CHAPTER 150
SENATE BILL No. 543
An Act concerning certain fire districts, fire departments
and fire companies; relating to
volunteer members thereof; amending K.S.A. 12-3915, 19-3601a,
19-3612e, 19-3616,
19-3620, 80-1501, 80-1514a, 80-1531, 80-1544, 80-1904, 80-1913, and
80-1917 and
K.S.A. 2001 Supp. 80-1921 and repealing the existing
sections.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 12-3915 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 12-
3915. The governing body of any fire district created pursuant to
this act
shall have the authority to:
(a) Levy taxes and special assessments as
provided by law. Except as
provided by K.S.A. 12-3913, and amendments thereto, the
governing
body shall fix the amount of the tax, not to exceed 11 mills, to be
levied
upon all taxable tangible property in the consolidated fire
district;
(b) enter into contracts;
(c) acquire and dispose of real and
personal property;
(d) acquire, construct, reconstruct,
equip, operate, maintain and fur-
nish buildings to house fire-fighting equipment;
(e) acquire, operate and maintain
fire-fighting equipment;
(f) issue general obligation bonds and
no-fund warrants;
(g) pay compensation and salaries to fire
district employees;
(h) exercise eminent domain;
(i) pay the operation and maintenance
expenses of the fire district
and other expenses legally incurred by the district;
(j) select regular employees, provide for
their compensation and fur-
nish quarters for such employees if deemed desirable;
(k) provide for the organization of
volunteer members who may be
compensated for attending fires or meetings
fighting fires, responding to
emergencies or attending meetings;
(l) provide special clothing and
equipment for such employees and
volunteers;
(m) insure such employees and volunteers
against accidental death
and injury in the performance of their duties; and
(n) do all things necessary or desirable
to maintain and operate such
department so as to furnish fire protection for the inhabitants of
the
district and otherwise effectuate the purposes of this act.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 19-3601a is hereby
amended to read as follows: 19-
3601a. Upon the creation of a fire district under the provisions of
K.S.A.
19-3601 et seq., and amendments thereto, the governing body
shall have
the authority to:
(a) Enter contracts;
(b) acquire and dispose of real and
personal property;
(c) acquire, construct, reconstruct,
equip, operate, maintain and fur-
nish buildings to house fire fighting equipment;
(d) acquire, operate and maintain fire
fighting equipment;
(e) issue bonds as provided in this
act;
(f) pay compensation and salaries to fire
district employees;
(g) pay compensation to volunteer
members of the fire district for
fighting fires, responding to emergencies or attending
meetings;
(g) (h) exercise
eminent domain;
(h) (i) pay the
operation and maintenance expenses of the fire district
and any other expenses legally incurred by the fire district;
and
(i) (j) do all
other things necessary to effectuate the purposes of this
act.
Sec. 3. K.S.A. 19-3612e is hereby
amended to read as follows: 19-
3612e. (a) The governing body of Reno county fire district
No. 2 and the
governing body of Sedgwick county fire district No. 1, both created
under
K.S.A. 19-3601 et seq., and amendments thereto, shall have the
power to
levy a tax in an amount to be determined by such governing body
upon
all taxable tangible property in the district for the purpose of
paying:
(1) Compensation to fire district
employees,;
(2) The expenses of operating and
maintaining the fire district and;
(3) compensation to volunteer members
of the fire district for fighting
fires, responding to emergencies or attending meetings;
and
(4) other legal expenses of the
fire district.
(b) Whenever the governing body of
the fire district determines it is
necessary to increase the amount levied in the next preceding year,
the
governing body shall give notice of its intent to increase such
levy by
adopting a resolution which states the amount currently levied and
the
amount proposed to be levied. The resolution shall be published
once
each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general
circula-
tion in the fire district. If within 30 days after the last
publication, a
petition signed by not less than 5% of the qualified electors in
the fire
district is filed in the office of the county election officer
requesting an
election thereon no levy in an amount in excess of the amount
levied in
the next preceding year shall be made unless the question of the
levy
shall be submitted to and approved by a majority of the voters of
the fire
district voting at an election called by the governing body. Such
election
shall be called and held in the manner provided under the
provisions of
K.S.A. 10-120, and amendments thereto.
