Labor & Employment (Public Safety)

This bill protects employees who volunteer for emergency services, such as firefighting or emergency medical technician work, from being fired by their public or private employers. It requires workers to notify their employers in writing within 30 days of joining a volunteer unit or before accepting a job offer. If an employee is absent or late due to volunteer duties, they must notify their employer and may need to provide documentation from a volunteer supervisor, but they cannot receive regular pay for that time. Employers must decide whether employees can leave work to respond to emergencies, and employees who are terminated in violation of the law can sue for reinstatement, back pay, and attorney fees within one year.

This bill creates a Montana grant program to fund fire department health and safety equipment. It establishes a special account funded by charitable donations and a $10 application fee, allowing fire departments (created under Title 7, Chapter 33) to apply for grants. Grants can cover up to $10,000 per department annually for items like personal protective equipment, saunas, and shower facilities, with priority given to rural departments and those with smaller budgets. Applications require an itemized list of requested equipment, and the program is administered by the Department of Military Affairs' disaster services division.

This bill (LC 3676) proposed revising public retirement systems to include emergency medical services (EMS) personnel as eligible for retirement benefits. It would have directly affected EMS workers employed by public agencies by expanding their access to retirement coverage previously available to other public employees. The bill aimed to establish specific provisions within retirement systems to accommodate EMS roles but did not advance beyond the drafting stage. The bill was officially withdrawn ("Draft Died in Process") on May 23, 2025, and no policy changes were enacted.

HB 640 would revise the Firefighters' Unified Retirement System (FURS) to allow certain airport authority employees to participate. The bill defines "public safety officer" as an airport authority employee who serves as both a full-paid firefighter and a sworn peace officer. It would permit airport authorities to elect to join FURS for these public safety officers, who are currently covered by the Public Employees' Retirement System. Existing eligible employees would have 90 days to choose whether to remain in PERS or join FURS.