The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) is now accepting nominations for the IAFC Fire Chief of the Year Award through until 9 June.

The award recognises one volunteer and one career fire chief for their leadership, innovation, professional development, integrity, public service and contributions to the fire service. The IAFC presents the Fire Chief of the Year award in proud partnership with Pierce Manufacturing. The program’s media partner is FireRescue1 by Lexipol.

Nomination Process

Nominations will be accepted through the online nomination form from any division, section or member of the IAFC. In addition, nominations will be accepted from members of any state association of fire chiefs and other designated fire service organizations.

A complete list of authorised nominating organisations and other award criteria information can be found at the IAFC’s Fire Chief of the Year webpage. All nominations are reviewed by a committee of IAFC members.

The 2023 nomination period closes June 9 at 11:59 PM ET. Winner and regret notifications will be issued in July. The winners will be announced Monday, August 14, 2023 and honored on Wednesday, August, 16, 2023 at Fire-Rescue International in Kansas City, Missouri.

All of a nominee’s fire service activities and accomplishments will be considered with a special emphasis to be placed on the period from 2020 through 2022. A nominee’s command role at a major emergency incident, while relevant, will not be enough to place that individual into contention for the award.

For the purposes of this program, a volunteer fire chief is defined as one who earns his or her principal livelihood by some means other than serving as a fire chief, even if the position of chief carries some compensation. A career fire chief is defined as one who earns his or her principal livelihood as a fire chief.