By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
DELEVAN — U.S. Rep. Nick Langworthy announced Tuesday the Delevan Fire Department had received a $108,594 FEMA grant to purchase new turnout gear.
Langworthy, R-NY 23, made the announcement at the firehall flanked by local officials including Delevan Fire Chief Jeff Holmes, Delevan Mayor John Stumpf and Yorkshire Supervisor Marcia Lexer.
“They will help tremendously,” Holmes said afterward. The fire department plans to buy up to 24 new sets of turnout gear with the grant, he said.
The department purchases a couple of new sets of turnout gear when it can, but some of the protective clothing now in use dates back to 1996, the fire chief said.
The congressman thanked the volunteer firefighter for their service. “The very least we can do is make sure they have the tools they need to do their job safely so they can make it home safely to their families.”
He said he had made it a priority to make sure local fire departments know what support is available to them. He held informational sessions across the district earlier this year.
Besides announcing the grant, Langworthy discussed “a looming federal regulation that will be devastating to our rural fire departments.”
Langworthy said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is proposing to replace fire brigade standards with new regulations that could require facility upgrades and enhanced training requirements.
“While this is a wonderful goal of the proposed regulation, it completely disregards the substantial financial and operational constraints faced by volunteer fire departments,” he said.
In May, Langworthy joined with 41 colleagues in the House in sending a bipartisan letter to OSHA Assistant Secretary Douglas Park expressing concern that the upcoming regulations could have a devastating impact on volunteer fire departments.
Langworthy indicated he and other opponents may seek to overturn the new regulations under the Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning the 1984 Chevron decision which seeks to limit the power of government agencies to issue regulations.
“This was a policy put forward by unelected bureaucrats and thrust on our volunteer fire service,” Langworthy said. Departments that could not afford the various upgrades would be forced to close, he added.
“I’m very concerned,” Langworthy said. “This is a five-alarm fire for the survival of local fire departments.”
He is concerned on another level as well. “It’s going to discourage people from being involved in volunteer fire departments in small communities,” Langworthy said.
“A lot of our fire service will cease to exist.”
The congressman said he plans to involve Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and New York’s other senator, Kirstin Gillibrand in hopes of applying Senate pressure on OSHA as well.
