Relates to the membership and purposes of the Volunteer and Exempt Firemen's Benevolent Association of Coldenham Inc.; changes the name of the association to the "Volunteer and Exempt Firefighter's Benevolent Association of Coldenham, Inc"; updates the purposes of such association and the use of taxes received by such association.
This bill amends the 1995 law that created the Volunteer and Exempt Firemen’s Benevolent Association of Coldenham, Inc. It updates the association’s name to the Volunteer and Exempt Firefighter’s Benevolent Association of Coldenham, Inc., and makes conforming changes throughout the statute to replace gendered and older terminology such as “firemen” and “his” with “firefighter” and “their.” It also revises the membership provisions to reflect current terminology while preserving eligibility for active volunteer members and exempt volunteer firefighters connected to the Coldenham fire company.
The bill also rewrites the association’s stated purposes. Instead of the prior broader fraternal and fire-service language, the new purposes focus on providing relief and assistance to disabled, indigent, or injured volunteer members and their families; promoting and safeguarding member welfare; supporting health and safety; maintaining headquarters; providing social and recreational activities; and promoting the volunteer fire service in the protected territory. In addition, it changes how foreign fire insurance premium taxes received under the Insurance Law may be used, limiting those funds to uses that further the association’s revised statutory purposes. The tax-related amendment applies to premiums received on and after January 1, 2026.
The bill’s impact is narrow but important for the local fire benevolent association in Coldenham, Orange County. It updates the governing special act for the corporation, clarifies who may belong to the association, and modernizes the legal description of its mission. It also affects the handling of foreign fire insurance premium tax revenues under sections 9104 and 9105 of the Insurance Law, ensuring those funds are used consistently with the association’s updated purposes.
Overall sentiment appears strongly favorable. The bill passed the Senate 57-1, cleared the Senate Rules Committee unanimously, and passed the Assembly 141-0, indicating broad bipartisan support and little visible opposition. The vote pattern suggests the measure was viewed as a routine, noncontroversial update to a local benevolent association statute.
No major points of contention are evident in the available record. The changes are largely technical and modernizing in nature, centered on terminology, organizational purposes, and permissible use of tax proceeds. The only likely substantive issue is the redefinition of how premium-tax funds may be spent, but the bill still keeps those funds tied to the association’s fire-service and member-support functions.
The bill amends a special act governing the Volunteer and Exempt Firefighter’s Benevolent Association of Coldenham, Inc., changing the association’s name, updating membership language, revising its statutory purposes, and restricting the use of foreign fire insurance premium taxes to those revised purposes. It affects the local benevolent association in the Coldenham fire district in Orange County and interacts with Insurance Law sections 9104 and 9105 governing fire department premium-tax distributions; the tax-use changes apply to premiums received on or after January 1, 2026.
The bill appears to have been received positively and without meaningful opposition. It passed both chambers overwhelmingly, including a 57-1 Senate floor vote and a unanimous Assembly vote, suggesting broad agreement that the measure is a routine modernization of a local fire association statute.
No significant controversy is reflected in the bill text or voting history. The main substantive change is the narrowing and restatement of how foreign fire insurance premium tax revenues may be used, but the bill still directs those funds to member welfare, headquarters, safety, and volunteer fire service promotion. Any concern would likely be limited to the local administration of those funds rather than the overall policy direction.