Compliance Issues Britt Brinson - Compliance Division

GFSTC Express
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In the eight months since July 1, 2009, the
two members of the Compliance Division
have visited 326 fire departments, including
894 fire stations. During our travels, we obviously meet with a lot of people and likewise get a lot of questions. In this edition of
the GFSTC Express we’ll try to answer some
of these questions that might have crossed
your mind as well.
GFSTC rules
being revised
and updated
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I S S U E
Compliance Issues
test results by
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emailing us at
gfstc@gpstc.st
ate.ga.us!
What forms should you submit when
things change at your department?
Anytime there are changes in your department, you should let us know. Several forms
have been developed to make this easier.
The forms listed below can be found under
FORMS, then Fire Department Related
Forms. Some of the forms most commonly
used are:
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Britt Brinson
1
Lyn Pardue
2
Jan Mathis
3
Matt Perry
4
Chad Cobb
5
Mission Statement
9
•
Fire Department Information Update:
Use this form any time there is a change in
the Fire Chief or his/her designee(s) or the
fire department’s mailing address.
• Website Registration: Use this form to
submit your department username and password. This will allow you to access parts of
our website specific to your department, that
are not open to the general public.
• Station Addition or Relocation: Use
this form any time you add or move a station.
The address indicated on this form would be
the physical address of the particular station.
Change of Status: Use this form to add or
delete personnel from your roster. Additions
or deletions to your roster can be done online
at www.gfstconline.org. This process is
F E B R U A R Y
2 0 1 0
Britt Brinson - Compliance Division
explained under the next question. If you
cannot make your changes online, you must
use the paper version.
Why it is important to update your department’s roster with GFSTC, at least
annually?
The smart answer would be….because it is.
The reality of the situation is a little more
mystifying. During the last couple of years,
a several firefighters have died in the line of
duty here in Georgia. In at least a couple of
instances, the families of the deceased firefighters had to wait, in the opinions of many
firefighters around the state, an inordinate
amount of time to receive compensation for
the loss of their loved ones. Many of you
have stated that this shouldn’t have happened. One of the reasons, it seems, was
that these firefighters were not listed on the
roster of fire personnel maintained by this
agency. It would be a sad thing for a deceased firefighter’s family to have to do
without basic necessities just because someone forgot to put their name on a list, especially when it is so easy to do.
Our agency is tracking almost 30,000 individuals in our system. Nearly 4000 are
floating around in limbo, not attached to any
fire department. These individuals are people who have taken one of our tests, but
have never been claimed by their fire department. The process to claim them is as
simple as this:
(Continued on page 7)
PAGE
2
VOLUME
State Of The Fire Service
Executive Director:
Lyn Pardue
“It’s true we are
facing difficult
economic times.
I know our fire
service will
continue to “get
the job done” as
we always
have.”.
As of the time of this writing, our great state is blessed
with 652 certified fire departments staffed with over
29,900 dedicated individuals
who are career, part-time,
volunteer and support. Of
these fire departments, 147
are comprised of all career
personnel, 451 totally volunteer, 47 combination, and 7
“other” (usually Airport).
Georgia Firefighter Standards and Training Council
is the only state agency
charged with assuring all
firefighters and each fire
department in this state
meets minimum requirements established by statutes, rules, and policies.
It comes as no surprise that
we all are currently facing
economic challenges.
In
cooperation with the Governor and our legislators,
GFSTC and other state
agencies have faced significant reductions in funding.
Even with a 26% budget
reduction since FY-2008,
GFSTC continues to strive
in delivering services and
customer service you have
come to expect.
The Compliance Division
visited 358 fire departments
including 983 individual fire
stations in 2009. Site visits
GFSTC
EXPRESS
include verification of the
agency’s personnel, equipment, and records as maintaining the minimum established requirements. Site
visits provide our customers
(you) with personalized, onsite assistance in meeting
and maintaining an established level of professionalism our citizens deserve and
expect. Surveys conducted
by GFSTC reflect an overwhelming positive response
to this provided service.
The Evaluation Division
administered 10,100 written
evaluations and over 8,000
on-site skills/performance
examinations in calendar
year 2009. Competencies
are measured against accepted national standards.
Budget reductions have
eliminated state funding for
certified evaluators.
