Board Meeting
The Board met prior to the quarterly
meeting. Present were James Novak, Denise DeMars. Jeff Schadegg, Charlie O’Brien, Jerry Streich, Mike Urbanski, Don
Howell, John Piper, Mike Tremain and Tony Krall.
Charlie O’Brien presented the
quarterly transaction report and the 2006 Conference transaction reports for Board
approval. Motion by Howell, seconded by DeMars to approve as presented. Motion passed.
Charlie O’Brien presented the
quarterly Arson Reward transaction reports for Board approval. Motion by DeMars, seconded
by Tremain to approve as presented. Motion passed.
Tony Krall reported that he has
submitted and received approval of the 2006
Conference for Minnesota Continuing Legal Education Credits. MN Event # 98421 15 CLE
Hours. President Novak thanked Tony for his assistance.
Mike Tremain presented the
Scholarship Committee recommendation for 2006 Awards. The Chapter may Award two $500
scholarships each year. Their recommendation is that these two awards be presented to:
Andrea Wenzlaff and Cameron Novak. Motion by DeMars, seconded by Piper to approve the 2006
Scholarships as recommended. Motion passed. Novak Abstained.
President Novak requested direction
regarding the discussion at the annual meeting of Attorney General participation in arson
prosecution at the local level. Motion by
Piper, seconded by Urbanski, directing President Novak to meet with Susan Gaertner,
President of the MN County Attorney’s Association, regarding the Chapter’s
desire to pursue legislation allowing the MN Attorney General’s Office to prosecute
Arson cases when local prosecutors do not wish to pursue cases investigators feel are
strong.
Mike Tremain presented a request from
Gordy Meagher for a $500 donation to assist in paying for his Accelerant Detection Canine
expenses. No information was presented regarding requests for assistance however Tremain
noted the dog and handler are available to assist Chapter members in processing scenes. Motion by O’Brien, seconded by Piper to approve the request.. Motion passed.
The Board discussed presenting a
plaque or gift to Sherry Munyon of Capital Hill Associates Inc for her beyond the call of
duty representation of the fire service and the MN Chapter in the passing of the Fire
Service Account Bill / HF 2916. It was decided a gift certificate from Murrays would be appropriate. Motion
by DeMars, seconded by Urbanski to invite Sherry Munyon
to the quarterly meeting and present her with a $125 gift certificate from Murray’s as a token of our
appreciation. Motion passed.
Jeff Schadegg presented the Executive
Director’s report which included the contract renewing the Administrative Services
Agreement through June 4, 2007. Schadegg left the room during the discussion and voting. Motion by
Piper, seconded by O’Brien to approve the report and renew the administrative service
agreement with Schadegg. Motion passed.
Introduction of
Guests at Chapter Meeting
Dave Tebow introduced interns: Mark
Groth and Ashley Woodford. Tebow also reported that Steve
Banning will be returning to the arson lab.
Guest from North St. Paul: Jason Mellinger
Guest from Mayo Clinic: Gary Schroeder
Guest from Rochester: Vance Swisher, Fire Marshal, Rochester Fire
Secretary’s
Report
Motion by
Tebow, Seconded by Popp to approve the Minutes of March
29 , 2006 as published
in the newsletter. Motion passed.
Treasurer’s
Report
Motion by Hale, Seconded by Doug Anderson to approve the Treasurers Report as published
in the newsletter. Motion passed.
Arson Reward Committee
Committee Chair Charlie O’Brien
reported we gave out three awards totaling $700 in the first quarter. We received a
$10,000 donation from the MN Fair Plan. Thank you! Door hangers are available by
contacting Charlie. Remember the Hotline # is answered 24/7 at the BCA.
Arson Awareness Committee
Committee Chair Jerry Streich reported that the
committee is working on a new trade show display board to get our message out. They are
working with the Board on a design and hope to get approval to move forward soon.
There will be a meeting of the
committee with the State Fire Marshal 09:00 on July 25th at the SFM Offices to discuss the direction of the
committee in the future.
Jerry reported that we may qualify to
apply for a grant from FEMA. Hw will pursue this with Board approval.
August 25th is the
Governor’s Fire Prevention Day at the Fair. Contact Jerry if you wish to volunteer.