Sec. 4. K.S.A. 19-3616 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 19-
3616. Upon the creation of a fire district pursuant to K.S.A.
19-3613, and
amendments thereto, the governing body of the fire district shall
have
the authority to:
(a) Enter contracts;
(b) acquire, by lease or purchase, and
dispose of real and personal
property;
(c) acquire, by lease or purchase,
construct, reconstruct, equip, op-
erate, maintain and furnish buildings to house fire-fighting
equipment;
(d) acquire, by lease or purchase,
operate and maintain fire-fighting
equipment;
(e) issue bonds, if approved by the board
of county commissioners,
as provided in K.S.A 19-3601b, and amendments thereto;
(f) pay compensation and salaries to fire
district employees;
(g) pay compensation to volunteer
members of the fire district for
fighting fires, responding to emergencies or attending
meetings;
(g) (h) issue
no-fund warrants;
(h) (i) exercise
eminent domain;
(i) (j) pay the
operation and maintenance expenses of the fire district
and any other expenses legally incurred by the fire district;
(j) (k) prepare
and adopt a budget, subject to the approval of the
board of county commissioners; and
(k) (l) do all
other things necessary to effectuate the purposes of this
act.
Sec. 5. K.S.A. 80-1501 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1501. (a) Any township or county may join with a municipality in
the
maintenance of a fire department for the prevention and fighting of
fires
within their boundaries. The cost of equipment and maintenance,
the
payment of compensation to firefighters
employees of the fire department,
the rent or purchase of buildings shall be paid in such proportion
as
agreed upon by the parties. The supervision and control of the
depart-
ment shall be with the governing body of the municipality if the
munic-
ipality joins with a township or county. The fire department
members
may be paid or may be volunteers and shall be subject to the
limitations
of this section and such rules and regulations as the
municipalities adopt.
Volunteer members may be paid compensation for fighting fires,
respond-
ing to emergencies or attending meetings. Such departments,
when or-
ganized, may incorporate as firefighters' relief associations, and
such as-
sociations shall come within the purview and be subject to the
provisions
of and entitled to the rights under article 17, chapter 40, of the
Kansas
Statutes Annotated and amendments thereto.
(b) When a municipality and a township
join, the agreements shall
be entered into by the municipality by ordinance and by the
township or
county by resolution, and the agreement as set out in the ordinance
and
resolution shall be signed by the mayor of the city and attested by
the
city clerk and, in the case of a township shall be signed by the
township
trustee and attested by the township clerk and, in the case of a
county
shall be signed by the chairperson of the board of county
commissioners
and attested by the county clerk. The agreement shall state the
amount
each party shall contribute, the rules and regulations governing
the de-
partment, and such other matter as may be necessary to
fully set out
specify the duties and responsibilities of the
parties, and. The agreement
may be amended or changed or added to by mutual agreement of
the
parties in the same manner as that in which the original contract
was
entered into. Such agreement may be terminated if
one party passes or
adopts an ordinance or resolution declaring its intention to carry
out the
agreement no longer. When an agreement is terminated, one party
may
pay the other for its share of the equipment or apparatus or the
apparatus
may be sold. Any money in the treasury shall be divided pro rata as
it was
paid in into the treasury. No election
shall be required to authorize the
township board, board of county commissioners or governing body of
any
municipality to enter into such agreement, but the township board,
board
of county commissioners or governing body of a municipality shall
have
the power to decide whether to enter into such contract.
(c) The governing body of any joint fire
department created pursuant
to this section may reorganize itself as a consolidated fire
district in the
manner provided for the consolidation of fire districts pursuant to
K.S.A.
1997 2001 Supp. 12-3910 et seq., and
amendments thereto.
Sec. 6. K.S.A. 80-1514a is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1514a. Upon the creation of a fire district under the provisions of
K.S.A.
