156 - Functions, powers and duties of the office.

§ 156. Functions,  powers and duties of the office. The office of fire  prevention and control, by and through the state fire  administrator  or  his duly authorized officer or employee, shall be empowered to:    1. Advise and assist in coordinating and strengthening the activities,  programs  and  services,  and rules and regulations of those departments  and agencies of the  state  which  have  functions,  powers  and  duties  relating   to   (a)  arson  suppression,  detection,  investigation  and  prosecution,  (b)  fire   prevention   and   control,   and   (c)   fire  service-related  problems,  to  the  end  of  providing  more  effective  services to the public and strengthening governmental programs  relating  to such matters.    1-a.   Advise  and  assist  the  state  education  department  in  the  development of a specialized course of study for teachers  of  fire  and  arson prevention.    2.  Advise  and  assist  fire  companies,  municipal  corporations and  districts, including agencies  and  departments  thereof  in  developing  measures  for  more  effective fire and arson prevention and control; to  assist and  encourage  cooperative  efforts  to  solve  common  problems  relating  to  fire  and  arson  prevention and control and to serve as a  clearinghouse  of  information  about  fire  and  arson  prevention  and  control,  about reported cases of burn injuries or wounds sustained, and  about state and federal services available to  assist  in  solving  such  problems.    3.  Employ  or  contract with individuals, agencies or corporations to  assist fire companies,  municipal  corporations  and  districts  in  the  development of an arson investigation program or in the investigation of  cases  of  suspected arson or cases of burn injuries or wounds sustained  upon the request of such an entity. However, nothing in  this  provision  shall  be  construed  to  remove  the  primary  responsibility for arson  investigations from appropriate local jurisdictions or agencies.    4. Improve arson evidence analysis and testing at existing  facilities  and  periodically  recommend to the governor and the legislature methods  to improve such services.    5. Collect, compile and disseminate information relating to  fire  and  arson  prevention and control, reported cases of burn injuries or wounds  sustained, the use of sprinkler systems, and to  operate  a  state  fire  reporting  system.  The  state  fire  reporting  system  shall include a  procedure for the identification of patterns of suspicious  or  criminal  fires and for alerting appropriate state and local authorities. The fire  reporting system shall also include fire incident data supplied by local  fire  agencies  in  a  manner  and on forms prescribed by the state fire  administrator. To the extent practicable, the data  shall  be  collected  and  maintained in a form compatible with information collected by other  states and the federal government. The state  fire  administrator  shall  cooperate  with  the  division  of  state  police,  division of criminal  justice services, insurance department, local police and fire  agencies,  the   insurance   industry   and   other  appropriate  organizations  in  maintaining  such  system.  The  provisions  of  section  three  hundred  eighteen  of the insurance law shall apply to any organization supplying  information pursuant to this subdivision.    6. Plan, coordinate and provide training for firefighters,  both  paid  and volunteer, and related governmental officers and employees, relating  to  fire  and  arson prevention and control, and encourage expansion and  improvement of  local  training  facilities  in  cooperation  with  fire  companies,  municipal corporations and districts. Such training shall be  made available by video or computer to the maximum extent possible.  The  office  shall  adopt  rules  and  regulations relating to such training,  including but not limited to training standards used and the process  bywhich  training  hours  are  allocated  to counties as well as a uniform  procedure for requesting and providing additional training hours.    7. Operate the New York state academy of fire science.    8. Consult with and cooperate with state departments and agencies, and  universities, colleges and institutions in the state for the development  of  specialized  courses  of  study  for  public officers and employees,  including  paid  and  volunteer  firefighters,  in  fire   science   and  administration.  As  part  of  the development of a training program for  firefighters,  the  office  shall  collect,  compile,  and   disseminate  information regarding training needs based on the data provided pursuant  to  section seventy-two-g of the general municipal law. Such information  shall  be  compiled  annually  and,  once  compiled,  a  copy  of   such  information  shall be submitted to the governor, the temporary president  of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly.    9. Coordinate and support arson training  programs  conducted  by  the  division of criminal justice services and the division of state police.    10.  Provide  such  public education and information programs, studies  and reports as the state fire administrator may determine in furtherance  of the provisions of this article and to  coordinate  and  assist  other  state  agencies, municipal corporations and districts and fire companies  in such matters.    11. Provide management advice and technical  assistance  to  municipal  corporations and districts and fire companies relating to fire and arson  prevention   and   control,   including   recommendations   relating  to  organizations and structure of fire  companies,  municipal  corporations  and  districts,  allocations  of  powers  and functions, cooperation and  intergovernmental organizational and fiscal relationships,  federal  and  state  aid  programs;  to provide legal advice and technical services to  state and local officials and agencies with respect  to  powers,  duties  and functions of municipal corporations and districts and fire companies  relating to fire and arson prevention and control.    12. Prepare and recommend revisions, consolidations or compilations of  statutes relating to arson, fire prevention and control.    13. Upon request of the appropriate state agency, provide for the fire  safety  inspection  of  state  or  state-regulated  facilities  with the  cooperation and assistance  of  local  fire  inspection  personnel.  The  completed fire inspection form shall be filed with the requesting agency  and  contain recommendations as may be appropriate and a copy filed with  the office of fire prevention and control.    14. Act as the  official  agent  of  the  state  for  the  purpose  of  administering,  carrying  out and otherwise cooperating with the federal  government in  connection  with  the  provisions  of  the  federal  fire  prevention  and  control  act  of  nineteen hundred seventy-four and any  federal laws amendatory  or  supplemental  to  such  act  heretofore  or  hereafter enacted; to apply for, accept, and expend funds made available  by  the  federal  government pursuant to such act; and to enter into any  necessary contracts  or  compacts  pursuant  to  such  federal  acts  in  connection  therewith  and  to  take  any  further  action  which may be  required under the terms of any such federal act.    15. Enter  into  contracts  with  any  person,  firm,  corporation  or  governmental  agency  to do all things necessary and convenient to carry  out the functions,  powers  and  duties  expressly  set  forth  in  this  article.    16.  Accept  and  administer  as  agent  of the state any gift, grant,  devise or bequest, including federal grants for any of the  purposes  of  this article. Any moneys so received may be expended subject to the same  limitations  as to approval of expenditures and audits as are prescribed  for state moneys.17. Issue a written report to the  governor  and  legislature,  on  or  before   February  fifteenth  of  each  year,  on  firefighter  training  activities.    Such  report  shall  include  at  least   the   following  information:  the minimum training hours allocated on a county-by-county  basis,  the  training  hours  requested  by each county, any unfulfilled  training hour requests, and the number of hours used by each county on a  county-by-county basis.    18. Establish rules and regulations as to the location and design of a  delineator used to mark the location of fire hydrants.    19. Adopt, amend or rescind such rules, regulations or orders  as  may  be  necessary  or convenient to the performance of the functions, powers  and duties set forth in this article.