All fire services in Pennsylvania should be entitled to use the funds that are available to their departments. To that end, Norristown Fire Chief Tom O’Donnell is appealing to voters to say “yes” to a statewide referendum on May 18. The ballot question stemmed from the Senate Resolution 6 Commission’s (SR6) unanimous recommendation to change the Volunteer Loan Assistance Program and add career/combination fire departments, O’Donnell noted. “We’re trying to get Harrisburg to change some archaic laws that exist and open up the program where there’s a windfall of money that municipal fire departments like the Norristown Fire Department and other departments in Montgomery County can take the opportunity to purchase fire apparatus. This is an important topic locally but also across the Commonwealth,” he said.