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Austin Firefighters Association Donate to Tommy Rutherford Brother and Sisters, Brother Tommy Rutherford and his wife Amanda are still in the hospital healing from significant injuries from their car collision. Tommy will most likely be in a wheel chair for a while due to injuries to both feet and his back. The C Shift crew at ARFF is organizing work parties to build wheelchair ramps, sidewalks, shower enclosures, retaining walls, and other items to make life a bit easier for him and Amanda when they return home. Duke Chandler is heading this project up and will need laborers (skilled and unskilled) beginning Thursday the 24th (starting at 1400) and all-day Friday the 25th. Please call Duke Chandler at 512-577-5784 for the address and more info. Please contact Duke If you can donate any of the following Materials: 1. 240 feet of 1x4 forming board 2. 500 feet of 2x4 forming board 3. 115 feet of 3/8in by 6x6 mesh by 42in wide 4. 300 feet of ¾ in rebar 5. 5 x 5ft rebar stirrups, 5 x 4ft rebar stirrups, 5 x 3ft rebar stirrups 6. 12 to 14 yards of 5 sack mix (concrete) Please contact Duke if you can donate any of the following Equipment: 1. Rock Saw 2nd Annual Scramble Against Cancer Brother's & Sister's, As most of you know by now, on May 15th 2016, FF Ryan Endicott (L8C) experienced a seizure while at home. This was an unexpected event and occurred the day after his 31st birthday. After undergoing a multitude of tests, Ryan received the words from the doctor that no one wants to hear, "you have cancer." To assist Ryan in his time of need AFD came together and raised over $38,000 in the first annual Scramble Against Cancer Golf Tournament. Fast forward one year and the great news is that Ryan has been declared cancer FREE!!!! This could NOT have happened without all the support to make this tournament a HUGE success (even with all the rain) and raise money to get treatment that insurance would not cover!! Ryan still has some hurdles too jump before he will be allowed to full duty status. This year's tournament will help him continue to fight without the stress of money, to get back on the truck. Unfortunately, Ryan will not be the only AFD firefighter that will have to battle cancer like this! After so many positive comments and requests to continue this tournament on an annual basis, we are doing it, "2nd annual"!! All of the money raised from this golf tournament will go into a special fund within the Relief and Outreach fund, to help our own AFD firefighter's that have to battle cancer. Ryan is proof that there is medical treatment that works, that insurance will NOT cover! So, by having this fund we can give money to help curve cost with, non-covered treatment, very expensive deductibles and medication. So with this being said, we now have the 2nd annual Scramble against Cancer golf tournament on September 18th at the Onion Creek Golf Club, to help Ryan and other AFD firefighters with medical bills and other associated expenses. The Scramble against Cancer Golf Tournament, is a fun way, we can help raise money for current and future needs, to help our own with the battle. This will be a shotgun start tournament starting at 1:30 and the dinner, music, and silent auction will start around 6:00pm. The three ways you can participate in this event are: 1) For golfers...by signing up for the foursome golf tournament. (Your registration also includes the "Bands, Brew, & BBQ and Silent auction tickets.") 2) For NON-golfers and Golfers Family...by attending the Bands Brew & BBQ. This will also include a big Silent auction. The dinner will be BBQ brisket, sausage, and turkey cooked by the one and only Quinn Tiemann. We encourage you to pre-purchase your tickets for $15 per person. This will help determine the amount of food to be purchased and prepared. Don't miss out on a fun filled evening while supporting our own. Seating is limited to 300. 3) B-shift BBQ Wagon. This will include 1lb each of Brisket, Sausage, and Turkey. Also included is a quart of beans and potato salad, along with pickles, and onions. There will be more food (adding turkey) than last year so one order should feed one crew of 4 FF's. Registration is open for the tournament, and for the Bands, Brew & BBQ. So get your 4some together and signed up for one of the best events of the year! We did fill up last year and had to turn away several teams (limited to 36 teams), so sign up soon to make sure you get in. You will find the link below, that will take you to the website to register your team and/or purchase tickets for the Band, Brew, & BBQ. This event is being run through the Firefighters Relief and Outreach Fund. This is a 501.C3 fund, so all contributions will be tax deductible. 100% of all proceeds raised during this event will go to any AFD firefighter than needs help fighting their fight against cancer! Click on the link below to register for the scramble tournament, B-shift wagon, or to make a donation. https://squareup.com/store/austin-firefighters-relief-and-outreach-fund Click on the link below for event information and times: http://www.austinfirefightersfund.org/index.cfm?section=21&pagenum=152 If you don't golf but would like to help with the tournament please call me. We could use a few more people to help with logistics. Feel free to contact me with any question, and thank you for supporting this cause!! Tommy Mobley L08C (512)974-0008 sta # (512)748-0488 cell #
