Volume 22 | No. 3 Third Quarter 2014 California Professional Firefighters Every Race Matters Critical down-ballot contests up the stakes this November magine a corporation in which STATE CONTROLLER the boss asks the employees who Sounds pretty nondescript, until you real- they think should be the CEO, ize that the controller signs every check the executive VP, the CFO, the that goes out from the state. The con- pension fund manager and the troller sits on 81 different state boards whole board of directors. and commissions, none more important For California firefighters, that hap- than the CalPERS Board of Directors. Ipens every election. The controller also monitors the fiscal When CPF members go to the polls health of the state and all cities and coun- this November, they won’t just be voting ties, including the retirement system. Past on who will represent them. They’ll be controllers have gone on to become U.S. voting on the people who will make deci- senators and, in one case, governor. sions about their jobs, their retirement, If you care about your job and your their safety and the future of their fami- future, you better care about the con- lies. With so much at stake, from pensions troller’s race. to privatization to attacks on the pro- For firefighters, the choice is espe- fession itself, there’s no such thing as a cially clear. Betty Yee has three “boring” election for firefighters. decades of experience as a pub- While it goes without saying that the lic servant and fiscal expert, governor and legislature are critical posi- most recently as a member tions, choices up and down the ballot will of the state’s tax authority, resonate in the lives of first responders – the Board of Equaliza- in some cases immediately, in others, years tion. Yee is tough, ION I or perhaps decades down the line. fair and supremely CT SS The media may not pay much attention qualified. Yee’s E U L E to these races, but you should. opponent, E Continued on page 9 2 014 PRESIDENT’S RETIREMENT NAPA CPF PERSPECTIVE ECONOMICS QUAKE ENDORSEMENTS Page 3 Page 4 Page 14 Page 16 CalOES, oil-by-rail incidents increased nearly nine-fold between 2011 and 2013. Through the first five months of 2014, California had seen almost as many inci- dents – 24 – as it had in all of 2013. The preferred routes for these trains also pose some unique challenges. Trains transporting crude oil most likely travel through sometimes remote, sensitive areas, such as the Feather River or Donner Pass in Northern California or the Tehachapi Pass in Southern California. “In these more rural areas, we’re look- ing at a unique set of challenges,” Paulson said, noting that many rural volunteer fire departments would rely upon mutual aid in the event of a large-scale railroad acci- dent. “Should an incident occur, we need to figure out how to get emergency ser- vices personnel to these sites safely.” In order to ensure adequate prepared- ness for oil-by-rail emergencies, CPF along with the California Fire Chiefs Association and the Fire Districts Association of California, backed CPF ENGAGES ON OIL BY RAIL Assembly Bill 1476. If signed by the gov- ernor, AB 1476 would grant a $10 million TOXIC TRAINS HAVE THE STATE’S FIRE SERVICE FOCUSING loan to the Office of Emergency Services for “regional railroad accident prepared- ON TRAINING, RESPONSE FUNDING ness.” While the loan is a step in the right direction, Paulson said, locating a cross the state, plans to run shipments entering the state, we need or 0.3 percent of overall oil imports, permanent funding mechanism for local trains filled with volatile crude to be sure that our first responders are entered the state by rail. Shipments by rail oil-by-rail response will continue to be a oil through crowded downtowns trained in how to properly respond to jumped more than 500 percent between priority in the future. Aand ecologically sensitive areas any given situation,” said CPF President 2012 and 2013, and now account for Beyond resources, there is also a have the state’s fire service on high alert. Lou Paulson. nearly one percent of all state oil imports– need for specific training available to This issue of oil-by-rail transport is rap- Until recently, the transportation of oil roughly 6.3 million barrels. At the current all departments – urban and rural. idly becoming a priority for California by rail was an afterthought for the state’s rate, the California Energy Commission Through the California Fire Fighter Joint Professional Firefighters (CPF), which is multi-billion dollar petroleum industry. estimates that 25 percent of total oil Apprenticeship Committee (CFFJAC), stressing the need for increased funding In the past few years, however, a boom in imports – 150 million barrels – will be CPF is working collaboratively with and training resources for departments the