Rural fire departments have more than 140 additional firefighters one year after legislation became law that eliminated the age limit for new volunteers.
House Bill 2005, authored by Rep. Mike Sanders, took effect Nov. 1, 2015. The law eliminated the 45-year-old age limit for new firefighters by giving them the option of joining the system without the requirement that they be added to the state’s pension plan. Sanders said he first became interested in drafting the legislation because research showed a nationwide and statewide decrease in the number of volunteer firefighters. Prior state law, however, barred willing volunteers over the age of 45 from becoming firefighters because the state’s pension and retirement plan could not afford them.