MALONE -- Franklin County may pay mileage to certain volunteer firefighters called out to use their specialized skills during particular emergencies.

Emergency Services Director Malcolm Jones said volunteer firefighters who have taken additional training in handling hazardous-materials incidents or complicated emergency-medical techniques, for example, do not receive any stipend or compensation for their volunteer work.

He'd like to budget mileage reimbursements for them so when they are called for an emergency, they can be paid back.

Investigators with the Franklin County Cause and Origin Team, deputy fire coordinators and Fire Police members are all reimbursed if they are paged out to a call, Jones said.

But he wants to see that his specialized decontamination team and rehab teams are also compensated.

He is also trying to see if the county can pay certain training instructors for their mileage when they conduct classes within Franklin County.

Adrian McDonald of Hogansburg and Tommy Tucker of Paul Smiths are state employees when they teach certified-training courses, Jones said. But they are not entitled to county-mileage reimbursement for travel within the county because they are state employees.

Yet when they teach the same classes in St. Lawrence or Essex counties, the instructors receive mileage payments.

"It's just within Franklin County they don't get paid," Jones said, adding that both McDonald and Tucker have made 180-mile round trips for multiple days in a row without any reimbursement.

He said officials at the State Office of Fire Prevention and Control said they cannot do anything to change the reimbursement rules.

It would likely be up to Albany lawmakers to modify the arrangements.

County Attorney Jonathan Miller is to look into the issue and report back to the County Legislature.

At the same meeting, Burke Democrat Daniel Crippen suggested other volunteers appointed to county organizations should also get mileage reimbursements.

The county has 32 boards and committees on which volunteers are appointed to serve.

draymo@pressrepublican.com