Volunteer firefighters from the Hudson Valley and a bipartisan group of lawmakers are calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to sign a bill expanding tax credits for volunteer first responders.
If signed into law, the legislation would expand the income tax credit for active volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers from $200 to $800 for individuals, and from $400 to $1,600 for eligible married joint filers. The legislation would also allow volunteer first responders to accept state and local tax credits, eliminating a rule that requires them to choose one or the other.
At a rally in the Hudson Valley town of Ossining over the weekend, volunteer firefighters and lawmakers argued the expanded tax credits would support people volunteering in their communities amid rising living costs, and keep volunteer departments staffed so that municipalities don't have to raise taxes to pay for professional fire departments.
"I personally understand what this tax credit means to families like mine who are often scrambling to find childcare," Mackenzie Farrell, a volunteer firefighter in Ossining, said. "I can tell you, I have a toddler at home, and when the fire whistle blows, I'm calling my mom to take them over so I can go to a fire call. I want to remain close here, and I know a ton of younger people within the fire department want to remain close here in the community that raised us — we want to give back, but sometimes we feel priced out doing so."
The legislation passed both houses of the New York State Legislature in May and June with overwhelming support.
The credit has not been increased since it was first introduced in 2007.