8-18-2017 Tommy Rutherford Update Brother and Sister Firefighters, Currently both Tommy and Amanda are struggling with appetite and pain management making rest an issue. Family is requesting a hold on visits until further notice. The Rutherfords are very thankful for the sentiment and the outpouring of care, but in dire need of time for rest and recovery. The best thing we can do as a fire family is allow them the time to get through this first hurdle. Members are still in contact with and addressing any immediate issues that arise. FS Tommy Rutherford (ARFF C shift) and his wife Amanda were in a serious collision last night around 2130 between Burnet and Marble Falls. They are both currently in Seton Medical Center Williamson hospital. Tommy has sustained serious injuries that will require multiple surgeries over the weeks ahead. He is under heavy sedation for pain management. Amanda remains in serious condition in ICU Please keep Tommy and his wife in your prayers and thoughts. Voting Results for Motion 17-6 Based on the results of the online voting - Motion 17-6 - Honorary Membership for Premal Amin has passed. On behalf of the Officers, Executive Board and all of the Brothers and Sisters of the Austin Firefighters Association, Local 975, we would like to officially welcome Premal Amin as an Honorary Member of Local 975. Thank you to all who voted. Please click here to view results. Voting Results for Motion 17-5 Based on the results from the online voting - Motion 17-5 - Collective Bargaining Term Clarification has passed. Thank you to all who voted. Please click here to view results. 2017 AFA 911 Events Schedule 2017 AFA 9/11 Events Schedule
7:30 a.m.: Annual memorial service to remember those firefighters who lost their lives on September 11. Buford Fire Tower on Lady Bird Lake, Location: Cesar Chavez and Congress. Austin Firefighters Association will hold their annual memorial to remember all who fell on September 11, 2001. This ceremony also incorporates a remembrance of Austin Firefighters, active and retired, who have passed away in the last year. The event will take place at Buford Tower. The ceremony will include the Austin Firefighter Honor Guard, Emergency Services Pipes and Drums Association and AFD Quint 1.
(Firefighters from Austin and surrounding areas have been participating in this Memorial Stair Climb every year since that tragic day in 2001. The first climb actually took place the day after the tragedy at the AFD William Roberts Training Academy during the training of Cadet Class #106.) Location: 517 S. Pleasant Valley Rd.
12:00 p.m. : Bagpipes and Drums. Hosted by the Texas Capitol. Emergency Service Pipes and Drums Association (ESPADA) will play in the Texas State Capitol Rotunda. Location: State Capitol Rotunda
NEW 2017 911 SHIRT WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON AT AFA UNION STORE FOR ONLY $15.00 LIMITED QUANTITIES. 7-29-2017 AFA Membership Update
Brother and Sister Firefighters,
I have heard there are concerns among some of the membership
about the AFA support of ESD4 firefighter and ESD4 Local 4848 President Drew
Garcia in his bid to challenge his disqualification from the ESD4 merger
process. Some of the concerns -Why helping out a non-member? -Will this support harm AFA membership issues, especially during bargaining? I believe that the limited support we are pursuing for FF Garcia has helped AFA membership issues. The issues that surround the discharge of ESD4 FF Garcia are essentially the same issues that we have censured the Fire Chief for, over punishment and problems with due process. These problems have plagued the AFA membership for some time now (not the least of which is discipline for vehicle accidents) and are now receiving attention across a broad spectrum of the community. I have heads of community organizations and City Council members, Travis County Commissioners and others calling and asking how to help FF Garcia. During these conversations they are also learning about the importance of our issues and they are more supportive than ever. Many of these politicians and community organizers know FF Garcia personally. The community at large is driving the call to reinstate FF Garcia back into the process. Also, the ESD merger template is in the AFA/COA Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). One of the more important functions of the AFA Eboard is the protection of the CBA. The disqualification of a candidate falls under appendix C of the CBA, requiring an empanelment of the labor/management board. This was not done until after the decision was made; it was a unilateral decision by Command Staff, and therefore was a CBA violation. The ESD Merger Template contemplates standards that must be met but also a fair process for those who participate. The promise of fair treatment is important, not only to the ESD4 merger but also for potential future mergers. The main evidence against FF Garcia can be easily explained if the investigators would have simply called FF Garcia and asked him to explain the inconsistencies, but they did not. Much like investigations against our own members, no exculpatory evidence was brought forward. As the investigated was nearing its end, Command Staff never reached out to Drew for explanation to attempt to clear up inconsistencies in their findings. For instance, during ESD4 merger workgroup sessions, FF Garcia advocated that AFD had access to all of the ESD4 personnel files so they could complete a picture of ESD4 firefighters. If he was looking to hide the event, why would FF Garcia advocate for AFD to look into his personnel file? The Command Staff is doubling down on their personal attacks against FF Garcia. The latest is that he denied 5 times the event before admitting to it As soon as FF Garcia understood what the investigators were inquiring about, he admitted to the event and explained his confusion in answering the question. To be fair, in the end only FF Garcia knows for certain if he intentionally misrepresented himself or did not understand the question correctly when he answered. Having worked with FF Garcia on this project for over a year, I believe him when he says that his mistake was unintentional. History of the ESD Merger Template and the ESD4 Merger
In terms of bargaining, the first two bargaining sessions were rough but the last two have been very civil and productive. The best way to understand what is going on in bargaining is to watch the videos and judge for yourself. You do have permission to watch the videos, vote online and surf the www.local975.org website while on duty, as long as this does not take away from your regular duties. I would recommend doing this as a crew so you can discuss among yourselves and provide your feedback to bargaining team members. I hope this eases any concerns you might have had. Please contact me directly if you have further questions or would like me to stop by for a station visit.
