Texas Commission on Fire Protection:

An Inventory of Commission on Fire Protection Records at the Texas State Archives, 1970-2011

Agency History

The Texas Commission on Fire Protection was created in 1991 (Senate Bill 383, 72nd Texas Legislature, Regular Session) by combining two agencies (the Texas Commission on Fire Protection Personnel Standards and Education and the Texas Fire Department Emergency Board) and transferring certain fire protection duties from a third agency (the Texas State Board of Insurance). The mission of the Texas Commission on Fire Protection is to help protect the lives and property of the citizens of Texas by developing and enforcing professional standards for fire service personnel. The agency provides education and assistance to the fire service primarily through its fire protection resource library. The agency's fire service standards and certification division enforces statewide fire service standards through four program areas: certification, training approval and testing, standards compliance, and curriculum development.

The commission is composed of 13 members, appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate for staggered terms of six years with four or five members' terms expiring February 1 of each odd-numbered year:

• two members nominated by the Texas Fire Chiefs Association who are chief officers with a minimum rank that is equivalent to the position immediately below that of the fire chief and who are employed in fire departments as defined by Section 419.021 that are under the jurisdiction of the commission, at least one of whom must be the head of a fire department and one of whom must be employed by a political subdivision with a population of less than 100,000;
• two members nominated by the Texas State Association of Fire Fighters who are fire protection personnel as defined by Section 419.021 with the rank of battalion chief or below and who are employed in fire departments or other appropriate local authorities under the jurisdiction of the commission, one of whom must be employed by a political subdivision with a population of less than 100,000;
• two members nominated by the State Firemen’s and Fire Marshals’ Association of Texas who are volunteer fire chiefs or volunteer fire fighters;
• one certified fire protection engineer;
• one certified arson investigator or certified fire protection inspector;
• one fire protection instructor from an institution of higher education as defined by Section 61.003, Education Code;
• and four public members.

(Sources include: the Texas Commission on Fire Protection web site, accessed March 2012; and Guide to Texas State Agencies, 11th edition (2001).)

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Scope and Contents of the Records

The Texas Commission on Fire Protection helps to protect the lives and property of the citizens of Texas by developing and enforcing professional standards for the fire service. Records of the commission consist mainly of meeting agenda, minutes, and supporting documentation that document the work accomplished by the commission at its meetings, as well as executive orders, organization charts, litigation files, and a small quantity of memoranda, brochures, and other publications, dating 1970-2011. Minutes and agenda spanning 1970-1991 are of the Texas Commission on Fire Protection Personnel Standards and Education, one of the predecessor agencies of the Commission on Fire Protection. Minutes, agenda, and supporting documentation for advisory committees are also included.

To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Materials do not circulate, but may be used in the State Archives search room. Materials will be retrieved from and returned to storage areas by staff members.

Restrictions on Use

Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted and may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).

Technical Requirements

None.

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Related Material

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

(Identify the item and cite the series), Texas Commission on Fire Protection records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

Accession numbers: 1998/134, 2002/185, 2004/214, 2006/172, 2007/091, 2007/109, 2007/125, 2011/063, 2011/295, 2012/023

These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Legislative Reference Library on May 28, 1998; August 12, 2002; August 18, 2004; January 26, 2006; January 29, 2007; March 8, 2007; March 14, 2007; September 14, 2010; and February 17, 2011; and by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection on October 21, 2011.

Processing Information

Processed by Tony Black, March 2007

New accession added and editing of description by Rebecca Romanchuk, March 2012

Other Formats for the Records

The Texas Commission on Fire Protection posts agenda (in HTML format) and meeting notebooks (in PDF format) for both the commission and the advisory committees on the agency web site at http://www.tcfp.texas.gov/calendar/calendar_archive.asp.

Location of Originals

The record copies of minutes and agenda are maintained by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection.

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Detailed Description of the Records

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