Stakeholders press for clarity on general orders, withdrawals and CBA protections in FESC rewrite

Representatives of the volunteer association raised concerns that the fire chief has sought legal advice and, in some instances, stopped submitting general orders to FESC, effectively adopting them without commission review. An association speaker said that practice "leaves us in sort of a defeatist position" when suggested language or comments are not acted upon and that some volunteer‑related issues go ignored when general orders are adopted.

County executive staff and Montgomery County Fire Rescue officials responded that there is nuance among document types (policies, regulations, general orders, information bulletins, directives), that many general orders implement countywide or short‑term operational changes, and that the current fire chief has directed a collaborative approach. Battalion Chief Ashley Robinson acknowledged past shortcomings and apologized for instances where collaboration fell short, saying the department is working to be more inclusive. The committee asked staff to draft language clarifying that nothing in the bill would be construed to interfere with collective bargaining agreements and to specify the scope of withdrawal/rescission (limited to items before FESC and not to items already in the APA process).