Dec 17, 2013 2 min read

State Rep. Jesse White, D-Cecil, Tuesday introduced legislation that would provide tuition waivers for the children of active volunteer firefighters in an effort to attract more Pennsylvanians to volunteer firefighting.

Such waivers would apply to full-time tuition and fees at community colleges and state-owned institutions of higher learning.

White’s bill, H.B. 1926, would require active volunteer firefighters to serve for three years in order to earn one year of tuition-waiver credit. The earning of credits would occur in three-year increments and would be capped at 12 years of service – or the equivalent of four years of college for the student.

White said he was motivated to take up the issue after discussing recruitment and membership concerns with several local departments. Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Fire and Emergency Services Institute estimates that nearly 400,000 volunteers dropped from the roles since the 1970s.

White said the child would have to meet all admission requirements of the approved institution to which application is made. Further, the student could only be pursuing undergraduate studies leading to an associate degree or a baccalaureate degree. The child would only become eligible for this benefit after he or she has applied for available scholarships and federal and state grants to cover tuition costs.