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association
Firefighter Cancer Screening Dog Trial Firefighter Cancer Screening Dog Trial AFA Members After additional vetting and reading the totality of Cancer Screening Dog Trail we wanted to update our Disclaimer so that members are able to make informed decisions regarding this test.
Local 975 Disclaimer: The cancer screening dog trial is not FDA approved and is still experimental. Members who choose to participate must understand that there are false positives, as well as false negatives ("missed subjects"). AFA Local 975 is not offering medical advice and is merely attempting to facilitate ordering and testing for our members who wish to participate. There are several scientific studies conducted on the accuracy of cancer detection tests conducted by cancer sniffing dogs, and results vary. If you Google "cancer sniffing dog studies" you can find a variety of sources to review so you can draw your own conclusions on whether this test is right for you. In any case, the member should treat this screening as supplemental.
AFA Local 975 will be working with Cancerdogs in the upcoming months. CancerDogs is a cancer screening service that uses specially trained dogs to detect the odor of all types of cancer preset in a person's exhaled breath. They have developed an inexpensive and non-invasive breath sample kit that collects breath odor with a simple surgical mask that is worn for 10 minutes and sent to their lab. Please visit our information page to read more about the service and process. If you wish to participate, follow the simple steps listed to sign up and pay for your kit. We will follow up with you after we order the kits. Thanks. Click here to go to the information/Signup Page: https://your975.org/cancer-screening-trial/ Mike Leone AFA Local 975 Firefighter Cancer Screening Dog Trial 2017 Schillterbahn Discount for AFA Members 02/23/2017
For Waterpark Admission Discounts follow the bullet points- Visit www.schlitterbahn.com/partnerdiscounts
 Promo List Length Question 02/11/2017 Brother and Sister Firefighters, There have been many questions about whether the Fire Chief can set the promotional eligibility list length at two (2) years when the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is set to expire on October 1st 2017 IF the CBA is not renewed. We have asked the AFA attorneys to research this question so we can provide you the answer that best satisfies the intent of the CBA. After this legal review, it is the AFA's position that the
fire chief can set the recently released promotional
I think it is important to note that we do not believe the CBA will expire and the AFA anticipates a renewal. The Details: Our attorneys advise us that the fire chief has the ability to set the promotional eligibility list length from 12 to 24 months. If the CBA is renewed (therefore does NOT expire), the length of the list will remain as specified in the posting for promotional examination. If the CBA is NOT renewed and therefore expires, then the length of the eligibility list is modified as follows:
However, the expiration of the CBA can be extended by mutual written agreement, see below:
So, if the CBA is not renewed and therefore expires, the promotional eligibility list will be modified from 24 months to as little as 11 months or as many as 17 months, depending on if there are agreed extensions and the number of these extensions. If during the extention period the AFA Bargaining team reaches an agreement, then the list stays at 24 months. I hope this explanation helps. Please contact me directly if you have further questions. Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association Bargaining Rumor 02-10-2017 A rumor has come to my attention which I will dispel. The AFA did NOT turn down a 2% offer from the City to sign a CBA extension. No offer was made to AFA and no offer turned down. I believe that the City has changed their position and now is planning on full scale bargaining, but the AFA has not been formally notified of this development. I have learned about this only by talking to APA and ATCEMS Employee Associations. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me directly to discuss.
Bob Nicks
4/9/2017 Brother and Sister Firefighters, After discussions with the Assistant City Manager, Mayor Adler and Councilmember Delia Garza, I find the announcement made at the last BC meeting (4/4/2017) of impending station closures or reductions to 4-person staffing to be unlikely. There exists a 4th option that was not mentioned at the BC meeting that does NOT close fire stations or reduce staffing. This 4th option is to increase the AFD budget by 3.5 million dollars, it has the support of the City Managers Office (money already identified) and therefore this option is likely to be adopted by City Council. This announcement of staffing cuts and station closures is very similar to statements made at a BC meeting in February, which I researched and disputed (please see AFA membership email below dated 02/08/2017). At the last BC meeting it was announced that Chief Kerr had been told by the City Manager's Office/COA Budget Office that she would either have to shut down fire stations or reduce 4 person staffing to make up for the 3.5 million dollars that AFD is projected to be "over budget" for 2017. It was relayed at this BC meeting that this choice of all bad choices would need to be made within a couple of weeks. Here are the 3 bad options that were laid out at the BC Meeting in no particular order:
However there is a 4th and much more favorable option which has the support of the City Manager's Office, Mayor Adler and Councilmember Garza. The 4th option is to increase the AFD 2017 budget by 3.5 million dollars to cover the current OT shortfall. According to the ACM, this will be the recommendation of the City Manager's Office and the money has already been identified. It is the purview of City Council to select any of the four options (or any others which they desire to approve) but given that the money for the budget adjustment has been identified and the City Manager's Office has said they will recommend the budget adjustment to City Council, I find this outcome to be likely. The three bad options are scenarios that the ACM is having Chief Kerr cost out and they MAY be discussed at the Council Meeting where the 3.5 Million AFD budget adjustment will be discussed. It is possible that the budget adjustment will be approved without discussion. You can rest assured that AFA has already begun lobbying Council to make sure they understand how unacceptable the 3 bad options would be to firefighter and citizen safety. I would like to send Kudos to Mayor Adler and Councilmember Delia Garza for their assistance on sorting this issue out.
