The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation is saddened to learn of the passing of the Honorable Bill Pascrell Jr., the Representative of New Jersey’s 9th Congressional District.  First elected to Congress in 1996, the Congressman was a longtime co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus. Congressman Pascrell was an unwavering champion of our nation’s fire and emergency services.  As the father of the Assistance to Firefighters and Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant programs, he dedicated himself to ensuring the men and women of America’s fire service had the necessary equipment, staffing, and training they needed to protect our communities.

A tireless advocate for first responder health and safety, Congressman Pascrell sponsored legislation creating the National Firefighter Registry for Cancer and fought to expand the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) program to cover occupational cancers.  He fought to keep the public safe by supporting incentives for the retrofit of automatic fire sprinklers in commercial and high-rise residential buildings.

The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation’s Board of Directors and staff extended our sincerest condolences to the family, friends, colleagues, and staff of Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr.  His contributions to this great nation will be felt for decades and he will truly be missed.