For
continued functionality,
local agencies have assumed
the task of providing evaluators. Many agencies utilize
this program to meet hiring
requirements and career
advancement.
Administrative and support
staff are typically the first
point of contact with our
customers and the general
public. Office staff field
telephone, electronic, and
in-person inquiries, and ad-
2,
ISSUE
1
Lyn Pardue - Executive Director
minister in-office examinations, while providing highly
praised customer service.
Continued and initial certification documentation is processed with certificates
awarded and issued. Significant improvements have been
made with information technology in allowing agencies
to view and submit required
documentation online
through a secured and dedicated website.
Concerns
brought to the agency’s attention are thoroughly reviewed
and analyzed with resolutions
or recommendations submitted to myself and/or Council.
It’s true we are facing difficult economic times. I know
our fire service will continue
to “get the job done” as we
always have. I am constantly
reminded and humbled of
just how many of you offer
and step up to assist our
brothers and sisters, when the
need arises. We could not
provide service at the current
level without your continued
support and assistance. The
fire service is the greatest
profession, whether you are
paid, part-time, volunteer, or
support. Until the next time,
keep looking up, stay focused, and by all means, be
safe.
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
1
PAGE
3
From The Outside Looking In…
Administrative Division - Jan Mathis
For a small state
agency of only
10 people, we at
Georgia
Firefighter
Standards and Training Council do
s
o
much
f o r
t h e
fir e
service
in this state. To give you
a glance of what goes on
in our 1400 sq. ft. office. I encourage you to take a look in.
times more when the need arises.
Testing outside our office around the
state is conAdministration Division: ducted
7
Celene Kennedy , days a week
Jan Mathis, and Selina by 2 staff
Cook m e m b e r s
from
our
Evaluation Division with help
from 4 other staff members
and various proctors. When
testing in the field is completed, the tests have to be
graded in the office. The
phones are ringing with candidates calling for their scores
or their GFSTC ID#. Scores are not
given out over the phone. They are emailed to the candidates and made
Our main phone line rings 70-80
available online to departments and
times a day. This does not inindividuals.
Training Officers,
clude other individual phone
please help us out by providing your
lines that are constantly ringing.
people with their GFSTC ID as well
We have one administrative staff
as the results of their tests.
member assigned to answer the
main line. The other two adminWe have 1
istrative staff answers the phone
staff memas needed. When more help is
ber who is
needed, any of the 7 other staff
in front of
members are there to assist.
the computer all
We try to provide the best cusday taking
tomer service you will find anycare of our
where. Not only are we answerco mp uter
ing phones, we are giving tests
needs and
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and
other duThursdays in our small office to
ties
as
15-20 testers. While testing is
assigned.
taking place, phones are conHe has done some amazing things
stantly ringing, fire service perwith our computer system in order to
sonnel are coming in, and staff is
make our jobs, as well as, the jobs of
conducting business.
members of the fire service much
easier and quicker.
We have 2 staff members that
make up our Compliance DiviOur Professional Standards Officer
sion, their duties are fire departduties include investigating comment site visits around the state
plaints against fire departments and
at least 4 days a week, somefirefighters, while working with fire
GFSTC
EXPRESS
truck crash investigations, rules
committees, grading tests, open
records requests and helping out
when needed in other areas.
Our staff member, who has not
been mentioned so far, is usually in
his office taking care of business
on the state level. He is there to
answer whatever questions we, as
staff or you, as the fire service may
have. He deals with the legalities
of this agency. He helps any of the
other 9 staff members when help is
needed.
He answers his own
phone any time it rings when he is
available. Our Executive Director
has an open door policy and never
thinks any question or issue is too
small.
All of the above is performed on
any given day in our office, along
with people from the fire service
coming in for
meetings, dropping paperwork
off, or various
other businesses.
With all this said,
we are all still
taking care of our
regular day to day
work, accomplishing all that 10
people can while
phones are constantly ringing.
Now from the inside looking
out….
While you are out there serving
and protecting, we at Georgia Firefighter Standards and Training
Council consider it an honor to be
here serving you.
PAGE
4
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
1
They Can Certify, But Should We Hire ?
Matt Perry - PSO
“I believe in
giving
someone a
second chance,
but when you
see 3, 4, or 5
arrests in a
ten year
period, is that
really a
‘second
chance’?”
