Conference panel discusses placing State Fire Marshal in Department of Law Enforcement, rolls bill to April 25

Chair Elefante convened the Joint House and Senate Conference to discuss House Bill 1064 on April 20 and summarized the measure’s key changes.

"What this bill does is it does, identify placement of the office of the state fire marshal in the department of land law enforcement," Chair Elefante said, adding that the draft changes a mandated community fuel reduction program to discretionary authority and lists staffing ("1 FTE" for the state fire marshal, "2 FTEs" for deputy state fire marshals, and "3 FTEs" for administrative assistance) with blank appropriation lines.

The bill’s placement of the Office of the State Fire Marshal within the Department of Law Enforcement drew caution from Chair Elefante. "Placement with the law enforcement department is a little bit concerning ... we need to make sure that they are sufficiently staffed," Elefante said, citing concurrent demands on the department this session.

Senate staff indicated they would circulate the digital draft to members after the meeting and, if there is agreement, request release to WAM (Ways and Means) and FIN (Finance). The committee did not take a final vote on HB 1064; members agreed to reconvene the conference on Friday, April 25, 2025, at 1:30 p.m. in Conference Room 016 to continue consideration.

No formal appropriation amounts were recorded in the committee discussion; the draft referenced "blank appropriations" for the listed FTEs. The committee also noted that memoranda and other conference documents remain to be completed before final action.

The conference temporarily recessed to obtain quorum on other items and set the April 25 roll-over; no substantive changes to the bill text were adopted on the record during this session.