{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20140223043046/http://www.coons.senate.gov/newsroom/releases/release/senator-coons-colleagues-urge-irs-to-exempt-volunteer-first-responders-from-healthcare-mandate", "Senator Coons, colleagues urge IRS to exempt volunteer first responders from healthcare mandate", "2013-12-16", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "DE", "Christopher Coons", "C001088", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, December 16, 2013\n                    CONTACT: Ian Koski at 202-224-5042\u00a0 \n\t\t\t\t\t Senator Coons, colleagues urge IRS to exempt volunteer first responders from healthcare mandate \n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t Law is currently unclear about whether Delaware\u2019s volunteer firefighters will be considered \u201cemployees\u201d \n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tWASHINGTON \u2013\u00a0U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) and seven of his colleagues wrote to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew on Monday to clarify the \u201cShared Responsibility\u201d provision of the Affordable Care Act for volunteer first responders. Senator Coons is seeking to ensure that Delaware\u2019s 6,000 volunteer firefighters and emergency responders are not counted as employees under the provision, potentially triggering the law\u2019s coverage mandate for businesses with more than 50 employees.\n\u201cMany combination and volunteer fire departments are lacking the necessary guidance as to how they may be affected by Employer Shared Responsibility Provision of the ACA,\u201d the senators wrote. \u201cWe believe that it is critical that volunteer firefighters and emergency personnel not be counted as employees as it relates to the ACA and any employer responsibilities to ensure the continuation of this important aspect of our public safety infrastructure.\u201d\n\u201cNominally compensated volunteers often have other full-time jobs which offer health insurance and generally do not have any expectation of receiving health insurance in exchange for their volunteer service.\u201d\nMost volunteer first responders have other full-time employment, and few receive even nominal compensation or financial benefit. Many emergency response agencies do not have the resources to provide pay or benefits to volunteers, nor do most volunteer first responders expect to receive compensation or health coverage as a result of their volunteer public service.\n\u201cThe Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and section 457(e) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) allow volunteer firefighters and emergency medical personnel to be nominally compensated for their service,\u201d the senators explained. \u201cHowever, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) also tends to treat volunteers firefighters and emergency medical personnel as employees of the agencies that they serve for the purpose of taxing their nominal benefits. This however, leads to some confusion as to whether the classification of volunteer firefighters as \u2018employees\u2019 will also apply for the purposes of the Shared Responsibility Provision of the ACA.\u201d\n\u201cWe believe that it would be fair to use existing standards in the Internal Revenue Code to ensure that \u2018bona fide volunteers performing fire fighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, or ambulance services\u2019 are not defined as employees for purposes of calculating the shared responsibility provisions of the ACA,\u201d the senators continued. \u201cProperly distinguishing between full-time, paid emergency responders and volunteers is necessary if we want to protect essential emergency response agencies that keep our communities safe and protect over one-third of the U.S. population.\u201d\u00a0\nThe text of the letter is below. It can be downloaded as a PDF here: http://bit.ly/Jsz2g7\nDecember 16, 2013\nThe Honorable Jacob Lew  Secretary  Department of the Treasury  1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW  Washington, D.C. 20220\nDear Secretary Lew:\nWe write regarding the treatment of nominally compensated volunteer firefighters and emergency medical personnel under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) (P.L. 111-148). Many combination and volunteer fire departments are lacking the necessary guidance as to how they may be affected by Employer Shared Responsibility Provision of the ACA.\u00a0 We believe that it is critical that volunteer firefighters and emergency personnel not be counted as employees as it relates to the ACA and any employer responsibilities to ensure the continuation of this important aspect of our public safety infrastructure.\nApproximately 780,000 volunteer firefighters serve in 20,000 all-volunteer and 7,000 combination career-volunteer fire departments throughout the United States. Many communities rely exclusively upon volunteer fire departments for fire protection and emergency medical services.\u00a0 In fact, ninety-two percent of the nation\u2019s fire departments utilize volunteer personnel, whose donated services are estimated to be worth approximately $140 billion annually.\nMany volunteer fire and emergency medical personnel receive nominal benefits, which boost recruitment and retention by demonstrating that their efforts are appreciated. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and section 457(e) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) allow volunteer firefighters and emergency medical personnel to be nominally compensated for their service. However, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) also tends to treat volunteers firefighters and emergency medical personnel as employees of the agencies that they serve for the purpose of taxing their nominal benefits.\u00a0 This however, leads to some confusion as to whether the classification of volunteer firefighters as \u201cemployees\u201d will also apply for the purposes of the Shared Responsibility Provision of the ACA.\nWe believe the allowances made in the FLSA and the IRC for individuals to receive nominal compensation in return for their service while still being classified as \u201cvolunteers\u201d are critically important in the public safety community. Nominally compensated volunteers often have other full-time jobs which offer health insurance and generally do not have any expectation of receiving health insurance in exchange for their volunteer service.\nWe believe that it would be fair to use existing standards in the Internal Revenue Code to ensure that \u201cbona fide volunteers performing fire fighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, or ambulance services\u201d are not defined as employees for purposes of calculating the shared responsibility provisions of the ACA.\u00a0 Properly distinguishing between full-time, paid emergency responders and volunteers is necessary if we want to protect essential emergency response agencies that keep our communities safe and protect over one-third of the U.S. population.\nIt is imperative that clarifying guidance be issued as soon as possible in order to provide clear guidance to combination and volunteer fire departments.\nThank you for your attention to this important matter.\nSincerely,\nMark R. Warner\nJoe Manchin\nChris Coons\nMary Landrieu\nMark Begich\nSusan Collins\nRobert Menendez\nRobert Casey, Jr.\nCC: Thomas E. Perez, Secretary of Labor\nDaniel I. Werfel, Acting IRS Commissioner\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n                    \n        \n        \n\t\t\n                    \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTags:\n                            \n                                \n                                Affordable Care Act,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                Internal Revenue Service,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                Health,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                Firefighters,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                First Responders,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                employment,\u00a0\n                            \n                                \n                                Healthcare", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20140223043046/http://www.coons.senate.gov/newsroom/releases/release/senator-coons-colleagues-urge-irs-to-exempt-volunteer-first-responders-from-healthcare-mandate"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.576056867837906, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}