Section 0360-07-01-.06 - PAYMENT PROCEDURES(1) The Commission shall review and, if approved, direct the disbursement to eligible fire departments the educational incentive pay awarded to firefighters who have established eligibility for such under the provisions of the Commission's rules and regulations. At the selection of a department, the educational incentive pay shall be disbursed to the county or municipality where the fire department is located. The disbursement of these funds shall be subject to all of the following conditions:(a) The Educational Incentive Pay Program shall be based on the availability of funds appropriated by the General Assembly.(b) Payment will be made only upon request by the fire department and upon submission of the necessary documentation by the administrative officer of the eligible department.1. Proof of the successful completion of a Commission-approved training program, by submission of a copy of the following forms by March 1 of the calendar year: (i) Educational Incentive Pay Program Request;(ii) In-Service Training Report;(iii) Notarized Statement of the Fire Chief attesting to accuracy and completeness of the information; and(iv) Training Substitution Forms for previous year.2. Payment shall be made in a lump sum directly to the governmental entity handling the disbursement of funds for the eligible departments.(c) No payment shall be made after the end of the fiscal year, June 30, unless such payment is authorized by the departments of Commerce and Insurance and Finance and Administration.(d) It shall be the responsibility of the unit of government to disburse the funds to the individual firefighters after the deduction of the applicable taxes.(e) The governmental entity receiving the funds shall be responsible for any increase in the employer's contribution to social security or like programs necessitated by the increase in the employee's annual base earnings.(f) A firefighter shall not be eligible for the educational incentive pay from more than one (1) fire department.(g) Effective August 31, 2018, information and training programs required by the Commission shall be received at the Commission office by October 1 of the preceding calendar year in which training is to be taught. Failure to provide all information by the required date may result in a rejection of a request for educational incentive pay.(h) Departments submitting a certified list of eligible firefighters who have qualified themselves for the in-service training, shall also certify to the Commission that each qualifying individual is a member of the department whose name was on the department payroll as of December 31, as a volunteer firefighter of the department or as a volunteer firefighter of the department for training purposes as of December 31, of the calendar year in which training was received. If a qualifying individual is separated from the fire service for any of the following reasons, after becoming qualified, the firefighter will be considered as having met the December 31 requirements if the firefighter:
1. Becomes eligible and accepts a service retirement and begins drawing retirement benefits;2. Becomes eligible and accepts a disability retirement; or3. Dies while employed or serving as a volunteer.(i) All requests for educational incentive pay shall be submitted to the Commission office by certified mail and postmarked no later than March 1 of each calendar year. 1. A department shall have fifteen (15) calendar days from the date it receives notice that a correction is required to its request for educational incentive pay to make the necessary correction and return the request to the Commission.2. Departments may submit additions to their requests for educational incentive pay for up to sixty (60) days from the date educational incentive pay checks were mailed or deposited if not later than June 30. Payment of these additions is contingent upon availability of funds.(j) If a volunteer firefighter completes the required training but is unable to find a local government willing to accept firefighter's payment, the volunteer firefighter may coordinate with the State Fire Marshal's Office to arrange for payment to be issued directly to the volunteer firefighter as long as all requirements from the Department of Finance and Administration are satisfied.Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0360-07-01-.06
Original rule filed August 27, 1979; effective October 10, 1979. Amendment filed November 8, 1990; effective December 23, 1990. Amendment filed December 14, 2009; effective March 14, 2010. Repeal and new rule filed October 27, 2014; effective January 25, 2015. Amendments filed July 27, 2018; effective October 25, 2018. Amendments filed January 22, 2020; effective April 21, 2020. Emergency rules filed September 2, 2021; effective through March 1, 2022. Emergency rules expired effective March 2, 2022, and the rules reverted to their previous statuses. Amendments filed August 29, 2022; effective 11/27/2022.Authority: T.C.A. §§ 4-24-101, 4-24-106, 4-24-107, and 4-24-202.