Florida Senate - 2025 SB 1212
By Senator DiCeglie
18-01574A-25 20251212__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to firefighter health and safety;
3 amending s. 633.506, F.S.; revising legislative
4 intent; amending s. 633.508, F.S.; requiring the
5 Division of State Fire Marshal within the Department
6 of Financial Services to adopt certain rules;
7 requiring the division to assist in decreasing the
8 frequency and severity of occupational illnesses and
9 fatalities; amending s. 633.520, F.S.; requiring the
10 division to adopt rules relating to mental health best
11 practices; amending ss. 633.522 and 633.526, F.S.;
12 conforming provisions to changes made by the act;
13 providing an effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. Section 633.506, Florida Statutes, is amended to
18 read:
19 633.506 Legislative intent.—It is the intent of the
20 Legislature to enhance firefighter occupational safety and
21 health in this the state through the implementation and
22 maintenance of policies, procedures, practices, rules, work
23 schedules, and standards that reduce the incidence of
24 firefighter employee accidents, firefighter employee
25 occupational diseases, and firefighter employee fatalities
26 compensable under chapter 112, chapter 440, or otherwise. The
27 Legislature further intends that the division develop a means by
28 which the division can identify individual firefighter employers
29 with a high frequency or severity of work-related injuries,
30 occupational illnesses, or suicide; conduct safety inspections
31 of those firefighter employers;, and assist those firefighter
32 employers in the development and implementation of firefighter
33 employee safety and health programs. In addition, it is the
34 intent of the Legislature that the division administer and
35 enforce this part; provide assistance to firefighter employers,
36 firefighter employees, and insurers; and enforce the policies,
37 rules, and standards set forth in this part.
38 Section 2. Present subsection (7) of section 633.508,
39 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (8), a new
40 subsection (7) is added to that section, and subsection (1) and
41 paragraph (a) of present subsection (7) are amended, to read:
42 633.508 Workplace safety; rulemaking authority; division
43 authority.—
44 (1) The division shall assist in making the firefighter
45 employee place of employment a safer place to work and
46 decreasing the frequency and severity of on-the-job injuries,
47 occupational illnesses, and fatalities in such workplace.
48 (7) The division shall adopt rules relating to all of the
49 following:
50 (a) Requiring firefighter employers to issue firefighting
51 gear that does not contain chemical hazards or toxic substances
52 when such gear becomes readily available on the commercial
53 market.
54 (b) Requiring firefighter employers that issue firefighting
55 gear that contains or is manufactured with chemical hazards or
56 toxic substances to provide their firefighter employees notice
57 that the firefighting gear issued contains or is manufactured
58 with chemical hazards or toxic substances.
59 (c) Encouraging firefighter employers to implement work
60 schedules that do not require a firefighter employee’s normally
61 scheduled shifts to exceed 42 hours per workweek.
62 (8)(7) The department shall:
63 (a) Investigate and prescribe by rule what safety devices,
64 safeguards, or other means of protection must be adopted for the
65 prevention of accidents, illnesses, fatalities, and injuries in
66 every firefighter employee place of employment or at any fire
67 scene; determine what suitable devices, safeguards, or other
68 means of protection for the prevention of occupational diseases
69 must be adopted or followed in any or all such firefighter
70 places of employment or at any emergency fire scene; and adopt
71 reasonable rules for the prevention of accidents, the safety,
72 protection, and security of firefighter employees engaged in
73 interior firefighting, and the prevention of occupational
74 diseases and fatalities.
75 Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 633.520, Florida
76 Statutes, is amended to read:
77 633.520 Safety; firefighter employer responsibilities.—
78 (2) The division shall adopt rules to establish:
79 (a) Employers’ cancer prevention best practices related to
80 personal protective equipment, decontamination, fire suppression
81 equipment, and fire stations.
82 (b) Employers’ mental health best practices related to
83 resiliency, stress management, peer support, and access to
84 mental healthcare.
