Township fire protection 

2-331 1994 Opinions OAG 94-067 OPINION NO. 94-067 Syllabus: 1. Pursuant to R.C. 9.60 and RC. 505.37, a township may, but is not required to, provide fll"e protection for the residents of the township. 2. RC. 505.38(B) requires the board of trustees of a township that does not have a fIre department to appoint a fIre prevention officer to carry out the duties of a fIre chief except those duties pertaining to the maintenance and operation of fIre apparatus. To: David p" Joyce, Geauga County Prosecuting Attorney, Chardon, Ohio By: Lee Fisher, Attorney General, October 13, 1994 You have requested an opinion concerning the duty of a board of township trustees to provide fIre protection for the township and its residents. You specifIcally ask: 1. Does a township have a mandatory duty to provide fIre protection for its residents? 2. If so, to what extent, degree, and manner must a township so provide? Your opinion request also mentions RC. 505.38(B), concerning the duty to appoint a township fIr..! prevention officer. Township Fire Protection As a creature of statute, a board of township trustees "can exercise only those powers conferred by statute, or such others as are necessarily to be implied from those granted, in order to enable them to perfonn the duties imposed upon them." Trustees ofNew London Township v. Miner, 26 Ohio St. 452, 456 (1875). The responsibilities of a township with respect to the provision of fire protection are set forth primarily in R C. 505.37, which states in pertinent part: (A) The board of township trustees may establish all necessary rules to guard against the occurrence of fireS and to protect the property and lives of the December 1994 OAG 94-067 Attorney General 2-332 citizens against damage and accidents, and may, with the approval of the specifications by the prosecuting attorney, purchase or otherwise provide any fIre apparatus, mechanical resuscitators, or other equipment ... that seems advisable to the board .... (C) The board of township trustees of any township may, by resolution, whenever it is expedient and necessary to guard against the occurrence of fIres or to protect the property and lives of the citizens against damages resulting from their occurrence, create a fire district of any portions of the township that it considers necessary. The board may purchase or otherwise provide any fIre apparatus, appliances, materials, fIre hydrants, and water supply for frre-fIghting purposes, or may contract for the fIre protection for the fIre district as provided in [Re. 9.60] .... (Emphasis added.) Re. 9.60 provides additional authority for townships to provide and obtain frre protection either by contract or upon approval and authorization. The extent of a township'S duty to provide fIre protection was summarized in 1988 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 88-042 at 2-201, as follows: A township is not required to providejire or rescue services, see 1987 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 87-040; 1979 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 79-042, but may, if it chooses, provide fire and rescue services throughout the township, see Re. 50S. 37(A), or, by the creation of a frre district consisting of "any portions of the township that it considers necessary, " provide fIre and rescue services to the portions of the township that are within the district, see Re. SOS.37(C). If a frre district is created, expenses of the district are borne by the district and services are provided to the territory within the district. Services of such a district may be extended beyond the district pursuant to contract. Fire and rescue services may be provided either directly by the township or the frre district or by contract with a fIrefighting agency or fIre company. (Emphasis added; various citations omitted.) The General Assembly has amended Re. 505.37 several times since Op. No. 88-042 was issued, but has left the fire protection responsibilities imposed upon townships essentially unchanged. In answer to your first question, therefore, R.e. 9.60 and Re. 50S.37 permit, but do not require, a township to provide fire protection for the township. Fire Prevention Officer in Township Without Fire Department Although a township does not have a mandatory duty to provide fire protection for the residents of the township, in any township that does not have a frre department, the board of township trustees "shall" appoint a fire prevention offIcer. R.C. 50S.38(B). See generally 1986 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 86-014 (appointment of township frre prevention officer). The frre prevention officer "shall exercise all of the duties of a fire chief except those involving the maintenance and operation of frre apparatus." Id. See, e.g., Re. 3737.24 (duty to investigate cause, origin, and circumstances of major frres); Re. 3737.80 (responsibility for primary coordination in certain emergency situations). The board of township trustees may also appoint one or more deputy frre prevention officers, "who shall exercise the duties assigned by the frre prevention officer." Re. SOS.38(B). Thus, the board of trustees of a township that has no frre 2-333 1994 Opinions OAG 94-068 department must appoint a fIre prevention officer, whether or not the township otherwise provides fIre protection for the township. Conclusion Based on the foregoing, it is my opinion, and you are hereby advised that: 1. Pursuant to RC. 9.60 and RC. 505.37, a township may, but is not required to, provide fIre protection for the residents of the township. 2. RC. 505.38(B) requires the board of trustees of a township that does not have a fIre department to appoint a fIre prevention officer to carry out the duties of a fIre chief except those duties pertaining to the maintenance and operation of fIre apparatus. December 1994