I came to GFSTC last
year bringing with me 10
years of law enforcement
experience and nearly 15
years in the fire service.
The Professional Standards position is a unique
way to combine my law
enforcement background
with my love of firefighting.
Aside from
giving tests, participating
in Rules and investigating causes of fire truck
crashes, I assist agencies
when questions arise
about an applicant’s
criminal history and
whether or not they can
be certified. It my short
tenure with GFSTC I
have discovered that fire
departments across the
state, both career and
volunteer, won’t dig
deep enough into the
backgrounds of the applicants they hire. Unfortunately, this regularly
leads to controversy or
inner departmental strife.
Georgia Firefighter Standards and Training certifies between 1000 and
1500 new applicants a
year. Of those, any certification package that has
a questionable criminal
history comes across my
desk. Sadly, I see patterns of theft, assault,
crimes against children
and drug arrests in appli-
GFSTC
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cations. I believe in giving
someone a second chance
but when you see 3, 4 or 5
arrests in a ten year period,
is that really a “second
chance”?
I could spend hours going
into the particulars surrounding a complete and
legal pre-employment background check but for the
sake of this article, I want to
discuss state requirements
and give tips on conducting
a background investigation.
Georgia law is quite specific
about criminal histories and
state certification. O.C.G.A
25-4-8 says,
“Not have been convicted of
a felony in any jurisdiction
or of a crime which if committed in this state would
constitute a felony under the
laws of this state within ten
years prior to employment….”
(There is a section of Georgia law concerning firefighters who have successfully
completed the Georgia Department of Corrections
training program and their
eligibility as firefighters, but
that’s a story for another
edition.)
Understand that this is for
State Certification only. If
you are working as a part
time or volunteer firefighter,
PSO: Matt Perry
you are
not required to submit a certification package. Applying for
State Certification at this level
is totally voluntary or a departmental policy. But does this
mean that you shouldn’t investigate a background of an applicant just because you don’t
have to? I would hope the answer is NO.
I had a fire chief tell me when
he wants to hire a firefighter he
asks himself two questions:
“Do I think he’ll fit in here?”
and “Do I want him coming
into my home to help my kids?”
If the answer was “yes” to both
questions, he would hire. One
“No”, and the candidate was
sent away. While simplistic,
this philosophy does have
merit. If you have been tasked
to help the Chief answer those
questions, completing a thorough pre-employment background check is the only way to
go.
(Continued on page 6)
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
1
PAGE
State Vs. Pro Board: Confused?
I’m confused. What is the difference? Is it the same or is one better than the other? How are the
written tests developed? How are
the skills test developed? These
are all questions that are asked
daily. Actually, they are very
good questions. It can be confusing, if you are not familiar how
the process works. Usually, starting with the foundation or beginning of a problem is the best place
to ensure an understanding is developed.
What is the difference between
State and Pro Board certification?
State certification requires the
individual to complete a certification packet and pass a written test
for the identified level. State certification includes five different
levels, which are Airport Firefighter, Firefighter, Educator,
Inspector, and Investigator. Pro
Board certification does not involve an individual submitting a
certification packet. Pro Board
certification for an identified level
requires the individual to pass
both a written and skills test.
Currently, there are twenty-three
different levels of Pro Board certifications available, such as Firefighter I and II, Hazardous materials Operations, Rescue Technician
Confined Space, and Fire Instructor I. Both State and Pro Board
use the same written test, if a state
certification is available.
GFSTC
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The test instrument,
which includes written and skills test, is
developed by committees for State or
Pro Board.
The
process is referred to
as a local validation.
The goal is to have a
cross section of the
fire service in Georgia to form the committee, such as a representative from
the Georgia Fire Academy, volunteer department, career department,
combination department, and several associations.
The questions
for the written test come from a purchased test bank. Each question is
validated by a local validation committee by identifying the question as
a good question for the level being
tested, supporting the question with
the identified reference material,
and supporting the question to the
standard for the level validating.
Developing skills for the test instrument is a little more challenging,
because skills are developed from
scratch. Since, several skill sheets
are already developed for various
levels; the committee reviews them
and makes modification based on
feedback to improve them.
