AN ACT CONCERNING VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND THE DEFINITION OF EMPLOYER UNDER THE STATE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT.

House of Representatives
HB5276 / File No. 92 1

General Assembly File No. 92
February Session, 2026 House Bill No. 5276

House of Representatives, March 19, 2026

The Committee on Labor and Public Employees reported
through REP. SANCHEZ, E. of the 24th Dist., Chairperson of
the Committee on the part of the House, that the bill ought to
pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND THE
DEFINITION OF EMPLOYER UNDER THE STATE OCCUPATIONAL
HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (d) of section 31 -367 of the general statutes is 1
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 2
1, 2026): 3
(d) "Employer" means the state and any political subdivision thereof 4
and, except as provided in section 31 -369, as amended by this act, any 5
volunteer fire department and any volunteer ambulance company; 6
Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 31 -369 of the general statutes is 7
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 8
1, 2026): 9
(a) This chapter applies to all employers, employees and places of 10
employment in the state except the following: (1) Employees of the 11
HB5276 File No. 92

HB5276 / File No. 92 2

United States government; [and] (2) working conditions of employees 12
over which federal agencies other than the United States Department of 13
Labor exercise statutory authority to prescribe or enforce standards or 14
regulations affecting occupational safety and health ; and (3) any 15
volunteer fire department or volunteer ambulance company that is 16
regulated by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, 29 USC 17
651, et seq., as amended from time to time. 18
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 31-367(d)
Sec. 2 October 1, 2026 31-369(a)

LAB Joint Favorable

HB5276 File No. 92

HB5276 / File No. 92 3

The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill places volunteer fire departments and volunteer ambulance
companies under the jurisdiction of the state's Occupational Safety and
Health Act (Conn -OSHA), unless they are regulated by federal OSHA
law. This does not result in any fiscal impact as the Department of Labor
has historically considered such entities within its jurisdiction.
The Out Years
State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None

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HB5276 / File No. 92 4

OLR Bill Analysis
HB 5276

AN ACT CONCERNING VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND
THE DEFINITION OF EMPLOYER UNDER THE STATE
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT.

SUMMARY
This bill requires volunteer fire department s and volunteer
ambulance companies to comply with the state’s Occupational Safety
and Health Act (Conn -OSHA) as employer s unless they are regulated
by the federal OSHA law. By law, Conn -OSHA governs workplace
safety for the state and its political subdivisions as employers, but
certain nongovernmental volunteer fire and ambulance companies are
not considered employers under its current jurisdiction.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026
BACKGROUND
Related Case
In Mayfield v. Goshen Volunteer Fire Company (301 Conn. 739 (2011)),
the state Supreme Court ruled that a privately chartered volunteer fire
company is not a political subdivision of the state (and not subject to
Conn-OSHA jurisdiction) if it is not controlled by a municipality or
municipal officials.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Labor and Public Employees Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 9 Nay 4 (03/05/2026)