A wrongful-termination case filed by Atlanta’s former fire chief can proceed, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May was asked by Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and the City of Atlanta to throw out the case filed by Kelvin Cochran. But Judge May granted most of Mr. Cochran’s motions, including his primary claims of unconstitutional retaliation; discrimination based on his viewpoint; and violation of his rights to freedom of religion, association and due process.
- PUB DATE: 12/18/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: washington times

Members of the Los Angeles Civil Service Commission voted unanimously Thursday to replace the test the city uses to hire new firefighters, the latest change to a selection process that Mayor Eric Garcetti has struggled to reform in his bid to root out nepotism and diversify the department’s rank and file.
- PUB DATE: 12/18/2015 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: los angeles times

Geneva (IL) Fire Department, pumper. Enforcer cab and chassis; Cummins ISL9 400-hp engine; Waterous CMU 1,500-gpm two-stage pump.

Despite vehement opposition from two board members, Sturtevant trustees Tuesday approved paying the Village of Mount Pleasant $17,000 for 2015 South Shore Fire Department equipment purchases Sturtevant couldn’t afford at the time.

At a Sturtevant Finance Committee meeting last month, committee members voted 2-1 to deny Mount Pleasant the payment. Committee chair Trustee John Johnson disagreed with that decision and conferred with village attorneys to have the matter placed on the village board agenda for a full discussion. Trustees Chris Larsen and Chris Wright – the other members of the Finance Committee – believed Johnson went against both village ordinance and standard operating procedure of the village board.

After SC Johnson announced they were donating $324.000 to the fire department, both Mount Pleasant and Sturtevant saw their costs for 2016 equipment purchases go down considerably so Mount Pleasant asked Sturtevant to forward the $17,000 in 2016 that Sturtevant didn’t pay in 2015.

“I don’t see why this $17,000 is so important that we’re breaking our normal procedure,” Larsen said during the 20-minute discussion that got heated at times. “I am waiting to be convinced, and I just don’t see it.”

But Johnson said Sturtevant has a responsibility to pay the $17,000 now that the village can afford it because of SCJ’s gift to South Shore.

“The $50,000 in the budget was all we could afford at the time, but this gift means we can afford it in 2016,” he said.

In a nutshell, the consolidated fire agreement signed in 2009 includes a formula for financial responsibility for equipment purchases. If only one village approves one or more purchases, that village becomes fully liable for the costs of those items.

The full cost of South Shore equipment came to $1.2 million, and Sturtevant’s portion – around 18 percent – came to about $68,000. When the full Sturtevant board approved the 2015 municipal budget, there was $50,000 marked for those items. Mount Pleasant went forward with the purchases anyway and covered the difference per the contract.

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Out-of-date equipment at the Englewood Fire Department is slated for replacement after the city council approved three deals last week.

Through a state cooperative agreement, the council on Dec. 8 approved a contract for self-contained breathing apparatus face masks not to exceed $55,849 following the trade-in of the old masks; a $33,025 contract for 2016 Ford Expedition SSV; and a $3,995 contract for an Xtended Range Single Channel Transmitter/Receiver System.

The city council plans to purchase eight to 10 new face masks for firefighters each year during the next four years due to new state standards, said City Manager Tim Dacey.

Public Employees Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH) standards for firefighters are enforced by the state Departments of Labor & Workforce Development and state Department of Health.

The new 2016 Ford Expedition would replace a 10-year-old utility vehicle used by the department that unexpectedly stopped working this year, Dacey said.

City officials will have the transmitter/receiver system — that allows firefighters to communicate with each other — installed after the completion of the Jack Drakeford Firehouse, Dacey said. Construction on the firehouse is scheduled to finish in February.

For more information, view www.northjersey.com