Access to rural fire protection funding expanded

Lawmakers approved a bill May 14 intended to help additional rural fire protection districts qualify for state financial aid.

The Mutual Finance Assistance Act, funded by state insurance premium tax proceeds, provides aid to mutual finance organizations and rural or suburban fire protection districts for equipment, operations and training.

For an MFO or district to qualify for assistance, a certain percentage of the population of any county included in the MFO or district must reside outside the limits of any first, primary or metropolitan class city in the county.

LB399, sponsored by Fremont Sen. Dave Wordekemper, decreases the threshold from 80% to 60%.

The bill passed on a vote of 49-0.