Lt. Governor Brian Calley has been busy signing bills while Gov. Rick Snyder is traveling in Asia.
Tuesday, Lt. Gov. Calley signed two House and two Senate bills, one of which allows teens to train to become firefighters.
With the new law in place, fire departments can partner with local schools to train teenagers who are at least 16-years-old. After the teens complete the training, they would be “provisionally licensed” until they’re 18, when they could legally begin fighting fires.
Under the Senate Bill 212, Senator Roger Kahn stated that “fire departments in Michigan apparently are having difficulty recruiting and retaining individuals who will serve as volunteer or part-time firefighters.” Sen. Kahn says that in order to reach out to young people to spark an interest in fire-fighting opportunities, many clubs and organizations have participated in youth training programs. However, Sen. Kahn felt that if the opportunity were opened to more high school students, then more of them would continue with those passions as possible career and/or volunteer opportunities in the future. You can read the full senate bill argument by clicking here.
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