80-1512 et seq., the governing body shall have the authority
to:
(a) Enter contracts;
(b) acquire and dispose of real and
personal property;
(c) acquire, construct, reconstruct,
equip, operate, maintain and fur-
nish buildings to house fire fighting equipment;
(d) acquire, operate and maintain fire
fighting equipment;
(e) issue bonds as provided in this
act;
(f) pay compensation and salaries to fire
district employees;
(g) pay compensation to volunteer
members of the fire district for
fighting fires, responding to emergencies or attending
meetings;
(g) (h) exercise
eminent domain;
(h) (i) pay the
operation and maintenance expenses of the fire district
and other expenses legally incurred by the fire district; and
(i) (j) do all
other things necessary to effectuate the purposes of this
act.
Sec. 7. K.S.A. 80-1544 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1544. (a) The governing body of such fire district shall have full
direction
and control over the operation of such fire department and may
select
regular employees, provide for their compensation and furnish
quarters
for such employees if deemed desirable. The governing body also
may
provide for the organization of volunteer members of such
department,
to be compensated at a specified rate when attending
fires for fighting
fires, responding to emergencies or attending meetings. In
addition, the
governing body may provide special clothing and equipment for
such
employees and volunteers, may insure such employees and
volunteers
against accidental death and injury in the performance of their
duties,
and may do all other things necessary or desirable to maintain and
operate
such department so as to furnish fire protection for the
inhabitants of
such district. In addition to the powers granted by this
section, the gov-
erning body shall have any powers granted to a fire district
under K.S.A.
80-1514a, and amendments thereto. Each of the members of the
govern-
ing body may receive as compensation for services rendered in an
amount
determined by the governing body as provided by K.S.A. 80-207,
and
amendments thereto.
(b) The auditing board for the fire
district shall meet once each
month on the date designated by the board to examine and audit all
claims
against the fire district and shall file their annual report with
the county
clerk for the approval of the board of county commissioners before
Jan-
uary 31 of the succeeding year. No claim against any township fire
district
shall be paid until approved by the auditing board. All claims
approved
by the auditing board shall be recorded by the clerk of the fire
district in
a book to be kept for that purpose. Any township officer serving on
a fire
district auditing board shall receive for such services in
attending to town-
ship fire district business an amount to be fixed by the governing
body of
the fire district as provided by K.S.A. 80-207, and amendments
thereto.
Sec. 8. K.S.A. 80-1904 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1904. The township board shall have full direction and control over
the
operation of such township fire department, and
may. The governing body
shall have the power to:
(1) Select regular employees,
provide for their compensation, and
furnish quarters for such employees and their families if deemed
desir-
able; and may also
(2) provide for the organization
of volunteer members of such de-
partment, to be compensated at a specified rate when
attending fires, and
may and pay compensation to such members for
fighting fires, responding
to emergencies or attending meetings;
(3) provide special clothing and
equipment for such employees and
volunteers, and may;
(4) insure such employees and
volunteers against accidental death
and injury in the performance of their duties, and
may; and
(5) do all other things necessary
or desirable to maintain and operate
such department so as to furnish fire protection for the
inhabitants of
such township.
Sec. 9. K.S.A. 80-1913 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1913. Said The township board may organize
a fire company and prescribe
rules of duty and the government thereof, and make all necessary
appro-
priations therefor and for the maintenance and operation of its
equipment
from the general fund of the township and to compensate
employees of
the fire company. The board may pay compensation to volunteer
members
of the fire company for fighting fires, responding to
emergencies or at-
tending meetings.
Sec. 10. K.S.A. 80-1917 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1917. The township board shall have full direction and control over
the
operation of such township fire department, and
may. The board shall
have the power to:
(a) Select regular employees,
provide for their compensation, and
furnish quarters for such employees and their families if deemed
desir-
able; and may also
(b) provide for the organization
of volunteer members of such de-
partment, to be compensated at a specified rate when
attending fires, and
may and pay compensation to such members for
fighting fires, responding
to emergencies or attending meetings;
(c) provide special clothing and
equipment for such employees and
volunteers, and may;
(d) insure such employees and
volunteers against accidental death
and injury in the performance of their duties, and
may; and
(e) do all other things necessary
or desirable to maintain and operate
such department so as to furnish fire protection for the
inhabitants of
such township.