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association
02/08/2017 Brother and Sister Firefighters, It was relayed to me today by several AFA VP's that there are questions and concerns about the 2017 Council Budget Workshop where Chief Kerr presented this morning. Specifically 4-person staffing and fire station 9 seem to be the biggest areas of concern. I do NOT think there is anything to be overly concerned about at this point. The City Council is starting the budget process earlier than past years to ask deeper questions in order to get a better understanding of how all the different departments operate. Naturally, there will be more detailed questions asked. Also, many of the more probing questions came from the two new council-members, again, this is to be expected. If you go to the link below entitled " AFD Budget Presentation", then go to the second to the last page, you will see a series of questions that the City Manager provided AFD last Friday to be addressed before Council. I believe this question set may have raised some concern among the Command Staff. I attended the presentation this morning but had to leave at 10:50 to head to the Capitol so I have not yet seen the last hour of the presentation. Station 9 was not discussed during the part I attended and was not included in the City Manger question set sent to Chief Kerr. See link below to view the entire video. AFA will review the presentation video, identify any concerns raised by City Council and meet with each Council-member individually to discuss. I am certain this follow up will help to satisfy their questions. If there are is anything to worry about after these meetings, we will then absolutely let you know.
Video to entire 2017 AFD budget presentation Video from AFD Budget Workshop Presentation
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association Mandatory AT Letter 01/09/2017 Brother and Sister Firefighters, First and foremost, let me clear up a misconception: the AFA has NOT supported or endorsed the mandatory Kelly day sign up procedure (scheduled to begin 3/7/17). AFA was aware that mandatory Kelly day sign up was being considered by management, but the AFA was not a part of the final decisions that led to the Special Order below. The AFA and management do share the common goal of ensuring that four (4) person staffing is maintained and we acknowledge that developing a mandatory AT system that is agreeable to everyone is difficult. I believe that management is open to changes to the mandatory AT procedure if the suggestions meet their goals of filling seats and the suggested changes are not too complicated to implement and utilize. Since the new mandatory AT procedure does not begin until March, there is enough time to work toward this if the membership wishes to do so. Click here to see Special Order on Kelly Day and Mandatory Add Time Procedure Going forward, the AFA will be involved in two (2) major ways:
Click here for the AFA on-line discussion board. This may be the best place to ask questions and provide your feedback. AFA's initial legal analysis shows that the Fire Chief can compel firefighters to sign up for AT on their Kelly Days as long as they follow applicable laws, which they are proposing to do. There are some outstanding CBA issues (Kelly Day Trades, Call Back and others) that we are working through with management and hopefully this will result in a system that is more tolerable for all. Information posted to the discussion board explaining why a Kelly Day is not a paid day off In addition to taking the survey and participating in the on-line discussion board, please consider attending the upcoming membership meeting (this Tuesday at 1300 @ AFA Hall) where an extended conversation on mandatory AT will occur. Results from the first AFA survey can be found below.
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association
Information from the first Mandatory Membership Survey In November, the AFA survey asked a variety of questions pertaining to potential elements of possible mandatory AT systems. There were 325 surveys completed with 160 excellent additional written responses lodged. Although there were no strong trends found in the results, the written responses provided some direction by which the AFA put together a draft proposal for your scrutiny. First here are some of the results from the survey:Although this question produced somewhat mixed results, the many great additional membership comments which will be helpful in our discussions with management: The results of the OT "opt out" question is at the link below. If accepted by management, the program would include an open enrollment period in early January. Anyone that "opts out" in January would not be able to sign up for OT for a one year period.
Pension and Vehicle Discussion Board Links 12/18/2017 New Additions to Pension Discussion in Yellow Below Brother and Sister Firefighters, There have been many good questions and answers exchanged on the AFA Member-only Discussion Board for both the AFD excessive discipline for vehicle accidents and the emerging attacks on your pension. Click here to access both discussion boards. I will leave these links toward the top of the AFA web page for easy future access. Below is the link to our webpage:Poorly researched Statesman article. We will be visiting with this journalist to discuss the big picture of pension system as well as the strengths of our system:
Article from a friend of defined benefit systems which counters some of the recent attacks on Texas pension systems. This article discusses the recent attack on the Austin pension systems by the Arnold Foundation Videos below from the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) Symposium on "Rethinking Texas Retirements":If you do not have the time to watch all the video below, please read this June 2016 Report from the TPPF, here is the final recommendations from the report: "Recommendation:The 85th Texas Legislature should restore local control of local retirement systems that are currently governed by state law. Policymakers should restore management and authority over these systems back to the community oftheir origin, so that stakeholders can implement necessary changes and ensure these systems' long-term viability and recovery."