Training and
Education
Jamie Novak
reported that the committee is hard at work planning the 2007 Conference. To alleviate
problems with hotel registration, in 2007 the entire hotel will be held for conference
participant until 30 days before the event. You must register early to be guaranteed a
room.
Awards
Committee
Jamie Novak reported that Mike
Tremain would like to pass the torch and he is working to replace him as Committee Chair.
Legislative
Committee
Committee
Chair Denise DeMars reported that HF 2916 passed and was sign into law by the Governor.
The bill abolishes the fire
insurance tax and establishes a fire safety account funded by a new insurance surcharge.
The surcharge will provide dedicated funding for the fire service in Minnesota including the State Fire
Marshal’s Office. (A full copy of the bill can be found at http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=H2916.4.html&session=ls84)
President Novak commented that
applications can be found on line at the internationals Web Site. (http://www.firearson.com/cfi/index.asp)
Mike Tremain who represents the
Chapter on the Minnesota Fire Service Certification Board wanted to let the membership
know that the Certification Board is working on a basic fire investigator certification.
The IAAI offers the CFI program which is often unattainable for many investigators in
local departments. About five states now offer a basic including Mississippi and Texas. He called the Mississippi
Chapter President to discuss any problems or conflicts they experienced between the State
certification and IAAI CFI program. There were none. Tremain pointed out that this is not
intended to replace the CFI program. Requirements are tailored to show compliance with the
requirements of NFPA 1033 Standard for Professional Qualifications for Fire Investigator.
Governor’s Council
Chapter
representative Mike Tremain reported that Governor’s Fire Prevention Day at the Fair
will be August 25. The goal this year is to enter the Guiness Book of World Records as the
largest fire prevention event in the world. Dan
Bernardy is working out the details.
Council President Ted Zweig is a
breath of fresh air and continues to focus on better communications between member
organizations.
We are beginning to work on the
concept of a fire safety learning center at the Mall of America. A committee is being
formed and will be meeting later this Summer to formulate a plan to move this project
forward. The center will be fashioned after the New York City Fire Zone. Check it out at (www.fdnyfirezone.org)
Scholarship Committee
Committee
Chair Mike Tremain reported that the 2006 Scholarship recipients have been named by the
Board. Andrea Wenzlaff and Cameron Novak will each receive a $500 scholarship. Mike
Urbanski will be taking over as Chair of the Scholarship Committee.
Ethics Committee
No report
HazMat / OSHA
President Novak reported that Mark
Svare is working on updating material for next years class. If you have any input let Mark
know. (mjsvare@svarepe.com) We do not have enough
interest to offer a 40 Hour Class at this time. The Beyers Group will offer the class
numerous times in 2006. Check the upcoming events section in the newsletter for more
information.
Membership Committee
Committee
Chair Denise DeMars presented three new members for consideration. Motion by Howe,
seconded by Tremain to approve applications. Motion passed.
Private Investigator Committee
President Novak reported Committee
Chair Crawford Wiestling has received word that the MN PI Board has approved the 2006
Conference for continuing education credit. Information will be posted to our web site. (http://www.mniaai.org/2006Conference.htm)
He thanked Crawford for submitting the information.
By-Laws Committee
No report
Newsletter
Jeff Schadegg commented there was
nothing to report.( If you have information for the newsletter or web site send to jschadegg@mniaai.org )
Juvenile Fire Setter Committee
No
report
Merchandise Committee
No report
State Fire Marshal
State Fire
Marshal Jerry Rosendahl
thanked everyone for supporting the fire safety account bill and congratulated the fire service. He cautioned that things will not
happen immediately. It will take time for the funding change to occur. The surcharge
starts to be collected on new policies and renewals as of July
1, 2007. Payments by insurance companies will be made
quarterly beginning November of 2007. The advisory committee must act first. He estimated
it will take about two years to complete the process.
A new law requiring CO detectors in
all residential units passed this Session. Every single-family dwelling and every
unit in a multi-family dwelling will be required to have an operational carbon monoxide
detector on each level of the residence and within 10 feet of each sleeping room. The law
takes effect Jan. 1, 2007, for newly constructed facilities in which permits were issued
after that date; Aug. 1, 2008, for existing single family dwelling units; and Aug. 1, 2009,
for all multi-family dwelling units. (This comes from HF1337/SF1003, sponsored by Rep.
