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2003 SESSION


CHAPTER 836
An Act to amend and reenact §§ 9.1-202 and 32.1-111.10 of the Code of Virginia, relating to the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board.
[H 1535]
Approved March 22, 2003

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That §§ 9.1-202 and 32.1-111.10 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 9.1-202. Virginia Fire Services Board; membership; terms; compensation.

A. The Virginia Fire Services Board (the "Board") is established as a policy board within the meaning of § 2.2-2100 in the executive branch of state government. The Board shall consist of fifteen 15 members to be appointed by the Governor as follows: a representative of the insurance industry; two members of the general public with no connection to the fire services, one of whom shall be a representative of those industries affected by SARA Title III and OSHA training requirements; and one member each from the State Fire Chiefs Association of Virginia Virginia Fire Chief's Association, the Virginia Firemen's Association, the Virginia Association of Professional Firefighters, the Virginia Fire Service Council, the Virginia Fire Prevention Association, the State Chapter of the International Association of Arson Investigators, the Virginia Municipal League, and the Virginia Association of Counties, and a member of the Virginia Chapter of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors who is a faculty member who teaches fire science at a public institution of higher education. Of these appointees, at least one shall be a volunteer firefighter. The State Fire Marshal, the State Forester and a member of the Board of Housing and Community Development, appointed by the chairman of that Board shall also serve as members of the Board.

Each of the organizations represented shall submit names for the Governor's consideration in making these appointments.

B. Members of the Board appointed by the Governor shall serve for terms of four years. An appointment to fill a vacancy shall be for the unexpired term. No appointee shall serve more than two successive four-year terms but neither shall any person serve beyond the time he holds the office or organizational membership by reason of which he was initially eligible for appointment.

C. The Board annually shall elect its chairman and vice chairman from among its membership and shall adopt rules of procedure.

D. Members of the Board shall not be entitled to compensation but shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties as provided in § 2.2-2825.

§ 32.1-111.10. State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board; purpose; membership; duties; reimbursement of expenses; staff support.

A. There is hereby created in the executive branch the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board for the purpose of advising the State Board of Health concerning the administration of the statewide emergency medical care system and emergency medical services vehicles maintained and operated to provide transportation to persons requiring emergency medical treatment, and for reviewing and making recommendations on the Statewide Emergency Medical Services Plan, there is hereby created. The State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board, which shall be composed of twenty-four 24 members. The membership of the Advisory Board shall be appointed by the Governor and shall include as follows: one representative of each of the following groups: Virginia Municipal League, Virginia Association of Counties, Medical Society of Virginia, Virginia Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians, Virginia Chapter of the American College of Surgeons, Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, one member of either the Emergency Nurses Association or the Virginia Nurses' Association, Virginia Hospital Association, Virginia State Firefighters Association, State Fire Chiefs Association of Virginia Virginia Fire Chief's Association, Virginia Ambulance Association, Virginia Association of Governmental Emergency Medical Services Administrators, and Virginia Association of Public Safety Communications Officials; a consumer who shall not be involved in or affiliated with emergency medical services in any capacity; one representative from each of the eight regional emergency medical services councils; and two members representatives of the Virginia Association of Volunteer Rescue Squads, Inc. Appointments may be made, at the discretion of the Governor, from lists of three nominees submitted by such organizations and groups, where applicable; and one consumer who shall not be involved in or affiliated with emergency medical services in any capacity. Each organization and group shall submit three nominees from among which the Governor may make appointments. Of the three nominees submitted by each of the regional emergency medical services councils, at least one nominee shall be a representative of providers of prehospital care. Any person appointed to the Advisory Board shall be a member of the organization that he represents. To ensure diversity in representation the organizations and groups represented on the Advisory Board, the Governor may request additional nominees from the applicable organizations and groups. In no case shall However, the Governor shall not be bound to make any appointment from among any list of nominees recommended by such organizations and groups. Each regional emergency medical services advisory council shall submit three nominations, at least one of which shall be a representative of providers of prehospital care. Each member shall be designated as serving as the representative of one of the aforementioned groups.

The members of the Advisory Board shall not be eligible to receive compensation; however, the State Health Department shall provide funding for the reimbursement of expenses incurred by members of the Advisory Board in the performance of their duties.

B. Members serving on the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board on January 1, 1996, shall complete their current terms of office. Thereafter, appointments shall be made to accomplish the restructuring of the Advisory Board according to the membership in effect on July 1, 1996, and shall be for terms of three years or the unexpired portions thereof in a manner to preserve insofar as possible the representation of the specified groups. No member shall serve more than two successive terms. Effective July 1, 1997, no individual person representing any one or more of the groups organization or group named in subsection A who has served as a member of the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board for two or more successive terms for any period or for six or more consecutive years shall be nominated for appointment or appointed to the Advisory Board unless at least three consecutive years have elapsed since such individual the person has served on the Advisory Board.

The chairman shall be elected from the membership of the Advisory Board for a term of one year and shall be eligible for reelection. The Advisory Board shall meet at least four times annually at the call of the chairman or the Commissioner.

C. The State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board shall:

1. Advise the State Board of Health on the administration of this article;

2. Review and make recommendations for the Statewide Emergency Medical Services Plan and any revisions thereto;

3. Review the annual financial report of the Virginia Association of Volunteer Rescue Squads, as required by § 32.1-111.13;

4. Review, on a schedule as it may determine, reports on the status of all aspects of the statewide emergency medical care system, including the Financial Assistance and Review Committee, the Rescue Squad Assistance Fund, the regional emergency medical services councils, and the emergency medical services vehicles, submitted by the State Office of Emergency Medical Services; and

5. Advise the Board on the requirements for the registration and training for the use of automated external defibrillators pursuant to § 32.1-111.14:1.

D. The State Health Department's Office of Emergency Medical Services shall provide staff support to the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board.