Council gives first passage to ordinance updating fire department ages, ranks and retirement language

The Warwick City Council on first passage approved PCO 9‑25, an ordinance presented by the administration to update several sections of the city code governing the fire department including composition language, applicant age limits, a title change for a communications position and mandatory retirement language.

Fire Chief Peter McMichael explained that changes were intended to modernize outdated references and align local code with current practice and state law. Among the changes, the minimum age to apply to the fire department would be lowered from 21 to 18 and the upper limit for applicants remains capped to preserve the department's pension structure. “18 is consistent with the other communities are doing around us,” McMichael said, noting the lower minimum is meant to expand the recruitment pool.

The ordinance also replaces an obsolete phrase (Bureau of Fire) with the Board of Public Safety, updates the superintendent of fire alarm title to deputy chief of communications to match collective bargaining language and revises mandatory retirement language to reflect state rules. The proposed definition of employee was expanded to cover any sworn member whether or not that person has been represented by the collective bargaining unit; councilors asked the city solicitor to clarify the intent of the phrase "or has been" in that definition before the ordinance returns for subsequent passage.

Councilman Lattice said he would vote in the affirmative on first passage but reserved the right to reverse his support pending the city solicitor’s explanation of the employee definition. After debate and questions about pension age and Social Security eligibility, the council recorded first passage with an affirmative roll call (eight yes votes recorded for first passage in the transcript).

The chief said disability pension and Social Security disability are covered in separate ordinance language and that PCO 9‑25 concerns ordinary retirement eligibility. The city solicitor had reviewed the language before the meeting, and the chief said the fire union and union attorney reviewed it as well; the council asked for one additional solicitor clarification for the next reading.

The ordinance received first passage; further council action (second passage and final adoption) will be required to enact the changes.