Length of Service Awards Program:

New York State General Municipal Law (GML) allows municipalities and fire districts to establish and maintain a Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP). Active volunteers can earn LOSAP service credit up to a maximum number of years of firefighting service and generally begin receiving an unreduced service award at a set entitlement age.

The Village of North Syracuse sponsors a Volunteer Fire Department LOSAP program. This program complies with GML and works off a point system that specifies how points toward LOSAP service credit will be earned by volunteers. GML establishes the activities that can be included in the point system. Firefighters earn points through participation in department responses, training courses, duty crews, serving in an elected or appointed position, teaching fire prevention classes, attending certain meetings, drills and certain miscellaneous activities.

Active volunteers earning 50 service award points annually are credited with one “year of firefi ghting service” (LOSAP service credit).

Member Life Insurance

Members receive a life insurance benefit through the North Syracuse Volunteer Fireman’s Association.  This is a no cost $10,000 life insurance plan that covers each member both on and off duty. 

Fitness Center:

Health and wellness and good physical ability is necessary to be a firefighter. Therefore, the North Syracuse Volunteer Fireman’s Association provides a fitness center to the members of the Fire Department. Our fitness center offers equipment for all levels of fitness.

Free weights 

Universal machines 

Two treadmills

Elliptical

Exercise bicycles

Boxing bags

TRX equipment 

and much more.... 

Our fitness center is open to our members 24 hours a day. 

New York State Volunteer Firefighters’ Tax Credit

North Syracuse Firefighters are entitled to claim this credit if you were an active volunteer firefighter or volunteer ambulance worker for all the tax year, and a resident of New York State for all the tax year.

You cannot claim this credit if you receive a real property tax exemption that relates to your volunteer service. However, if the property has multiple owners, the owner(s) whose volunteer service was not the basis of the exemption may be eligible to claim the credit.

The credit amount is $200 ($400 for married filing joint taxpayers where both spouses are eligible). If the credit exceeds your tax for the year, any excess will be refunded without interest.