (Chair), the Administrative Committee of the IAFF Officers Retirement Plan (Vice-Chair), Communications (Vice-Chair), Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Government Affairs & Political Action, Information Technology, Organizing, and Policy. I also continue to serve as a member of the IAFF Financial Corporation Board of Directors. 

It has also been my privilege to serve as Chair of the Convention Constitution & By-Laws Committee. Through the work of this committee and the delegates who participate in the convention process, our Union continues to modernize and strengthen its governing documents, improve internal procedures, and enhance accountability. These efforts will benefit IAFF members and affiliates for generations to come. 

In addition to my committee responsibilities, the Executive Board appointed me to serve as the Appointing Officer for the Trial Boards convened within Los Angeles City Firefighters Local 112. My responsibility was not to determine guilt or innocence, but to ensure that each Trial Board was properly constituted and conducted in accordance with our governing documents while affording all parties the due process protections guaranteed by our Constitution. 

While the assignment was challenging and, at times, uncomfortable due to the sensitive nature of the proceedings, it reinforced one of our union’s fundamental principles: every member is entitled to a fair, impartial, and orderly process under the IAFF Constitution and By-Laws. The experience reinforced that union leadership demands the highest standards of fiduciary responsibility, transparency, integrity, and accountability. We are entrusted with the stewardship of our members’ per capita investment in their union and affiliated entities, and preserving that trust requires fairness, sound governance, and accountability at every level of our organization. 

Over the past two years, our IAFF has continued to demonstrate that strong leadership and sound governance produce results. Our membership continues to grow, our finances remain strong, and our influence in the political and legislative arenas has never been greater. Most importantly, we continue to deliver meaningful victories for our members in collective bargaining, wages, benefits, staffing, occupational health and safety, retirement security, and workplace protections. 

Our IAFF achieved two historic legislative victories with the enactment of the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act and repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act secured federal recognition of occupational cancer as a line-of-duty death under the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program, providing important financial protections for the families of fallen members while reinforcing decades of IAFF advocacy on occupational cancer. Equally significant, repeal of WEP and GPO restored earned Social Security benefits to hundreds of thousands of retired fire fighters, public employees, and their surviving spouses, correcting a decades-old injustice and delivering long-overdue retirement security for IAFF members and their families. 

The past two years have also been marked by significant legislative, organizational, and institutional achievements throughout the 4th District. 

In Maryland, the Professional Fire Fighters of Maryland (PFFMD) continued one of the strongest legislative programs in the IAFF, securing significant victories that advanced workplace protections, occupational health, retirement security, and public safety. 

During the 2025 legislative session, the PFFMD successfully enacted legislation prohibiting the sale, transfer, or distribution of non-arc-resistant corrugated stainless-steel tubing (CSST), a measure inspired by the tragic line-of-duty deaths of Brothers Nathan Flynn and Josh Laird. The PFFMD also secured passage of the James “Jimmy” Malone Act, requiring career fire fighters to receive occupational cancer screenings at no cost through employer-sponsored health plans while obtaining $1 million in state funding to expand cancer screening and research initiatives. 

Additional accomplishments included securing binding arbitration rights for the BWI Airport Fire Fighters, establishing a felony offense for malicious or fraudulent burning that results in the death or serious injury of a fire fighter, and obtaining $200,000 in state funding for the PFFMD Education and Training Fund. 

The 2026 legislative session produced another historic year. The PFFMD secured Maryland’s statewide forty-two-hour work week overtime law, establishing a uniform overtime standard for career fire fighters and representing one of the most significant improvements to fire fighter working conditions in decades. The PFFMD also secured groundbreaking employment protections prohibiting discrimination against fire fighters and emergency medical personnel for the lawful use of physician-prescribed medical cannabis. Additional accomplishments included an increase to the Public Safety Retirement Income Subtraction, strengthening hypertension protections, securing in-state tuition benefits for the dependents of Maryland fire fighters who make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, and obtaining an additional $200,000 appropriation for the PFFMD Education and Training Fund. 