Denny McNamara (R-Hastings) and Sen. Pat Pariseau (R-Farmington). A copy of the bill can
be found at http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=H1337.0&session=ls84
)
Arson as a cause of structure fires in Minnesota has moved from
#3 to #4.
Fire Prevention Week this year will be October 8th through the 14th. The
theme of fire prevention week 2006 is “Prevent Cooking Fires … Watch What You
Heat!” Cooking fires continue to be the #1 cause of structure fire in Minnesota.
The two BCA 24 hour communication centers have merged into one.
There should be no change in services.
Rosendahl urged the chapter to support and participate in the
establishment of an investigator certification by the Minnesota Fire Service Certification
Board. He agreed with Mike Tremain that this
should not detract from the IAAI CFI program but rather would be a stepping stone toward
it.
The State Fire Marshal relies heavily on the group e-mail list
to get the word out on issues and receive input from local jurisdictions. SFM Rosendahl
asked everyone to sign up if they are not already a member. (Directions on how to join are
found at http://www.dps.state.mn.us/fmarshal/ListServer.html
)
Our fire death statistics in Minnesota continue to go down each
year. This is credited largely to public education efforts. If we are to continue to
reduce these numbers we must do more. Sprinkler systems are a key element in reducing fire
deaths further. Communities with sprinkler
ordinances show remarkable reductions in fire deaths. SFM Rosendahl suggested
investigators remember to include a sprinkler message when speaking to reporters after a
fire. We need to get the work out that sprinkler systems save lives.
SFM Rosendahl announced that Jon Nisja of his office has been
elected as President of the International Fire Marshal’s Association. The Chapter
joins SFM Rosendahl in congratulating Mr. Nisja on his election.
Executive
Director’s Report
Executive Director Jeff Schadegg Reported the following:
Current membership numbers:
Active 207
Associate 225
Life
17
Sustaining 4
Total 453
2006 Dues Outstanding: 87 Members
Ten members were dropped for non-payment of 2005 and 2006 dues.
Mn 100 Club dues were paid on March
23rd after e-mail approval was received from the Board. Record of expenditure
was forwarded to the Treasurer.
2005
Conference: All registrations were collected as of 3/26/2006.
2006 conference: We have seven
outstanding registrations totaling $1545.00 I
will continue collection efforts.
2006
HazMat / OSHA Compliance Class: All registration fees have been collected.
At the last meeting the Board approved
a ½ Column ad to be placed in the Minnesota
Fire Chief Magazine with direction to prepare
a draft for review. The proposed ad is attached. It incorporates our new logo, mission
statement, web address and a general description of the organization. The format is
similar to that used by FMAM.
Old Business
President
Novak recognized the retirement of Ross Parker from the Rochester Fire Department. He
congratulated Ross and thanked him for his exemplary service and attendance at Chapter
functions.
President Novak asked chapter members
to get their pictures to Jeff Schadegg for inclusion in the member handbook. We will be
updating the handbook to include pictures in the near future.
New Business
President Novak commented that it is
getting increasingly difficult to get arson cases prosecuted in Minnesota. We must move forward with
legislation to correct this problem. He will be visiting with Susan Gaertner, President of
the MN County Attorney’s Association to ask for their support in legislation to
create a system of peer review which would allow County Attorneys to seek help from or forward cases to the State Attorney
General’s Office. We need data to support our request and raise awareness that there
is a problem. If you have example cases send
the information to Jamie Novak (james.novak@ci.stpaul.mn.us
) or Denise DeMars (denise.r.demars@state.mn.us) . We are
looking for case within the last ten years – preferably within five years.
President Novak reported that the
IAAI voted at the International Conference to move the office to Washington, D.C. They will be renting office
space from the Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Association. The new office will be more Board
driven and should be more member oriented.
John Piper of Coon Rapids reported that there
continues to be an effort to pass fire safe cigarette legislation in Minnesota. Piper motioned, seconded
by Garfin, that the Chapter go on record supporting fire safe cigarette legislation in Minnesota and requesting the MNFAC
carry the initiative. Motion passed.
Adjournment
Motion by Garfin, Seconded by DeMars to adjourn. Motion passed.