85 Section 4. Subsection (1), paragraph (b) of subsection (2),
86 and paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section 633.522, Florida
87 Statutes, are amended to read:
88 633.522 Firefighter employers; high frequency of work
89 related injuries; corrective plans; workplace safety committees
90 and coordinators; failure to implement a safety and health
91 program; cancellation.—
92 (1) The division shall develop a means to identify
93 individual firefighter employers with a high frequency of
94 firefighter employee work-related injuries, occupational
95 illnesses, and suicide. The division shall conduct safety
96 inspections of those firefighter employers so identified to
97 ensure compliance with this part or the division’s rules and
98 make recommendations based upon current safety and health
99 practices and to assist such firefighter employers in reducing
100 the number of work-related injuries, occupational illnesses, and
101 suicide. The division may not assess penalties as a result of
102 such inspections. Copies of any report made as the result of
103 such an inspection shall be provided to the firefighter employer
104 and its insurer. Firefighter employers shall submit a plan for
105 the correction of any noncompliance issues to the division for
106 approval in accordance with division rule. The division shall
107 promptly review the plan submitted and approve or disapprove the
108 plan within 60 days, or such plan shall be deemed approved. Upon
109 approval by the division, the plan shall be implemented by the
110 firefighter employer. If the plan is not submitted, does not
111 provide corrective actions for all deficiencies, is not
112 complete, or is not implemented, the fire service provider shall
113 be subject to s. 633.526.
114 (2) In order to promote health and safety in firefighter
115 employee places of employment in this state:
116 (b) Each firefighter employer of fewer than 20 firefighter
117 employees with a high frequency or high severity of work-related
118 injuries, occupational illnesses, or suicide, as identified by
119 the division, shall establish and administer a workplace safety
120 committee or designate a workplace safety coordinator who shall
121 establish and administer workplace safety activities in
122 accordance with rules adopted under this section.
123 (3) The division shall adopt rules:
124 (c) Prescribing the duties and functions of the workplace
125 safety committee and workplace safety coordinator which include,
126 but are not limited to:
127 1. Establishing procedures for workplace safety inspections
128 by the committee.
129 2. Establishing procedures for investigating all workplace
130 accidents, safety-related incidents, illnesses, and deaths.
131 3. Evaluating accident prevention, and illness prevention,
132 and suicide prevention programs.
133 4. Prescribing guidelines for the training of safety
134 committee members.
135 Section 5. Section 633.526, Florida Statutes, is amended to
136 read:
137 633.526 Firefighter employer penalties.—If any firefighter
138 employer violates or fails or refuses to comply with this part,
139 or with any rule adopted by the division under such sections in
140 accordance with chapter 120 for the prevention of injuries,
141 accidents, or occupational diseases or with any lawful order of
142 the division in connection with this part, or fails or refuses
143 to furnish or adopt any safety device, safeguard, or other means
144 of protection prescribed by division rule under this part for
145 the prevention of accidents, injuries, suicide, or occupational
146 diseases, or occupational illnesses, the division may:
147 (1) Issue an administrative cease and desist order,
148 enforceable in the circuit court in the jurisdiction where the
149 violation is occurring or has occurred.
150 (2) Assess an administrative fine against a firefighter
151 employer of not less than $100 or more than $1,000 for each
152 violation and each day a violation is committed.
153 (3) Assess against the firefighter employer a civil penalty
154 of not less than $100 nor more than $5,000 for each day the
155 violation, omission, failure, or refusal continues after the
156 firefighter employer has been given written notice of such
157 violation, omission, failure, or refusal. The total penalty for
158 each violation shall not exceed $50,000. The division shall
159 adopt rules requiring penalties commensurate with the frequency
160 or severity of safety violations. Hearings requested under this
161 section shall be conducted in Tallahassee. All penalties
162 assessed and collected under this section shall be deposited in
163 the Insurance Regulatory Trust Fund.
164 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.