Subchapter VII – Apparatus and Equipment
- SPS 330.09 – Apparatus
- Several provisions are amended for increased readability and clarity. This section makes the following significant revisions:
- Revises the term “fire vehicle” to “fire apparatus” to reflect industry terminology.
- Amends provisions to reflect NFPA and OSHA standards.
- Clarifies the requirement for helmets when personnel are seated in an open cab.
- Eliminates the manufactured date of “April 1, 1991” relating to fire apparatus.
- Specifies requirements relating to preventative maintenance programs.
- Revises inspection requirements from weekly to monthly for fire apparatus and equipment while retaining the requirement for inspection within 24 hours after use.
- Creates an exception from NFPA standards that require the automatic replacement of apparatus tires every 7 years. The proposed rule allows replacement when inspection of the tire shows signs of damage or wear or tread exceeds manufacturer standards.
- Amends a provision to alleviate confusion by removing the term “directly responsible” relating to a driver of a fire apparatus and rephrases the provision to require drivers to operate in a safe and prudent manner in all conditions. The same term is removed in a provision that states a supervising fire officer is “directly responsible” for the actions of the driver of a fire apparatus. Nothing in the proposed rule prohibits a fire department from developing internal policies and assigning “direct responsibility”.
- Repeals a provision relating to “emergency medical specialists”. This term is outdated. Further, DSPS does not regulate emergency medical personnel. The Department of Health Services regulates emergency medical personnel and ambulance apparatus pursuant to ch. 256, Stats. - SPS 330.10 – Portable Equipment
- This section relates to portable equipment, including the inspection of equipment and requirements for life safety rope and makes the following significant revisions:
- Revises inspection requirements from weekly to monthly for equipment carried on fire apparatus while maintaining the requirement for inspection within 24 hours after use.
- Amends a reference under ch. SPS 332 relating to a NFPA standard and revises it to ch. SPS 330. - Repeals a note referencing ch. SPS 314 relating to the inspection and testing of fire extinguishers and incorporates the reference within the rule. - Moves the requirements for life safety rope from section 330.13 to section 330.10 and makes the following revisions:
- Eliminates a requirement to use unused life safety rope for certain operations.
- Eliminates a requirement to destroy training rope after use or showing signs of wear.
- Creates a provision that allows for the reuse of life safety rope under certain conditions.
- Creates an exception from the annual recertification requirements for unused life safety rope, harnesses, and hardware.
Subchapter VIII – Protective Clothing and Equipment
- SPS 330.11 – Protective Clothing and Equipment
This section relates to the minimum standards for personal protective clothing and equipment and does the following:
- Repeals and recreates the current “Protective clothing and equipment” section to improve readability and reflect OSHA standards.
- Incorporates OSHA language and amends for format and readability.
- Renumbers s. 330.13 (3) to 330.11 (2), “Eye, Face, and Hearing Protection”, in order to incorporate all protective equipment provisions under the same subchapter. - SPS 330.12 – Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
- This section relates to the OSHA-required Respiratory Protection program and makes the following significant revisions:
- Incorporates an OSHA requirement that fire departments must ensure that all fire fighters use SCBA when engaged in interior structural fire fighting or entering a hazardous atmosphere.
- Adds “quantitative” fit testing as an alternative method to “qualitative” fit testing for checking effectiveness of the seal of the SCBA facepiece.
- Clarifies that fit testing needs to be repeated in the event a fire fighter has a change in facial structure that could affect the seal of the facepiece, in accordance with OSHA standards.
- Section SPS 330.12 (2) is repealed and recreated to improve readability.
- Section SPS 330.12 (6) (a) is amended to include the option to use a portable radio for a means of continuous communication. - SPS 330.13 – Personal alert safety system (PASS)
- This section relates to the standards for PASS devices and makes the following significant revisions:
- Moves the Life Safety Ropes, Harness, and Hardware section and under the portable equipment section.
- Moves the Eye, Face, and Hearing section and under the protective equipment section.
- Amends certain provisions for clarity and readability.
Subchapter IX – Emergency Operations
- SPS 330.14 – Emergency operations
- This section relates to the incident management, safety, and requirements for rescuing firefighters at emergency operations and makes the following significant revisions:
- Revises the term “incident command system” to “incident management system” to reflect industry terminology.
- Deletes and recreates a note relating to the source for NIMS training information.
- Revises the term “office in charge” to “incident commander” to reflect industry terminology and specifies the responsibility and authority to ensure overall safety at the scene of an emergency operation.
- Revises the term “qualified personnel” to an “incident safety officer” and requires the incident commander to assign an incident safety officer with specific responsibilities and authority.
- Revises a note relating to the source for high-visibility safety apparel information.
Subchapter XI – Medical
- 330.15 – Physical and medical capabilities
- Removes a note determined to be redundant, which states that the intent of this chapter is not to require annual physicals for fire fighters. The current rule does not include that requirement.
Subchapter XII – Member Assistance Referral Program
- 330.16 – Member assistance referral program
- Revises a provision to include mental health in the current list of health conditions that are to be included in a written member assistance referral program.
- Amends a provision to clarify that the employee assistance referral program includes “members” of a fire department in addition to fire fighters.
Summary of, and comparison with, existing or proposed federal regulation:
A comparison of ch. SPS 330 to counterpart OSHA provisions (e.g., 29 CFR 1903.3, 1903.8, 1903.11, 1904.4, 1910.95, 1910.132, 1910.133, 1910.134, 1910.40, 1910.151, 1910.155, 1910.156, and 1912.5) indicated that in most instances, SPS 330 meets OSHA requirements. In some cases, the language was modified in certain provisions to incorporate current OSHA language and conform to requirements. Comparison with rules in adjacent states:
None of the four adjacent states have administrative rules that are specifically applicable to public fire department employees.
Illinois: All public employees are covered by the Illinois Occupational Safety and Health Act, which incorporates the federal OSHA standards as state administrative rules. Illinois reserves the right to deviate from OSHA standards if it promulgates alternate standards that are “at least as effective in providing safe and healthful employment and places of employment as a federal standard.”
Iowa: Iowa’s occupational safety and health standards are promulgated to conform to federal OSHA standards. Both public and private sector employees, including fire fighters, are subject to these OSHA-based standards.
Michigan: Michigan’s occupational safety and health standards adopt most federal OSHA standards by reference and differ only in the area of child labor. The Michigan standards apply to public and private employers, as well as all places of employment except domestic employment and in mines.
Minnesota: Minnesota’s occupational safety and health standards incorporate 29 CFR 1910 by reference and apply to public and private employers, as well as all places of employment except those where working conditions fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal government. Summary of factual data and analytical methodologies:
The department established a six-member advisory committee to review SPS 330 provisions, OSHA requirements related to fire department safety and health, and the national standards incorporated by reference in SPS 330. The department also reviewed similar rules in neighboring states and consulted with members of associations and local volunteer fire departments to ensure the proposed revisions would not impose an undue hardship on these agencies.
Analysis and supporting documents used to determine effect on small business or in preparation of economic impact analysis:
The proposed rules were posted on the Department of Safety and Professional Services’ website for 14 days to solicit comments from businesses, representative associations, local governmental units, and individuals that may be affected by the rules.
