MIDDLETOWN – Township Committee members have established a township-funded death benefit for eligible volunteer firefighters in Middletown.
The ordinance establishing the death benefit was unanimously adopted at the committee’s Sept. 4 meeting.
According to the ordinance, residents and stakeholders in Middletown benefit from the services provided by the volunteer fire departments, which saves taxpayers millions of dollars.
The death benefit has been implemented to “recognize the personal commitment of (Middletown’s) volunteers.”
Volunteer firefighters can now qualify for the death benefit, which will be provided in the amount of $5,000 to the family of an emergency responder, or to whomever the financial benefit has been awarded in the will of the volunteer, Mayor Kevin Settembrino said.
Active volunteer firefighters will be eligible for the death benefit after a minimum of seven years of Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP) eligibility. Volunteer members who are serving in elected or appointed positions will be eligible for the death benefit after a minimum of 10 years of LOSAP eligibility, according to the ordinance.
LOSAP is another municipal incentive offered to volunteers. Individuals earn credit and an eventual monetary benefit by meeting criteria that have been established for that program.
Life members of the volunteer fire departments as of Aug. 20, 2018 will be automatically eligible for the death benefit incentive, according to the ordinance.
As stated in the ordinance, “The township believes that formally establishing a township-funded death benefit incentive program for eligible volunteers is a small price to pay to enhance the ability of the township’s volunteer fire departments to retain existing members and to recruit new ones.”
According to Settembrino, Middletown has the largest volunteer fire department in the world. He said there are currently 500 volunteer firefighters serving in the township’s 11 firehouses.