The
committee has the opportunity to
mold the entire test instrument to fit
Georgia’s needs and improve the
current test instrument, if it is not
meeting expectations. A perfect test
instrument is not possible, only an
improved one.
5
Chad Cobb - Test Coordinator
Evaluation
Division:
Chad Cobb
and
David Cummings
The difference between State
and Pro Board certifications can
be confusing, if one does not understand how the test instrument
is developed or what the requirements are for each certification.
Remember, the written or skills
test is developed by the Georgia
fire service, which requires a lot
of time and willingness to work
together. The real difference between the two is with the requirements for receiving certification.
State requires the individual to
pass a written test and complete a
certification packet. Pro Board
requires the individual to pass a
written and skills test. The goal
of the test instrument for both
certifications is to identify a level
of competency for the level being
tested, which is defined by the fire
service in Georgia.
If you have questions or concerns,
please contact me at
ccobb@gpstc.state.ga.us. Local
validation dates are available on
our test event calendar.
PAGE
6
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
They Can Certify, But Should We Hire? (continued)
Matt Perry - PSO
Conducting a proper preemployment background
check isn’t as easy as just
asking questions to applicants
or having them fill out an
application. Factors such as
budgets, available time, number of candidates and local
hiring policies can determine
how detailed a background
check can be. You must be
able to balance the value of
the candidate versus the
agency’s ability to investigate. Your findings will make
the difference between hiring
a firefighter who will dutifully fulfill the position or
become a hazard to himself
or others.
If you have never conducted
a pre-employment background check, you may find
the task daunting. There is a
fine line between a thorough
investigation and an invasion
of privacy. To help, I’ve included a list of topics that
you could take into consideration to help streamline an
investigation and provide an
adequate amount of background information to form a
proper opinion. These are in
no particular order.
The application: Some agencies, especially the smaller
volunteer departments use
applications that don’t provide enough information to
start an investigation. I would
suggest that you create an
application specific to your
GFSTC
EXPRESS
agency and your needs as the
investigator. There are generic,
“store bought” applications that
include the pertinent information, but they usually lack in
specifics. Some cities or county
governments have a standard
application that all candidates
submit, but there is nothing that
says you can’t have a department specific form that they
should also complete.
Personal History Release: In
order for you to legally research
someone’s background, you
must have their permission.
Typically, these forms are written in such a way that the applicant gives their permission and
releases you from any liability.
Before conducting any preemployment background investigation, you must have a
signed Release.
Personal References: Regardless of your method, you should
contact all listed personal references. Be sure to have an adequate number of non-family
and non-work related references. Personally, I liked to go
and meet with a listed reference
face to face, especially if they
were local. I felt that they were
more willing to open up and
talk to about their relationship
with an applicant. Some agencies like to mail questionnaires
to references. Not only does
this require some effort on their
behalf (which to me is telling of
the applicant) but it also is a
way to confirm that the infor-
mation you’ve been given is
true. It also is great documentation for a personnel file.
Driver History: A driving
history is far more than just
speeding tickets. It can show a
pattern of safe driving as well
as a pattern of careless or reckless driving. Applicants should
also include any and all accidents they have been involved
in (as a driver). As an investigator, you don’t need to settle
for just “at fault” crashes. Remember, you’re looking for a
pattern of safe driving as well.
I’ve even gone so far as to
look at the condition of an
applicant’s car to see if there is
any unexplained damage.
When checking references,
this is a great time to ask them
about how an applicant drives.
You may be surprised at what
you hear.
Work history and references: Always contact the past
employers of applicants. How
far in their work past you go is
totally up to you, but I would
at least look at the last two
employers. Be sure to talk to
supervisors, managers and
coworkers to see what kind of
employee they were. Pay special attention to their coworker relationships, work
ethic, attendance, disciplinary
action (if any) and reasons for
leaving.
(Continued on page back
page)
1
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
1
PAGE
Compliance Issues (continued)
• Login to our website with
the department username and
password.
• When the menu comes up,
click on Change of Status
Menu. You’ll then have a
choice of Input Change of
Status or View Change of
Status.
• Click on Input Change of
Status.
Your department’s
COS page will come up. On it
you’ll see columns for GFSTC
ID, Name, Status, Join or Departure, among others. Next to
Name you’ll see a down arrow
(v).