Here are a few recent articles on Texas pensions:
This article is powerful explanation of the exploitation of Public Pensions:
Lawsuit filed today in Travis County 9/7/2016 Brother and Sister Firefighters, As you may have already heard, a lawsuit was filed today in Travis County District Court against the City of Austin and the Austin Firefighters Association (see Goldwater Institute press release below). This lawsuit claims that the use of Association Business Leave (ABL), which is defined and agreed upon in our collective bargaining agreement, somehow violates the Texas Constitution. Why the AFA is being targeted in this lawsuit is unknown. The use of ABL by the AFA is similar to the way many police, fire and employee associations utilize ABL across the State of Texas. In fact, the Austin Police Association (APA) and the Austin Travis County Emergency Medical Services Association (ATCEMSEA) both use ABL like the AFA does with very few differences. Let me be clear, this lawsuit is a state-wide attack on all public sector employee groups, NOT just the AFA. If this is to be our fate then so be it. We have not shied away from tough battles in the past and we are not ready to start now. We started the approval process for IAFF legal, financial and other assistance today. Given the state-wide implications of this lawsuit, I have every confidence that the IAFF will have our backs and put the full weight of their resources to work for us. That is all the information we have for you on this subject today. How the COA will respond to this challenge is unknown for now. We will keep you informed as this troubling situation unfolds and more information becomes available. Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association IAFF Local 975 Subject: Goldwater Institute & TPPF File Lawsuit to Halt Taxpayer-Funded Union Employees Goldwater Institute & TPPF File Lawsuit to Halt Taxpayer-Funded Union Employees AUSTIN - The Goldwater Institute and Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) filed a lawsuit in Travis County District Court today against the City of Austin and the Austin Firefighters Association, Local 975 challenging the City's labor agreement with Austin Firefighters Association, Local 975. The lawsuit, Pulliam, et. al. v. City of Austin, et. al., seeks to halt the practice of "release time" also known as "association business leave," and "union leave," which assigns city employees to work for their labor union at taxpayer expense. The agreement violates the Texas Constitution "gift clause" provision that prohibits government from giving taxpayer funds to private entities without a public purpose. The use of ABL by the AFA is similar to the way many police, fire and employee associations utilize ABL across the State of Texas. In fact, within the City of Austin the Austin Police Association and the Austin Travis County Emergency Medical Services Association (ATCEMSEA) are use ABL like AFA does with very few differences. DIAL IN NOW FOR A LIVE MEDIA CALL with Q&A session on lawsuit 10:00 AM Central Time Dial-In: 1 (877) 615-4337 Passcode: 7979 639# "Under the Texas Constitution, the government is prohibited from spending public money for purely private purposes," said Jon Riches, Director of National Litigation and General Counsel for the Goldwater Institute. "With release time, Austin Taxpayers are required to foot the bill for the activities of a private union. This is an abuse of tax dollars and violates Texas law." TPPF General Counsel and Director of the Center for the American Future Robert Henneke said, "Allowing full-time public employees on the government's payroll to work for a private union at taxpayer expense is even more egregious as the City of Austin's proposed budget would increase taxes on all residents. All taxpayer resources should be put into services for citizens not directed to the benefit of private entities." The Goldwater Institute originally discovered this illegal use of taxpayer money in 2011 and filed suit to stop the City of Phoenix from paying police officers their salary and benefits while they were working for the police union. Police officer release time was costing Phoenix taxpayers nearly $4 million each year. Since that initial discovery, the Goldwater Institute has found the practice is widespread across the country, including in federal government contracts. For example, while some military veterans wait an average of 115 days to get an initial appointment with their primary care provider, the Veterans Administration spends over $40 million a year on release time for VA employees. When release time contract provisions are added up across the country, taxpayers spend over a billion dollars each year to pay government workers to clock in at the union desk, not to do the government work they were hired to do. The Goldwater Institute's successful lawsuit against the City of Phoenix has put an end to release time in Arizona. This is the Institute's first legal challenge to the practice outside of Arizona and its first lawsuit in Texas. Bills to ban taxpayer-funded release time have been introduced in Maine, Michigan, Nevada, and Washington State; and other lawsuits challenging the practice have been filed in Idaho, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Read more about Pulliam, et. al. v. City of Austin, et. al here. ### About the Goldwater Institute The Goldwater Institute drives results by working daily in courts, legislatures and communities to defend and strengthen the freedom guaranteed to all Americans in the constitutions of the United States and all 50 states. With the blessing of its namesake, the Goldwater Institute opened in 1988. Its early years focused on defending liberty in Barry Goldwater's home state of Arizona. Today, the Goldwater Institute is a national leader for constitutionally limited