April 6, 2005 -- A proposal for cops and firefighters to do hazardous-material training together hit a snag yesterday when Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said the City Council was overstepping its authority by mandating the joint exercise.
Scoppetta outlined to a council committee a series of training programs his agency was carrying out, but stated the city administration was opposed to the council proposals.
"I am responsible for establishing training and prerogatives of the FDNY," Scoppetta said.
"By mandating an inflexible monthly schedule for interagency training, this bill encroaches on that responsibility."
The council legislation, he noted, "appears to have questionable validity in that it curtails the administration's executive authority."
Councilwoman Yvette Clarke, chair of the Fire and Criminal Justice Services Committee, said she had "the utmost confidence in the skill and professionalism of the men and women of the FDNY," but added:
"I'm concerned . . . that the FDNY has not yet developed appropriate strategies and training to handle a large-scale terrorist attack, particularly one involving nerve agents."
