11 Pa.C.S. Ch. 121

in effect

11 Pa.C.S. § 12101 Organization of fire bureau, maintenance and apparatus.

With regard to a city fire bureau, council shall have the authority to: (1) establish and organize a fire bureau by ordinance; (2) make appropriations for the maintenance of the fire bureau; (3) promulgate regulations for the governing of the officers and companies belonging to the fire bureau; and (4) purchase equipment and apparatus for the extinguishment, prevention and investigation of fires and for the public safety.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12101.1 Appointment and demotion of fire chief.

The mayor, by and with approval and consent of council, shall appoint the fire chief who may be demoted without cause but not to any rank lower than the rank which the fire chief held within the fire bureau at the time of designation as fire chief. In the event that no qualified employee of the fire bureau has applied for the appointment, the fire chief shall be appointed by the mayor, by and with approval and consent of council, from outside the ranks. Cross References. Section 12101.1 is referred to in sections 12102, 14406.1 of this title.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12102 Paid fire bureau, election of officers and companies.

When a paid fire bureau is organized by any city, council, except as provided by section 12101.1 (relating to appointment and demotion of fire chief), may provide for the election or appointment of the officers and companies belonging to the fire bureau by ordinance in accordance with civil service provisions, where applicable. The minimum annual starting salary or compensation to be paid to officers and firefighters by any city shall be established by council.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12103 Platoon system and hours of service.

(a) General rule.--The director of the department having charge of the fire bureau in a city may divide the officers and members of companies of the uniformed fire force in the employ of the city, and any other firefighters and drivers regularly employed and paid by the city, except the chief engineer and assistant chiefs, and those employed subject to call, into shifts, bodies or platoons to perform service during the hours as the director shall fix. In cases of riot, serious conflagration, times of war, public celebrations or other emergency, the fire chief or officer in charge at any fire shall have the power to assign all the members of the fire force to continuous duty or to continue any member of the fire force on duty, if necessary. (b) Schedule after May 19, 2014.--Except as provided in subsection (c), no schedule shall require a member of any shift, body or platoon to perform continuous service for a consecutive period of 24 hours, except in cases of emergency or as otherwise agreed to through collective bargaining or an award pursuant to the act of June 24, 1968 (P.L.237, No.111), referred to as the Policemen and Firemen Collective Bargaining Act. The provisions of this subsection shall not be deemed to alter or affect any schedules in existence prior to May 19, 2014. (c) Schedule before May 19, 2014.--In a city where the work schedule in existence prior to May 19, 2014, required a work shift of less than 24 hours, no schedule shall require a member of any shift, body or platoon to perform continuous service for a consecutive period of 24 hours, except in cases of emergency or as otherwise voluntarily agreed through collective bargaining. Once so modified, no further work schedule may contain provisions reinstituting a restriction on duty of less than 24 hours of continuous service.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12104 Fire marshal.

(a) General rule.--A city may, by ordinance, provide for the creation of the office of fire marshal who shall be appointed by the mayor, by and with the approval and consent of council, biennially. (b) Powers.-- (1) The fire marshal and any authorized assistant shall inspect all construction or buildings within the city or upon property owned or controlled by the city or a municipal authority of the city within this Commonwealth and shall enforce all laws of this Commonwealth and ordinances of the city relating to the construction or buildings, for the prevention, containment or investigation of fire and fire hazards, both as to the construction or buildings and as to their contents or occupancies. (2) The fire marshal or the fire marshal's assistants shall report to the director of public safety or to council or other designated official, as council shall by ordinance provide, any faulty or dangerous construction or building or like condition in any building that may constitute a fire hazard or any proposed use or occupation of any construction, building or premises which would create or increase a hazard of fire. (3) The fire marshal shall investigate and keep a permanent record of the cause, origin and circumstances of every fire and the damage resulting from the fire occurring within the fire marshal's jurisdiction immediately after the occurrence of the fire. (4) The records of the fire marshal shall be open to public inspection, except as exempted in accordance with the act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know Law. The fire marshal shall submit to council an annual report consolidating the information contained in the records as directed by council. (5) If a fire is deemed suspicious, the fire marshal shall have the authority to investigate the fire.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12105 Obstructing fire marshal.

(a) General rule.--It shall be unlawful for any person to obstruct or prevent or attempt to obstruct or prevent the fire marshal in the discharge of the fire marshal's duties. (b) Penalties.--Council may, by ordinance, establish the types or grades of the criminal conduct and may establish fines or imprisonment, or both, for the violations. No fine may exceed $1,000 for any single violation, and no imprisonment shall exceed 90 days.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12106 Investigation of cause of fire and power of mayor.

The mayor of any city may issue a subpoena in the name of the Commonwealth to an individual requiring the attendance of the individual before the mayor or the fire marshal at the time and place as may be named in the subpoena, then and there to testify, under oath or affirmation, which the fire marshal in the absence of the mayor is empowered to administer, as to: (1) the origin of any fire occurring within the bounds of the city; and (2) any facts or circumstances that may be deemed important to secure the detection and conviction of any party guilty of the offense of arson or attempted arson.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12107 Fire chief ex-officio fire marshal.

The fire chief of a city shall be ex-officio fire marshal if the office is not separately filled pursuant to ordinance in the city, and, in that case, all the powers and duties given to or imposed upon the fire marshal under this chapter shall be enjoyed and exercised by the fire chief.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12108 Compensation insurance for injured volunteer firefighters or special fire police.

A city may make appropriations to secure insurance or compensation for volunteer firefighters killed or injured while engaged in the performance of their duties or as special fire police.

11 Pa.C.S. § 12109 Salary of nonunion city fire officers.

A fire chief or head of a fire department of a city who has been removed from bargaining units under the act of June 24, 1968 (P.L.237, No.111), referred to as the Policemen and Firemen Collective Bargaining Act, by rulings of the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board shall receive not less than the same dollar increase, including fringe benefits but excluding overtime and holiday pay, as received by the highest-ranking fire officer participating in the bargaining unit.

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/consolidated/view-statute?txtType=HTM&ttl=11Fetched: 10/16/2026