Mayor Murray nominated Harold Scoggins as the next Chief of the Seattle Fire Department.

"As Seattle grows rapidly over the next 20 years, our fire service must continue to evolve to serve the city's public safety needs," said Murray. "Our department saves lives every day and our Medic One program remains a national leader in paramedic training for our fire fighters. Chief Scoggins has an outstanding track record and brings the right kind of experience to Seattle."

Scoggins comes to the Seattle Fire Department from Glendale, CA. He joined the Glendale Fire Department 25 years ago as a fire fighter and rose through the ranks, serving at every level of the department. He was named chief in Glendale in 2008.

"I am honored to serve as the Fire Chief for the City of Seattle," said Scoggins. "I look forward to working with the men and women of Seattle Fire Department to set its course for the future. My family and I are also very excited about the community and all it has to offer."

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The Glendale Latino Assn. once again recognized a man, woman and organization of the year as part of a now 25-year-old tradition of spotlighting noteworthy leaders and organizations in the community.

Glendale Department Fire Chief Harold Scoggins was presented with the 2015 Man of the Year Award, Toni Beck Espinoza earned the 2015 Woman of the Year title and Glendale Community College won the Organization of the Year award.

More than 100 people filled a dining hall at the Oakmont Country Club for the annual gathering hosted by the association, which since 1990 has worked to promote awareness of Latino cultures and hand out thousands of dollars in student scholarships every year.

City Manager Scott Ochoa, 2014’s man of the year, called up Scoggins to accept his award. During his speech, he said Glendale’s fire service is one of 11 “class 1” rated departments, adding that it couldn’t be done without the entire fire staff.

Read the Article Here

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First in Detroit, then in Stockton, Calif., and now in New Jersey, judges and other top officials are challenging the widespread belief that public pensions are untouchable.

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey delivered the latest blow on Tuesday, when he proposed to freeze that state's public pension plans and move workers into new ones intended not to overwhelm future budgets or impose open-ended demands on taxpayers.

The first crack came in Detroit, where a judge ruled that public pensions could, in fact, be reduced, at least in bankruptcy. Then, just a few weeks ago, an opinion by the bankruptcy judge for Stockton, which emerged from Chapter 9 on Wednesday, called California's mighty public pension system, Calpers, a bully for insisting in court that pension cuts were wholly out of the question.

Such dogma "encourages dysfunctional strategies," wrote the judge, Christopher Klein, chief judge of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of California. He said Calpers's legal arguments were invalid, and he concluded that it lacked standing to dominate the courtroom discussion the way it had. Stockton did not even seek permission to freeze its pension plans, but the judge nevertheless wrote that it was entitled to do so and went on to cite steps that struggling cities in general should take to trim their pension costs legally.

For starters, he recommended negotiating with their unions.

Read the Article Here

 

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Wisconsin is set to become the nation's 25th so-called "right-to-work" state. Republicans in the state legislature are fast-tracking a bill to Gov. Scott Walker, who is a potential 2016 presidential candidate.

The state Senate passed a right-to-work bill late Wednesday, and the State Assembly could pass it next week.

The measure aims to weaken private sector unions by letting workers opt out of mandatory dues. Wisconsin Republicans appear to be following an anti-union playbook that's been circling the Midwest.

Read the NPR Article Here

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The Spring Edition of the Third Rail Newsletter is now available in the Document Library.

Featured articles include:

"20 Years Later: Honoring Our Brothers", "Aid Car 5" and more!

Read It Now!

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Brothers and Sisters,
Local 27 is fully engaged in the political process to protect and support you, your family, and public safety. Our American democratic process relies on citizens and organizations for elections and for governance. Local 27 informs and supports candidates and elected officials on all issues related to fire fighters and public safety including: health and safety, training, equipment, department policies, compensation, benefits, retirement, staffing, response times, service levels, hazards, etc.
Local 27, the WSCFF, and the IAFF rely on your voluntary financial contributions to fund these efforts.
Many members already do their part and contribute, but many still do not.
If you have not yet signed up for the Local 27 SAFEPAC or the WSCFF Fastpac, or the IAFF Firepac, please follow the link below to get started now. Thank you.

Kenny Stuart
President
Seattle Fire Fighters Union
IAFF Local 27

SAFEPAC, FASTPAC, FIREPAC Contribution Forms

Local 27 Political Action Volunteer Form

 

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