State Assemblyman Sean T. Kean’s letter, “Assemblyman Seeking Support for Bill” (Atlanticville, May 8), asks for support for two bills to encourage volunteering for emergency response activities. While I applaud these efforts in general, I would like to offer an amendment to one and a few words of caution for the other.
Current state law provides certain benefits for volunteer firefighters who join between the ages of 18 and 45. The bill, A2953, would raise that upper limit to 65. I thought we had moved beyond the stereotype of ageism. Legally, a person is not an adult below the age of 18, but there is no justification for an upper limit. Anybody who can meet the functional requirements for a volunteer firefighter — at any age — should be entitled to the corresponding benefits.
The other bill — not yet introduced — would reward all volunteer first responders by means of a tax incentive. I see more than one problem with that. It would add a complication to New Jersey’s otherwise relatively simple income tax form. It would reduce state revenues. It could create an army of beneficiaries who are volunteers in name only, unless burdensome requirements are put in place for eligibility. A more manageable alternative might be to authorize local governments to reward volunteers as they see fit and, correspondingly, raise the local tax cap as needed. Martin B. Brilliant Holmdel