NC lawmakers approve 'medal of valor' for first responders
First responders in North Carolina may soon be eligible for statewide recognition under a bill headed to the desk of Gov. Roy Cooper.
State lawmakers gave final approval this week to the creation of a new "medal of valor" for first responders, including paid and volunteer firefighters, paramedics, law enforcement officers, emergency medical services personnel or rescue squad members.
House Bill 387 gives the governor and lieutenant governor the authority to award two medals each every year to individual responders or first-responder units. The awards would honor those who have "performed great acts of heroism while under threat of personal risk to safety, beyond the call of duty in the field."
On the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Norm Sanderson, R-Pamlico, called the new medal "a valuable way to recognize our first responders."
"I don't think there's anybody on this floor that would argue that the first responders who serve in our districts, either paid or volunteer, are some of our most valuable assets," Sanderson said. "We know the work that they do. We know that they spend long hours, even after regular jobs, to be onsite and to be available when you and I or our families or friends have emergencies."
"I know we recognize them on local levels," he added. "This is a way to recognize them on a statewide level."
The bill requires the governor and lieutenant governor to maintain an online application form for nominations.
House Bill 387 passed both the House and Senate with unanimous support, and is likely to be signed into law by the governor. It will take effect immediately.