These accomplishments reflect the continued strength of the PFFMD’s legislative program and its unwavering commitment to advancing the interests of Maryland’s professional fire fighters and emergency medical personnel. 

In Virginia, the Virginia Professional Fire Fighters (VPFF) continued building on their previous legislative accomplishments, securing significant victories that improve the health, safety, and working conditions of professional fire fighters and emergency medical personnel throughout the Commonwealth. 

During the 2025 legislative session, the VPFF expanded Virginia’s occupational cancer presumption law to include throat cancer, secured an additional fifty-two weeks of workers’ compensation benefits for members suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depressive disorders, obtained $5 million for firefighting equipment grants administered through the Virginia Department of Fire Programs, and secured $200,000 to establish a toxic exposure grant program for Virginia Beach first responders affected by an F/A-18 jet crash. 

Building upon those successes, the 2026 General Assembly approved mandatory mental health awareness training for fire fighters and emergency medical personnel, passed legislation recommending a statewide forty-two-hour work week for career fire departments, and allocated more than $4.2 million to establish occupational cancer screening grants. 

Despite these accomplishments, statewide collective bargaining for public employees remains one of the Commonwealth’s defining labor issues. After the General Assembly approved collective bargaining legislation in both 2025 and 2026, Governors Glenn Youngkin and Abigail Spanberger each vetoed the measure. Governor Spanberger’s veto represented a betrayal of fire fighters that will be remembered when her name next appears on the ballot. Collective bargaining is not a privilege; it is a fundamental workplace right. The VPFF remains committed to restoring that right and will continue fighting until no public employee in Virginia is denied the opportunity to have a voice in the workplace. 

In Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association (PPFFA) continued advancing workplace protections, occupational health, retirement security, and collective bargaining rights through an aggressive legislative agenda. Over the past two years, the PPFFA secured landmark legislation recognizing post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI), providing important protections for members suffering from the invisible wounds of the job. The PPFFA also successfully defeated legislative efforts to create regional fire and EMS authorities that threatened to undermine Act 111 arbitration and the collective bargaining rights of Pennsylvania’s professional fire fighters. 

The PPFFA also continues advancing statewide cancer screening and companion PFAS legislation through the Pennsylvania General Assembly. In addition, the PPFFA continues working with state leaders to secure additional funding for Pennsylvania’s Fire Company and Emergency Medical Services Grant Program while advocating for increased emergency services funding through modernization of statutory funding caps. 

The 4th District also celebrated a historic milestone when PPFFA President Bob Brooks secured victory in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District primary election. Brother Brooks has spent his career advocating for fire fighters, workers, and collective bargaining rights. If elected in November, he would become one of the highest-ranking labor leaders ever elected to federal office while bringing the perspective of a professional fire fighter and union leader directly to the halls of Congress. His campaign serves as a reminder of the importance of electing leaders who understand the challenges facing working families because they have lived those experiences. 

In West Virginia, the Professional Fire Fighters of West Virginia (PFFWV) continued protecting the rights of professional fire fighters while advancing important occupational health, behavioral health, and retirement initiatives despite one of the nation’s most challenging legislative environments for organized labor. Over the past two years, the PFFWV successfully defeated multiple efforts to weaken civil service protections and prohibit collective bargaining agreements for public employees while also securing expanded post-traumatic stress disorder protections requiring municipalities to provide PTSD coverage and broadening the categories of qualified medical professionals authorized to diagnose PTSD. 

Looking ahead, the PFFWV continues pursuing state-funded occupational cancer screening programs, expansion of West Virginia’s occupational cancer presumption law to include additional cancers recognized under the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, extending those protections to retired members, and reducing the vesting requirement for the State Fire Pension from ten years to five years. These priorities reflect the PFFWV’s commitment to strengthening occupational health protections, retirement security, and the long-term well-being of West Virginia’s professional fire fighters. 