government respected by the left and right for its adherence to principle and real world impact. No less a liberal icon than the New York Times calls the Goldwater Institute a "watchdog for conservative ideals" that plays an "outsize role" in American political life. About the Texas Public Policy Foundation The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit free-market research institute based in Austin. response to Kerr letter 7/29/2016 Brother and Sister Firefighters, The Austin Firefighters Association (AFA) is in receipt of Chief Kerr's response to the censure vote that was taken this week. Despite the increased media coverage, it remains the intent of the AFA is to have a positive and constructive dialogue with Chief Kerr and her administration to find solutions to the concerns we have raised. As we have said from the beginning, we are always willing to meet to discuss the issues. Thank you for the calls and Emails of support. We will have more on this issue next week. In the meantime, enjoy your weekend. And most of all, be safe out there
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association 7/20/2016 AFA Membership Educational Piece for Chief Kerr Censure Brother and Sister Firefighters, I am asking that you approve the 2016 proposed censure of Austin Fire Chief Rhonda Mae Kerr. Voting to approve the censure will help the AFA protect the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and return the firefighter's due process rights, including ending excessive punishment by the Fire Chief as a method to avoid the appeals process. Ultimately, what happens with the censure is up to you, please carefully read the provided education materials on the censure, discuss among yourselves, and online, and vote. The greater the turnout to vote on this issue, the greater a mandate for us to go forward strongly with this censure. Your response determines how we go forward, how public we are with the censure, who we send it to. Please stay involved and let us know your will. Link to Chief Kerr Censure Discussion Board Active Now Link to Chief Kerr Censure Online Vote Starts Tuesday July 26th @0800 thru Thursday July 28th ending @ 1700 The 2016 censure contains both legacy items from the 2014 censure plus four new and current issues. We believe Chief Kerr is not using fair judgment when applying civil service law; is violating the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA); is not in concert with other progressive departments regarding health and discipline (AFD is out of step with agreements made with nine other fire departments of the Wellness Fitness Initiative*); and is, in general, not using fair judgment in supporting the rights and working conditions of firefighters. The IAFF legal team has vetted this censure and agrees the evidence for our claims is solid. We will provide the evidence supporting the newest censure items. *The Wellness Fitness Initiative (Austin, Calgary, Charlotte; Fairfax Co, FDNY, Indianapolis, Los Angeles Co, MetroDade FL, Phoenix, Seattle) unanimously agreed to the following statement, with Chief Kerr in attendance: "Identification of drug misuse, either through reasonable suspicion or random testing, should result in referral for treatment and help. These are treatable disabilities.(see side 21)" As you're aware, Chief Kerr continues to invoke a zero tolerance policy. Nationally, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is very much on the rise within the firefighter population, which may lead to alcohol, substance abuse and/or suicide. This is not included as a censure item this time due to logistical and evidential issues. What is a Censure? A censure is a formal and severe disapproval of specific actions by the Fire Chief. Essentially, it is a reprimand, aimed at reformation of the person and prevention of further offending acts. When a censure is submitted to the IAFF for adoption, the IAFF legal Department researches each item of the proposed censure for accuracy. The IAFF will not allow an item to remain in the censure unless there is sufficient evidence to justify each claim. The 2016 Rhonda Mae Kerr censure before you has already been researched and approved by the IAFF to move forward to the 2016 IAFF National Convention for approval, pending the approval of the membership. New Censure Item 1: WHEREAS, Chief Kerr is in the process of Understand that this will have the effect of ending your career if you suffer an IOJ (or off-the-job injury) from which you cannot return to Operations. Firefighting is physically demanding so the potential for serious injuries is high. To perform at their highest level firefighters need to know that the Fire Chief and the leadership of this organization have a better plan for them than termination if they suffer a serious injury. Here was a letter from AFA to Chief Kerr on the issue of "transferability". Our collective bargaining agreement is clear: "all economic benefits, privileges, and working conditions which are properly and lawfully in effect in the Austin Fire Department as to matters subject to mandatory bargaining under Local Government Code Chapter 174, and enjoyed by the Fire Fighters of the bargaining unit as of the effective date of this Agreement, but which are not included in this Agreement, shall remain unchanged for the duration of this Agreement." Article 27 Maintenance of Standards, 2015 CBA Working conditions are not within the authority of the Fire Chief to change unilaterally; she must negotiate these changes. This right was given to firefighters by the citizens of Austin when they voted to give Austin Firefighters the right to collectively bargain in 2004. Collective bargaining means nothing if we do not defend it. Regarding this censure item, the hard, vetted evidence to the IAFF will be presented to you in the follow-up email Friday.
