Nearly 800 members assembled in Washington, D.C., for the annual Alfred K. Whitehead Legislative Conference to lobby for issues that impact fire fighter health, safety, and benefits.
This conference comes on the heels of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) repeal. Now, fire fighters will receive their full Social Security benefits without penalty.
“Our side, the side we’re on, is us,” said General President Edward Kelly. “It’s about delivering for our mission, for the members of the IAFF, and it’s about what we need to accomplish on Capitol Hill and in statehouses across the United States to make our work safer, more secure, and better enable us to provide for our families.”
Politicians come and go, but the mission of the IAFF stays the same.
We don’t have permanent friends. We don’t have permanent enemies. We have permanent interests.
General President Edward Kelly
“We don’t have permanent friends. We don’t have permanent enemies,” Kelly said. “We have permanent interests.”
This year’s priority issues include advancing:
- Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, which will recognize cancer as a line-of-duty death and ensure the families of fire fighters who lose their battle with cancer will be eligible for the Public Safety Officers Benefits Program (PSOB);
- Public Safety Officers Free Speech Act, which will allow fire fighters to speak publicly about job-related issues without fear of retaliation;
- PFAS Alternatives Act, which would put fire fighters at the center of the development of next-generation, PFAS-free bunker gear;
- Wildfire Preparedness and Response Act to provide training for structural fire fighters to respond in the Wildland Urban Interface and develop a way for federal, state, and local governments to coordinate response;
- And the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, which would establish collective bargaining for fire fighters and emergency medical workers nationwide.
Attendees heard from Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), a longtime ally of the IAFF and its issues. She is a co-sponsor of the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act and has committed to getting the legislation passed this year.
“More than 70 percent of line-of-duty deaths among IAFF members are due to cancer,” Klobuchar said. “Senator [Kevin] Cramer and I joined together to introduce a bill to make sure that fire fighters who die from or become disabled as a result of service-related cancers get the support they have earned even after they retired from the force.”
Representative Stephanie Bice (R-OK) has also signed on to sponsor the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act.
Her support comes from her long history with the fire service. Before entering the political arena, she worked for Oklahoma City Local 157 and witnessed first-hand what fire fighters do in the wake of tragedies like the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
Bice told those in attendance that it was incumbent upon congressional leaders to make sure that those who work so hard to protect their communities get the care and resources they need.
“As we work in Congress to support our local communities, we must ensure that you have the resources you need to do your job safely and effectively,” said Bice. “The IAFF has long advocated for critical legislative priorities that support you and your families, and I want to make sure that we prioritize those efforts.”
She called attention especially to access to preventive services, like cancer screenings, and training.
Representative Val Hoyle (D-OR) stressed the importance of holding those in power accountable for their actions rather than empty words or promises. She warned that those who voted “no” on the WEP/GPO repeal are no friend to fire fighters.
“Everybody wants their picture next to a fire fighter, but if they can’t stand up and clearly say you should have the money that you earned, that your spouse, your widow should get the money that they earned, they don’t deserve your support. I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican, either they’re with you or they’re against you.”
Hoyle is committed to advancing and championing legislation that supports fire fighters, including the Parkinson’s Protection for Firefighters Act. This critical bill advocates for presumptive coverage for fire fighters diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a condition increasingly linked to the hazards of the profession.
Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) said one of the reasons he got into politics was because he wanted to fight for the working-class people he grew up with. He said it was also important to him to fight to preserve America’s core values, like free speech.
That is why he is the Senate sponsor for the Public Safety Officers Free Speech Act.
“Protecting the First Amendment and protecting free speech should bring us all together. When I was Attorney General, I fought like hell for the First Amendment and people’s right to speak their minds and I’m going to continue to do that in the Senate,” said Schmitt. “Unfortunately, our fire fighters have been fired or suspended for simply weighing in at a city council meeting or writing letters to the editor at a local newspaper. That’s wrong and that’s gotta change.”
Protecting the First Amendment and protecting free speech should bring us all together. When I was Attorney General, I fought like hell for the First Amendment and people’s right to speak their minds, and I’m going to continue to do that in the Senate. Unfortunately, our fire fighters have been fired or suspended for simply weighing in at a city council meeting or writing letters to the editor at a local newspaper. That’s wrong and that’s gotta change.
Senator Eric Schmitt
He said he will always be on the side of fire fighters.
Representative Josh Harder (D-CA) said that fire fighter issues were important to him particularly because of all the dangerous wildfires that have occurred over the last couple of decades. One, in particular, the Coral fire, put his own family in danger last year. Harder said that without the hard work of fire fighters, his house would be gone.
He hears from his constituents about the loss, gratitude to fire fighters who put their lives on the line to protect others, and anger with politicians who don’t do enough to invest in fire prevention. That is why he helped the IAFF develop the Wildfire Preparedness and Response Act.
“This year needs to be a year that we are coming together to make progress on making these mega fires a thing of the past,” Harder said. “We can do that by working on legislation like the one I helped draft with the IAFF. It makes sure we can hire more fire fighters, makes sure we have no fire trucks sitting idle at a time of national emergency, making sure we can have wildland fire-related equipment, training fire fighters to respond to the wildland urban interface, and improving coordination.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) represents New York, but he made sure to go with General Secretary-Treasurer Frank Líma to see first-hand the devastation left behind by the recent Los Angeles wildfires because he wanted to understand the full scope of the issue.
Jeffries pledged his support for wildfire-related issues and all of the IAFF’s priorities. But, being from New York, the continued funding for the World Trade Center Health Fund is particularly close to his heart. This fund makes sure that fire fighters who got sick after responding to the site of the former World Trade Center continue to get adequate health care.
“When it comes to the World Trade Center Health Care Fund and making sure that it is funded not just through 2028 but for decades to come or for as long as it’s needed, I just came with one simple message: we will never surrender,” he said. “This is with respect to making sure your healthcare needs are always provided.”
Attendees also heard from Senators Bernie Moreno (R-OH) and Jon Husted (R-OH) and Representatives Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA), John Mannion (D-NY), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Nick LaLota (R-NY), Ro Khanna (D-CA), and Patrick Ryan (D-NY).
And a special dedication was made to Eastern Trustee Mark Ouellette who recently passed away.
Over the next two days, members will focus on lobbying for the keyissues highlighted in this session, as well as those impacting their local communities.
Before attendees left for Capitol Hill, Kelly had some final words of advice. “When you go up to the Hill tomorrow, remember why you’re there,” he said. “You’re talking for your brother fire fighter’s wife. You’re speaking up for your sister fire fighter’s husband.”
“You’re there for your family and your kids.”
