Shenango Valley News

The state Senate approved a bill introduced by Sen. Michele Brooks (R-50) that would enable volunteer firefighters to obtain discounted hunting and fishing licenses in Pennsylvania. Resident adult hunting licenses cost $20.97, and fishing licenses cost $27.97. The legislation would reduce the cost of each to $1 for volunteer firefighters who have served at least the previous 12 months in the commonwealth.

"This is a small, but meaningful, way to show our appreciation to these brave men and women who volunteer their time and risk their lives to make our communities a safer place," Brooks said. "This is not a complete answer to help address the dwindling amount of volunteer firefighters, but it’s my hope that this small benefit is one more way we can help fire companies recruit and retain members."

Brooks has introduced numerous pieces of legislation in both previous legislative sessions and the current one to help alleviate burdens for the commonwealth’s volunteer firefighters. This includes Brooks’ Senate Bill 146, which was signed into law as Act 106 of 2019 and allows for online training for volunteer firefighters so they do not have to use vacation time and travel away from their families in order to complete their training.

In the current legislative session, Brooks also introduced Senate Bill 148, which would provide a $500 state tax credit for an active volunteer firefighter who has at least two years of service and has responded to at least 20% of the volunteer fire company’s emergency calls during the last two-year period. This legislation was unanimously reported from the Senate Finance Committee in March.

Brooks’ Senate Bill 522, providing for discounted hunting and fishing licenses for volunteer firefighters, now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Pennsylvania had as many as 300,000 volunteer firefighters in the 1970s. There currently are approximately 38,000 volunteer firefighters in the commonwealth.

Contact: Adam Gingrich, 717-787-1322