In Washington, D.C., IAFF Local 36 continues advancing the interests of the District’s professional fire fighters and emergency medical personnel through an active legislative, collective bargaining, and public policy agenda. 

During the past two years, Local 36 secured funding to implement a Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP), obtained $100 million in the District’s budget to fund its collective bargaining agreement for Fiscal Years 2025 through 2027, and successfully persuaded the D.C. Council to terminate a $25 million fire apparatus procurement contract, ensuring that future apparatus procurements will move forward with Local 36’s input. The Local also continues advocating for legislation extending line-of-duty death survivor benefits to members who die from work-related illnesses following medical retirement while working with the PFFMD to ensure retired D.C. Fire Fighters residing in Maryland receive the same retirement income tax subtraction afforded to Maryland and federal fire fighters. 

Looking ahead, Local 36 remains actively engaged in the rulemaking process surrounding the One Front Door Act, partnering with organized labor and other stakeholders to preserve safe building design standards for fire fighters and the communities they serve while continuing to advocate for a fair collective bargaining agreement through arbitration. 

In Delaware, we continue expanding the IAFF’s presence by identifying and organizing prospective affiliates while strengthening relationships with our existing locals. 

At the same time, we have continued discussions with affiliate leaders regarding the formation of a state association, recognizing the important role a unified organization can play in advancing legislative priorities, strengthening collective bargaining, coordinating resources, and providing a stronger voice for Delaware’s professional fire fighters. 

Although that work remains ongoing, we are committed to continuing our organizing efforts and laying the foundation for a stronger, more unified IAFF presence throughout the First State. 

Across the District, affiliates continue addressing the evolving challenges facing the modern fire service while protecting the health, safety, retirement security, and collective bargaining rights of our members. Our objective remains unchanged: protecting our members, strengthening our profession, and ensuring that every member returns home safely. 

Our leadership team continues strengthening organizing efforts throughout the District by identifying opportunities to charter new affiliates and providing them with the support they need for long-term success. We remain committed to expanding the IAFF throughout the 4th District while delivering the highest level of representation and service to every member. 

Since our last Convention, the 4th District welcomed eleven new locals representing 441 active members. These include Cumru Township Local 5506, Harrisonburg Local 5530, Page County Local 5556, Phoenixville Local 5568, Essex County Local 5588, Amelia County Local 5603, Charles City County Local 5607, Fetters Mill Local 5608, Montgomery County Local 5610, Embrooke Northwest EMS Local 5615, and Cecil Township Local 5634. 

Leadership development also remains a central priority throughout the 4th District. Our District Conference has become one of the premier educational opportunities available to local affiliate leaders. Through classroom instruction, practical workshops, and resource presentations, hundreds of leaders have received training in collective bargaining, labor law, communications, leadership development, political action, organizing, member engagement, and the many resources available through our IAFF. 

None of these accomplishments occur by chance. They are possible because of dedicated local leaders who devote countless hours representing their members, negotiating contracts, advocating before elected officials, organizing new affiliates, and strengthening our union. They are the foundation upon which the IAFF is built. 

I want to express my sincere appreciation to General President Edward Kelly, General Secretary-Treasurer Frank Lima, the Executive Board, and the outstanding IAFF staff for their continued leadership and support. I also want to thank District Field Service Representatives John Gardell and Paul Hebert, our IAFF Service Representatives, and State Association Presidents Robert Brooks, Jeffrey Buddle, Kurt Detrick, and T.W. Hindman for their partnership and dedication to advancing the interests of our members throughout the 4th District. 

Finally, I want to thank every local union officer and member throughout the 4th District for the trust you have placed in me to serve as your District Vice President. It remains the greatest honor of my professional life to serve as your voice on the Executive Board of the International Association of Fire Fighters. Your commitment, professionalism, and solidarity continue to strengthen our union and inspire the work that lies ahead. 

To all delegates, alternates, and guests attending the 58th IAFF Convention, I wish you a productive and successful week as we continue strengthening our union, advancing our profession, and improving the lives of the members and families we are entrusted to serve.