IAFF Federal Candidate Questionnaire

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Candidate Name:(Required)

Candidate Cell Phone Number(Required)

Office Sought: U.S. Senate or U.S. House (State & District #):(Required)

Party Affiliation:(Required)

Campaign Committee Name:(Required)

Campaign Address:(Required)

City:(Required)

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Campaign Phone Number:(Required)

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Campaign Manager:(Required)

Campaign Manager Email Address:(Required)

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Primary Date:(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Do you have primary opposition? Please check one:(Required)

Yes

Primary Election opponent's name(s):

General Election opponent's name(s):

Have you received the endorsement of any IAFF local(s) or state association for your current campaign?(Required)

Yes

Please list the IAFF local(s) or state association that have endorsed you:

What is your campaign budget?

Primary:(Required)

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Have you ever run for or held an elective office?(Required)

Yes

If Yes, what office and when?

Office

Dates held or year ran:

Were you endorsed by any IAFF locals in any of your previous campaigns?(Required)

Yes

If Yes, which IAFF locals endorsed you and for which campaign?

Did you receive a campaign contribution from the IAFF local(s) or state association?(Required)

Yes

1. Developing Next-Generation Turnout Gear

PFAS chemicals are a recognized group of toxins that have been conclusively linked to cancer and many other serious health conditions. Fire fighters are at particular risk of developing cancer due to their chronic exposure to PFAS through their protective gear. The presence of these toxins in our protective gear is not due to smoke or emergency responses – rather it is intentionally added during the manufacturing process to comply with required performance standards. Even while wearing brand new gear, fire fighters are still exposed to these toxic chemicals that leech into their skin and are inhaled through their normal breathing.

Despite advances in materials science, fire fighters’ protective gear has largely remained unchanged in recent years. This outdated gear is often heavy and cumbersome, hindering fire fighters’ dexterity and range of motion, while also absorbing carcinogens from smoke, and making firefighting more difficult. It is essential to update the design of protective gear to ensure fire fighters perform their jobs as safely and effectively as possible.

The IAFF recognizes the urgent need for fire fighters to be equipped with next-generation turnout gear that is both toxin-free and utilizes the latest advancements in materials science to ensure maximum safety and protection on the job. Due to costly research and development expenses associated with such gear, the IAFF calls on the federal government to provide support to ensure the viability of this endeavor. It is essential that any such research and development is conducted in a collaborative fashion, with fire fighters playing an active role in the process to ensure the end product meets their specific needs and requirements. Next-generation turnout gear must be developed by fire fighters and for fire fighters.

As a member of Congress, would you support funding for research and development of fire fighter protective gear that also protects fire fighters from exposure to PFAS chemicals?

2. Fire Fighter Staffing Standards and Operational Readiness

Independent research by the National Institute of Standards and Technology shows that both crew size and timely arrival directly affect fireground safety and effectiveness. In NIST’s residential fireground field experiments, four-person crews completed critical tasks like search, rescue, and fire attack significantly faster and more effectively than crews of two or three, reducing risk for trapped occupants and for fire fighters on the scene.

Many departments across the country continue to operate with minimal staffing, creating conditions where units arrive with too few personnel to manage critical tasks safely. Repeated incidents show that understaffed responses have led to multiple civilian fatalities and line of duty deaths, including cases where fire fighters were overcome during search and rescue or suppression operations without adequate backup.

These outcomes reflect a consistent pattern: chronic understaffing delays critical tasks, increases danger to responders and civilians, and contributes to preventable deaths. Despite this evidence, there is no consistent federal policy that treats safe fire fighter staffing as a core public safety imperative.

As a member of Congress, would you support federal policies and funding that promote evidence-based fire fighter staffing levels, consistent with NIST research and real-world incident outcomes, to improve emergency response and protect both fire fighters and the public?

3. Protecting the Right to Free Speech

Fire fighters and other public safety officers play a critical role in keeping communities safe, yet their important job-related issues are often misunderstood by the public. When fire fighters speak out about these issues, such as the danger of having low staffing levels or a lack of effective tools and equipment, they often face internal discipline and or even dismissal. Even in states which provide fire fighters with the right to collective bargaining, they may still be subject to arbitrary disciplinary proceedings for exercising their constitutional right to free speech. The IAFF is actively tracking cases of fire fighters being fired or suspended for speaking with their local elected officials, submitting a letter to the editor in a local newspaper, or even supporting a public ballot referendum.

Public safety officers, such as fire fighters, deserve to have their right to free speech protected. The IAFF is advocating for a system that allows fire fighters to seek financial compensation from their employers if they are disciplined for voicing their concerns about job-related issues. These protections would only apply to legitimate job-related issues, while still preserving policies that safeguard the protection of patient data and incident information.

As a member of Congress, would you support legislation protecting public safety officers’ right to free speech without fear of retaliation?

4. Protecting the Right to Collective Bargaining

Fire fighters and emergency medical workers face dangerous conditions while fighting fires, responding to vehicle accidents, and caring for critically ill and injured patients. Unlike private sector, fire and emergency medical workers have no federal protections for their rights to collectively bargain with their employers to improve working conditions and operational readiness. Studies show that when fire fighters and emergency medical workers collaborate with their employers, their communities have lower death rates per fire and more effective emergency responses. Fire fighters and emergency medical workers also enjoy safer working conditions, improved wages, and more secure retirements.

Sadly, this basic labor right is denied to tens of thousands of fire fighters nationwide and is routinely under attack in states that recognize this right. The IAFF firmly supports fire fighters’ rights to form a union, bargain over working conditions, develop a written agreement, and establish a dispute resolution mechanism. The Cooperation Act affirms these rights, while also respecting states’ right to work laws. Passage of the Cooperation Act, and establishing the right to collective bargaining, remains one of the IAFF’s top legislative priorities.

As a member of Congress, would you support establishing nationwide collective bargaining rights for fire fighters?

5. Ensuring All Communities and Fire Fighters are Prepared For The Growing Danger of Wildfires

Over the past few decades, wildfires have evolved from a danger primarily affecting rural and frontier communities into a threat that affects tens of millions of Americans who live or work in the wildland-urban interface. In 2024, wildfires destroyed more than 4,5000 structures and burned nearly 9 million acres across all fifty states. From Maui to Boston and Anchorage to Miami, densely populated cities nationwide were forced to confront wildfires.

Despite the growing frequency of wildfires in communities of all sizes and locations, fire fighters are commonly forced to respond with wildfire-specific no training, and inappropriate protective equipment and tools. Fire fighters cannot continue responding to these fires without critical all-hazards response training and appropriate equipment. Additionally, federal wildfire advisory and coordinating panels continue to exclude local fire fighters. Failing to recognize the growing role played by local/state, and not just federal, fire fighters mean federal wildfire plans will continue to be misinformed and ill-prepared for the realities of today’s wildfires. This lack of appropriate federal planning is also evident in antiquated policies that preclude large numbers of Department of Defense fire fighters from responding to most wildfires, fail to prioritize research into more effective respiratory protections for fire fighters, and limit federal grants to support fire departments in obtaining appropriate wildfire response equipment.

The Wildfire Emergency Preparedness Act seeks to address these issues by ensuring all fire fighters nationwide have access to all-hazards wildfire response training, access to appropriate protective equipment and tools, and giving local/state fire fighters a voice in the federal planning committees and efforts to ensure the federal government is confronting today’s evolving wildfire needs.

As a Member of Congress, would you support policies to ensure all fire fighters are properly trained and equipped to fight wildfires and to ensure local/state fire fighters have a direct voice in the federal planning efforts to address these increasingly frequent and devastating fires?