§ 9.1-203. Powers and duties of Virginia Fire Services Board; limitation
A. The Board shall have the responsibility for promoting the coordination of the efforts of fire service organizations at the state and local levels. To these ends, it shall have the following powers and duties to:
1. Establish a process, involving state and local agencies, public and private, for setting priorities for implementing the Virginia Fire Prevention and Control Plan and coordinating the activities of state and local agencies, public and private, in implementing the Plan;
2. Develop a five-year statewide plan for fire education and training;
3. Establish criteria for the disbursement of any grant funds received from the federal government and any agencies thereof and any other source and to disburse such funds in accordance therewith;
4. Provide technical assistance and advice to local fire departments, other fire services organizations, and local governments;
5. Develop and recommend personnel standards for fire services personnel;
6. Develop and implement a statewide plan for the collection, analysis and reporting of data relating to fires in the Commonwealth, utilizing appropriate resources of other state agencies when deemed proper by the Board;
7. Make recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly concerning legislation affecting fire prevention and protection and fire services organizations in Virginia;
8. Evaluate all state programs or functions which have a bearing on fire prevention and protection and to make to the appropriate government officials any recommendations deemed necessary to improve the level of fire prevention and protection in the Commonwealth;
9. Provide training and information to localities relative to the Statewide Fire Prevention Code;
10. Study and develop alternative means of providing financial support for volunteer fire departments and to make appropriate recommendations regarding the implementation of such alternatives;
11. Conduct training schools for fire service personnel in various areas of the Commonwealth; and
12. Render assistance to local fire departments and volunteer fire companies in training firefighters.
B. Except for those policies established in § 38.2-401, compliance with the provisions of § 9.1-201 and this section and any policies or guidelines enacted pursuant thereto shall be optional with, and at the full discretion of, any local governing body and any volunteer fire department or volunteer fire departments operating under the same corporate charters.
(1978, c. 606, § 9-155; 1981, c. 154; 1984, c. 734; 1986, c. 60; 1988, c. 133; 1997, c. 791; 2001, c. 844.)
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