Sec. 11. K.S.A. 2001 Supp. 80-1921
is hereby amended to read as
follows: 80-1921. (a) The township board of any such
township shall have
full direction and control over the operation of such township fire
de-
partment and shall. The board shall have the
power to:
(1) Provide for the organization
of volunteer members of such de-
partment, to be compensated at a specified rate when
attending fires, and
may and pay compensation to such members for
fighting fires, responding
to emergencies or attending meetings;
(2) provide special clothing and
equipment for such volunteers, and
may;
(3) insure such volunteers against
accidental death and injury in the
performance of their duties, and may;
and
(4) do all other things necessary
or desirable to maintain and operate
such department so as to furnish fire protection to the inhabitants
of such
township.
(b) Such township board may levy
an annual tax on all the taxable
tangible property in such township for the purpose of paying the
expenses
of equipping, operating and maintaining such fire department. Any
tax
levy authorized by this section shall be in addition to the tax
levy made
to pay for no-fund warrants issued pursuant to K.S.A. 80-1920,
and
amendments thereto. Except as otherwise specifically provided in
this act,
the provisions of K.S.A. 80-1906 and 80-1907, and amendments
thereto,
shall apply to townships adopting the provisions of this act.
(c) In addition to the tax levy
herein authorized by subsection (b),
the
township board of Kickapoo, Tonganoxie, Easton, Fairmount,
Sherman
and Delaware townships located in Leavenworth county may levy an
an-
nual tax of not to exceed two mills on all the taxable tangible
property in
such township for the purpose of purchasing additional equipment
for
such fire department. If a petition in opposition to the tax levy
authorized
herein, signed by not less than 5% of the qualified electors of
such town-
ship is filed with the township board of such township, within 40
days
after the effective date of this act July 1,
1971, the tax levy shall not be
made unless first approved as a question submitted at the next
general
election or at a special election called for the purpose of
submitting the
question. If such a petition is filed, the township board may cause
to be
placed on the ballot at the next general election the question of
whether
such tax shall be levied. If a majority of the votes cast and
counted at such
election are in favor of the resolution, such governing body may
levy the
tax authorized herein. Upon this act taking effect it shall
be published
once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper
having general
circulation in the township.
Sec. 12. K.S.A. 19-3620 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 19-
3620. The governing body shall have full direction and control over
the
operation of such district fire department and
may. The governing body
shall have the power to:
(1) Select regular employees,
provide for their compensation and fur-
nish quarters for such employees if deemed desirable, and
may also;
(2) provide for the organization
of volunteer members of such de-
partment to be compensated at a specified rate when
attending fires and
may and pay compensation to such members for
fighting fires, responding
to emergencies or attending meetings;
(3) provide special clothing and
equipment for such employees and
volunteers, and may;
(4) insure such employees and
volunteers against accidental death
and injury in the performance of their duties, and
may; and
(5) do all things necessary or
desirable to maintain and operate such
department so as to furnish fire protection for the inhabitants of
such
district.
Sec. 13. K.S.A. 80-1531 is hereby
amended to read as follows: 80-
1531. The salaries for each class of firemen
firefighters, supervisor, pen-
sion, vacation pay and other benefits in any special fire
protection district
shall correspond with and equal the payments made for like services
in
the conduct of other fire departments of such township, including
hours
of employment. If volunteer fire fighters are deemed advisable by
the
township board of such township in any special district, such board
shall
arrange training, drills, part time pay
compensation to such volunteers for
fighting fires, responding to emergencies or attending
meetings, insurance
and accept full responsibility therefor and charge applicable
portion
thereof to the special district herein authorized.
Sec. 14. K.S.A. 12-3915, 19-3601a,
19-3612e, 19-3616, 19-3620, 80-
1501, 80-1514a, 80-1531, 80-1544, 80-1904, 80-1913 and 80-1917
and
K.S.A. 2001 Supp. 80-1921 are hereby repealed.
Sec. 15. This act shall take effect and be in
force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
Approved May 17, 2002.
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