• Click on the down arrow
for a drop-down box containing
your roster on file with
GFSTC.
• Review the roster for accuracy.
• If it contains personnel
who should be deleted, click on
each name one at a time, then
click Add to Form. Once you
have finished adding personnel
to the form that you wish to
delete, you need to attach personnel who need to be added.
• Scroll down until you see
Add FF From Other Dept.
Click on this button and a box
will come up with First Name
and Last Name. You will need
their last name at a minimum.
Having their actual first name
will narrow your search a great
deal.
• Once you have added all of
the personnel that you can find
in our database, click on Submit.
When the computer has fin-
GFSTC
Britt Brinson - Compliance Division
ished sending your updated roster to our website, a facsimile of
what you submitted will appear
on your screen. We suggest that
you make a copy and place it in
your files.
We recommend that you add
personnel to your roster as soon
as you accept them as members.
You can also review COS forms
you have submitted electronically by clicking on View
Change of Status.
Where can you get your 24
hours that are required for
recertification?
Almost since its inception, this
agency has used two criteria to
determine whether or not something is considered training: the
activity must (1) be conducted
in a classroom or drill field setting with an instructor and (2)
meet a national or state standard. If the activity meets both
criteria, it is training. If not,
you might want to think about
whether you can justify it as
training.
All training you wish to use for
recertification credit must be
accepted by this agency. There
are several ways to go about
this.
Most courses offered
through national or state training agencies are approved.
Your documentary proof of
completion of one of these
courses may be in the form of a
certificate or transcript issued
by that particular agency. There
are many outside organizations
and individuals, as well as local
fire departments, who are con-
EXPRESS
7
Compliance Division
Staff:
Britt Brinson and
Mike Hancock
ducting quality training. These
may complete our Course
Credit Request form, attach a
description of the training along
with the course objectives and
forward this information to our
agency for approval. In a nutshell, we don’t care who conducts your training, as long as it
meets our two criteria for training. So, feel free to use the
Georgia Fire Academy, hire
someone to conduct training at
your department, or conduct the
training yourself.
Whomever you use, have them
properly document each training
exercise. At a minimum, this
documentation should include a
good description and objectives
of the training and the signatures of students and instructors.
What is the minimum equipment required for your department to be in compliance
and where can you find a list?
You can find a list of requirements for a department to be in
compliance with Georgia law on
our
website
(www.gfstconline.org). Click
on FORMS, then Fire Department Compliance Package.
(Continued on next page)
“Whomever
you use, have
them properly
document
each training
exercise.”
VOLUME
2,
ISSUE
1
PAGE
Compliance Issues (continued)
The compliance package lists the
requirements for becoming and
remaining a legally organized
fire department. This includes
the minimum personnel, equipment and insurance requirements. It also explains the compliance process.
What are the requirements of
ISO vs GFSTC?
There are similarities in the requirements of each, but there are
also differences. We both require that fire departments address personnel, equipment, and
training.
GFSTC requires that a department have a minimum of four
trained personnel on their roster. In the case of departments
with multiple stations, this is
interpreted to mean four per station. Each member of a department must have minimum training, based on their duties. Volunteer personnel performing
support duties (drinks, truck
driving, other cold zone activities, etc.) must be trained to the
level of Support Firefighter or
higher. Personnel performing
suppression duties must be
trained to the level of FDC 101/
Module 1 (if they joined before
7/1/04), Module 1 (if they joined
7/1/04-6/30/05) or Module 1
with live fire (if they joined on
or after 7/1/05). Live fire training is considered to be a Structural Fire Control course conducted by the Georgia Fire
Academy or one conducted locally with at least one instructor
present who has successfully
completed a Structural Fire Con-
GFSTC
trol Instructor course conducted
by the Georgia Fire Academy.
ISO staffing is four personnel
per engine and six personnel
per aerial for full staffing. You
may get partial credit for staffing. Volunteers and off-duty
personnel only count as 1/3 of a
person for ISO staffing.
As far as equipment is concerned, the minimum equipment required for department
compliance is based on that
required by ISO to be a Class 9
department. All equipment on
our list is required. ISO does
not require all of the equipment
listed in their Rating Schedule
to be carried on fire apparatus.
You get varying amounts of
points for each piece of equipment carried that is on their list.
