(Radio Iowa) – Iowa no longer has a mandatory retirement age for reserve police officers and volunteer fire fighters. Full and part-time police and fire fighters in Iowa must retire at the age of 65. The governor has signed a bill into law that eliminates that age restriction for volunteer fire fighters and trained reserve police officers who are volunteers, but can make arrests and investigate crimes. Senator Mike Bousselot, of Ankeny, spoke about the bill before it passed the Senate unanimously.

“We’ve all heard from Iowans the importance of good jobs and safe communities,” Bousslot says. “This bill serves both of those goals. Many communities are already using reserve police officers and volunteer fire fighters to keep those communities safe.”

The bill passed the House on an 86-to-12 vote last month and was signed into law by the governor last week. According to the Iowa League of Cities, there are over 12-hundred active reserve police officers in the state. Data from the Iowa Department of Public Safety indicates 90 percent of firefighters in Iowa are volunteers. About a thousand quit every year due to several factors, including the retirement age.