Bakken oil fields of North Dakota has brought in by rail in 2016. management on standardized training that may find themselves dealing with caused a major uptick in the volume of oil As oil-by-rail shipments have increased, protocols that would improve the state’s spill-related incidents. entering California via the state’s railways. so too have the number of incidents and ability to quickly and safely respond to “With the major increase in oil-by-rail In 2012, less than one million barrels, spills related to the practice. According to any significant incident. Want to stay connected with your profession? Your Online Video Connect with CPF Firevision News Update Twice a month, CPF Firevision brings the California fire service directly to your computer, iPod or smartphone. Firefighter news Timely: Up-to-the-minute headlines and stories that affect you online and Informative: Stories and images from the front lines on-the-go Relevant: Local spotlight segments about how firefighters are making a difference … on the front lines and in the community. Find CPF Firevision at 2 THIRD QUARTER | VOLUME 23 NO. 3 CALIFORNIA PROFESSIONAL FIREFIGHTERS PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE GOING on OFFENSE Lou Paulson n the decade I have been hon- campaign disclosure laws to funnel ored to serve as CPF president, millions of city and county dollars it has sometimes felt like we into politics – specifically initiatives. have been standing at the busi- CPF unmasked this deception and ness end of a shooting gallery. successfully promoted legislation At the state level, our mem- curbing the most egregious practitio- • Evangelizing retirement secu- there for all to see. Personal income for bers have faced down two ner, the League of California Cities. rity for all. Firefighters and other the vast majority of Californians remains Idraconian attacks on our political rights, public workers have been forced to flat, or has declined. Manufacturing three different pension rollback initia- • Billions available for public safety play defense against a decade-long jobs go overseas or to states like Texas tives, workers’ comp takeaways, persistent by ending redevelopment. For assault on public pensions. Lost that enable the exploitation of low-wage drought-related fire risk and an ever-more- more than half a century, city gov- in the discussion is the devastat- workers. Nearly three-quarters of college hostile media environment. ernments used redevelopment to ing decline in retirement security students will graduate with significant At the local level, our affiliates have felt divert untold billions out of general for all Californians, public and student-loan debt. A growing number of the force of a cataclysmic recession that funds and into subsidies for devel- private. Through our collabora- working people believe they will never be has contracted services, forced significant opers and pet projects. CPF was the tion with other labor organizations able to retire. salary and benefit concessions, embold- most vocal supporter of Gov. Jerry in Californians for Retirement Turning this tide will take more than ened management attacks and, in some Brown’s successful effort to end this Security, CPF is helping to broaden just counterpunching the latest ballot ini- cases, sent cities running to bankruptcy costly giveaway. As of January 1st, the discussion about retirement so tiative: We need to start putting the other in an effort to deflect fault for their own more than $4.25 billion had been that every working person – public side on the back foot. mismanagement. returned to local general fund cof- and private sector – enjoys pension In my role at the Alliance, I have The breadth of the attacks has often fers for critical public safety services. security. worked with other labor groups to put made it feel like we’re spending most of resources into a campaign to reconnect our time on defense. But it’s not in the • Taking on the chemical industry There is one other area where we all working people with the union move- nature of our business to stay back on over firefighter safety.For decades, need to go on the attack: the fight for ment. Our goal is to help a generation of our heels. chemical companies have promoted California’s middle class. Californians understand that they don’t As the economic crisis recedes, we have the use of chemical flame-retardants As chair of the Alliance for a Better have to just accept the steady erosion of taken the opportunity to take the fight to linked to job-related cancer in fire- California, I’ve been called upon to lead their opportunity for a better life. our adversaries. In many cases, we were fighters and reduced brain function labor’s charge against devastating attacks As firefighters, this is our fight as much the primary sponsors and motivators.