As far as GFSTC is concerned,
State Certified personnel must
successfully complete 24 hours
of training and all of the core
competencies approved for their
certification level. The exception is if they are core exempt.
In that case they must complete
40 hours of training approved
for their level. It is recommended that someone who is
core exempt be involved only in
administrative functions.
If
they are actually performing
core competencies for a particular level (inspectors who inspect; investigators who investigate, fire safety educators who
educate, training officers who
train firefighters in suppression
techniques, etc.) they should
perform core competencies for
their particular certification
level. ISO requires a certain
EXPRESS
number of hours training per firefighter (or officer, or driver) for
full training credit. Your department gets partial credit for less
than the full amount. They also
r e q u i r e C o mp a n y, M u l t i Company and Night Drills.
GFSTC will accept any approved
training. We accept training for
the continued certification of five
levels of state certification. This
training includes, but is not limited to: fire, rescue, EMS, driver,
hazardous materials, instructor,
inspector, investigator, educator,
etc. ISO seems to be more restrictive in the subject matter, but
more liberal in delivery methods
allowed.
Why do we include a survey in
letters we send you following a
site visit?
After we complete a site visit, we
send you a letter documenting our
visit. The letter may be to let you
know that everything was found
to be in order. In some cases, it
may document problems that we
discovered and that you need to
address. We have also started to
include a survey that allows you
to rate the Compliance Division
staff on our performance. Customer service is at the core of our
operation. If there is something
we can do to improve your experience with us, we want you to let
us know. Please take time to fill
out the survey and return it to our
Executive Director, Lyn Pardue.
We appreciate your input.
8
They Can Certify, But Should We Hire? (continued)
Criminal History: I could spend
all day on just this topic. All too
often, this is the only background
an agency does. I can promise you
that there is ALWAYS more to the
story and I caution against taking
this printout at face value. As an
investigator, these can get tricky.
Typically, a person’s criminal history is commonly associated with
the “Good Moral Character” section of the law. There is very little
statutory guidance for Good Moral
Character. At GFSTC, we mandate
that the Fire Chief sign the affidavit attesting to Good Moral Character and we accept it on face
value. It’s the responsibility of the
sponsoring agency to properly investigate the background of the
applicant and make a determination
as to their past conduct. As far as
GFSTC is concerned, as long as
there isn’t a felony conviction
within the last 10 years, we can
certify. When you deal with criminal issues, here are a few things to
keep in mind:
ο The seriousness of the offense
ο The age of the candidate at the
time of the offense/conduct
ο How recently the offense/
conduct occurred
ο Was there a plea agreement or a
reduction in charges
ο Misdemeanor vs. Felony
ο Is there a pattern of lying, cheating or stealing?
ο Any acts of domestic violence
ο What has been disclosed by the
candidate during the application
process vs. the criminal history (i.e.
Have they lied to you?)
Illegal Drug or Alcohol use?
If you have questions concerning a
past criminal act, don’t be afraid to
contact the local District Attorney’s
Office or arresting agency to help
you clarify the charges. If the case is
closed and you have a signed waiver,
they are required by the Open Records
Act to provide details of the arrest and/or
conviction. Also, please feel free to contact me and I will be glad to help you decipher criminal histories. You can reach
me by email or in my office at 478-9934680.
Polygraph examination and psychological evaluation: If you have the money to
conduct either of these, they have qualities that are useful to a background investigator. However, there are specific rules
and laws that concern the application of
these tools and I would suggest doing
your own research and form your own
opinions before using them.
It doesn’t matter if you are the largest
metro department, or the smallest, rural
volunteer agency, a thorough background
investigation will help limit your liability,
protect your agency, improve community
relations and increase professionalism. A
pre-employment background investigation, like your gear, will keep you from
getting burned.
Our Mission
To provide professionally trained, competent,
and ethical firefighters with the proper equip-
Georgia Firefighter Standards
and Training
1000 Indian Springs Dr
ment and facilities to ensure a fire safe environment for our citizens. To establish professional
standards for fire service training including consulting, testing and certification.
Forsyth, GA 31029
Phone: 478-993-4521
Fax: 478-993-4511
E-mail: gfstc@gpstc.state.ga.us
For additional information about our agency,
please contact us at our office by email or by
phone.