New Censure Item 2: WHEREAS, when alleged improprieties by the After a Local 975 VP reported to me potential improprieties by the PSO and I reported this information to the AFD Chief of Staff, a threatening letter was sent to the Local 975 VP by the office of the PSO. The Executive Staff and the PSO then changed investigatory practices that had been granted during past investigations and became uncooperative with Local 975. Regarding this censure item, the hard, vetted evidence sent to the IAFF will be presented to you in the follow-up email Friday. New Censure Item 3: WHEREAS, Chief Kerr has used the threat of Chapter 143.052 of Civil Service Law states: "The head of the fire or police department may suspend a fire fighter or police officer under the department head's supervision or jurisdiction for the violation of a civil service rule. The suspension may be for a reasonable period not to exceed 15 calendar days or for an indefinite period. An indefinite suspension is equivalent to dismissal from the department." Before Chief Kerr's reign, most suspensions were of a reasonable period of 15 days or less and these suspensions came with the right of appeal. By masquerading nearly every firefighter mistake or misjudgment as a punishment commensurate with indefinite suspension, Chief Kerr is coercing our members to sign an agreement for higher punishments (16 to 90 days) with no right of appeal. The purpose of the civil service law is to protect firefighters by acknowledging that even good firefighters can make a mistake and the punishment should not be excessive, 15 days or less. However, hearing examiners and civil service boards tend to give extremely wide deference to the disciplinary decisions of the fire chief; therefore, a strong statement from the membership revealing the true motive of the fire chief will be invaluable in protecting our civil service rights. Regarding this censure item, the hard, vetted evidence sent to the IAFF will be presented to you in the follow-up email Friday. Pro Tip: The Officers that attend the chain of command meeting are probably not briefed by management about firefighter protections under civil service law. If you are following the letter of civil service law, when you recommend a punishment greater than 15 days, this indicates that you believe that the infraction is so egregious that termination is justified. If you do not feel that the infraction reaches the level of termination, then your recommendation should be 15 days or less. Only if termination is truly justified can the fire chief, if she is acting in good faith, be more benevolent and offer a 16 -90 day punishment and thus increase the punishment over the 15 day limit and deny the firefighters right to appeal . New Censure Item 4: WHEREAS, Chief Kerr's administration has not
History of the AFD restroom project: Phases I thru 4 were designed and funded before Chief Kerr's arrival. Phase V was funded in 2012 through a bond. Although the money is available, Phase V construction is not even out to bid yet. Chief Kerr has also been unsuccessful in obtaining funding for phase VI. Here is a message from the AFA Facilities Committee. This committee is made up of both concerned male and female Austin Firefighters: "More than 1/3 of the stations identified as inadequate for equitable joint use still do not have bathrooms for both men and women firefighters. Chief Kerr has stated over the years that this project is a priority and that she would push to have it moved along-seventeen years and counting, it still is not finished. Chief Kerr began her tenure in early 2009, she has been the Chief of the department for seven of the seventeen year history of the bathroom renovation process. Voters approved a bond package in 2012 to build a fire station in Onion Creek and to retrofit 6 of the 12 remaining stations without women's locker rooms. In mid 2016, there still has been no dirt moved, no construction started on the projects approved by the voters in 2012. Estimated completion date to remedy only one half of the remaining inadequate facilities have been pushed back to the spring of 2018. Zero timeline even estimated for the second half, those most in need. In her capacity as Fire Chief, Chief Kerr has failed to get equitable facilities for her firefighters' most basic needs. These phases started with great fanfare, but under Chief Kerr's leadership the project has limped along with little forward progress." Regarding this censure item, the hard, vetted evidence sent to the IAFF will be presented to you in the follow-up email Friday.
What is the history of the 2014 Chief Kerr censure? In June 2014, prior to the IAFF National Convention, the AFA assembled a censure of Austin Fire Chief Rhonda Mae Kerr. Prior to the IAFF vote, the AFA Membership was educated on the issues (Click here to see 2014 Kerr Censure Education Page) and an online vote was conducted. The result: 85% of the membership voted to approve the Kerr censure (Click here to see 2014 Kerr censure vote results). The AFA took the censure forward to the 2014 IAFF Convention seeking national approval. Out of the five Fire Chief censures submitted for approval, only Chief Kerr's censure was approved and it was approved unanimously by the entire convention body. The other four Fire Chief censures were pulled before the vote, meaning the fire chief and the local were able to reach some form of agreement before the vote. Rhonda Mae Kerr was the only fire chief censured nationally at the last IAFF convention. If approved by the AFA membership and adopted by the IAFF, how will the censure help us? This depends on how we choose to use it once adopted. We mean for this new censure to be more publicly discussed and the pressure continually maintained until our reasonable requests are satisfied, hopefully at the bargaining table. In 2014, the aim of the censure was to demonstrate that we will not sit idly by while our labor agreement is trounced and harm is done to our fire department and working conditions, but it was a measured effort that ended short of public criticism. We had hoped that this formal admonishment would give Kerr pause and back her off from her anti-firefighter rhetoric and actions; sadly, it did not. As is stated earlier, ultimately, what happens with the censure is up to you, the greater the turnout to vote on this issue, the greater a mandate for us to go forward strongly with this censure. Your response determines how we go forward, how public we are with the censure, who we send it to. Sincerely, Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association IAFF Local 975
AFA Wildfire Resolution Here is information on the proposed AFA wildfire resolution to be presented for adoption at the 2016 IAFF National Convention. AFA is seeking IAFF Locals that may be interested in co-sponsoring this proposed wildfire resolution. We are willing to meeting with your Local to discuss if this would be helpful. Click here to see proposed AFA Wildfire Resolution
Current Sponsors Austin Firefighters Association, Local 975 Montana State Council of Professional Firefighters, A0025 Round Rock Firefighters Association, Local 3082 San Antonio Professional Firefighters Association, Local 624 Cal Fire Local 2881 South Carolina Professional Firefighters Association Local A0039 Florida State Fire Service Association, Local S0020 Oklahoma City Firefighters, Local 157 Professional Fire Fighters of Oklahoma, A0035 Alberta Fire Fighters Association C0003 Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts A0020 Houston Professional Firefighters Association Local 341 Travis County ESD 4 Local 4848 Washington State Council of Firefighters A0045 Southern Federation of Professional Firefighters voted to recommend adoption
Please contact Bob Nicks at bob_nicks@yahoo.com or Randy Denzer at randy_denzer@yahoo.com (cell: (512) 825-0731) for more information or if you would like to add your name to the sponsor list. 5/9/2016 Brother and Sister Firefighters, A request of the AFA Membership: If you live in or around the neighborhoods of TRAVIS COUNTRY, GOODNIGHT RANCH, MOORES CROSSING OR CANYON CREEK - Please respond to this email with your preferred contact information. We need inside information on neighborhood leaders, associations, clubs and the like to help AFA with this project. Update on Fire Station Project: We have achieved important progress on one of our major AFA projects: Building new AFD fire stations and reducing response times. As you may remember, the response time reduction project is the newest AFA project. For a good overview of the issues and the solutions contained within the proposed resolution, please watch the March 4th Public Safety Commission AFA/AFD presentation: https://vimeo.com/159644217 (audio poor at beginning but quickly gets better) Click here for presentation PowerPoint contained in the presentation video. On March 24th the Austin City Council adopted a response time resolution (click here to see). This resolution directs the City Manager to, each budget year, present a plan to City Council to fund and build the top 5 priority fire stations. The resolution also stipulates the AFD and AFA, will each year update this list of priority fire stations. The presentation will occur each budget year in open sessions so the AFA and affected neighborhood groups can comment. CM Delia Garza and the AFA worked very closely on this resolution. In essence, this resolution will stop the practice of the City Manager and the COA Budget Office blocking from Council important information regarding critical response time deficiencies and fire station needs. Please go to the AFA Community resource page www.austinsafetyfirst.org to find more information on the project. Next Steps: Among other things, the adopted resolution directs the City Manager to: "The City Manager is directed to develop a comprehensive plan for consideration during the FY 2016-17 budget process with proposed funding mechanisms and timelines for building fire stations in five areas of immediate need identified by the Austin Fire Association and the Austin Fire Department, which include the Travis Country area, the Loop 360 area, the Goodnight Ranch area, the Moore's Crossing area, and the Canyon Creek area." In June CM Ott will present his plan to build more fire stations. Until then, AFA is reaching out to committee leaders, especially in the 5 critical response time areas, to provide them with the right information and resources so they can contact CM Ott and Council and express how urgently they need these fire stations. This community outpour will help to ensure that Ott takes the project seriously. Please let me know if you would like to help on this important membership initiative by responding to this email.
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association
PS - Links to media stories and other info related to the AFA Fire Stations Project: 2/24/2016 http://kxan.com/2016/03/24/austin-fire-department-wants-5-new-stations/ KEYE News Story
Money Mag growth http://money.cnn.com/2015/05/27/news/economy/us-fastest-growing-cities-texas/ http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mlj45hfdf/1-austin-texas/ forbes - econ growth rate https://www.texastribune.org/2015/05/21/interactive-texas-population-growth-2010-2014/ No matter how you slice it, Austin set for huge population growth, report says Even under the most pessimistic projections - if some sort of plague and economic slump were to take hold in the region - the Austin area's population will still grow by more than 30 percent over the next 15 years, a report from the Urban Institute shows.
Brother and Sister Firefighters, 911 responder health care benefits are in serious trouble. By the end of next week, Congress must reauthorize and extend the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 or those sickened by Ground Zero toxins will stop getting the health care and compensation they need and deserve. These first responders need and deserve our support. Here is what you can do to help, it's as simple as going to the link below and either calling or emailing a Representative or Senator.
Bob Nicks President, Austin Firefighters Association AFA formal request to ATCEMS Click on the image below to view entire Letter from AFA to ATCEMS as a formal request to begin discussions regarding consolidation.
Membership Correspondence from President Nicks Past Membership Correspondence from President Nicks Click here to subscribe to the Local 975 email list
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09:45 a.m.: AFD 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb. Austin firefighters will climb the Pleasant Valley Drill Tower in full turnout gear, an air pack, and a hose bundle. Firefighters will make the number of up and down flights which equals roughly the height of the World Trade Center. The climb will being at 10:00 AM sharp, is done in complete silence and it takes about an hour.
