NFPA Journal - Fall 2022 - 4

NFPA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
First Word
by Jim Pauley
NFPA President
The Fight Continues
I
t was great to see many of
you at the NFPA Conference
& Expo in June as we
recognized our 125th anniversary
in person. The energy
throughout the week, from the expo floor
and education sessions to the technical
meeting, was incredible.
At our conference, I spoke emphatically
about copyright and the important role
it plays for NFPA and for the standards
community overall. NFPA is challenged by
a vocal minority that holds the erroneous
view that standards, once incorporated
by reference, should lose their copyright
protection. They argue that if a governmental
body incorporates a standard into
law or regulation to help with public safety,
then the standard is immediately open for
anyone to take, copy, and distribute-even
to start a commercial business by offering it
to the public-without compensating NFPA.
This is very misguided. NFPA is committed
to public access to its standards-we already
offer free online access to all of our standards-and
retaining copyright protection
is essential for us to continue to offer safety
standards that are of enormous benefit to
business, government, and the public.
What gets lost in the misinformed
arguments of the detractors is that NFPA
derives its funding by publishing, selling,
and licensing standards-sales revenue is
how we exist as a neutral body to promulgate
safety standards. We don't depend on
4 | NFPA JOURNAL * FALL 2022
subsidies or contributions from government
or industry. Copyright protection ensures
we can be independent and put safety first.
I heard from many of you at the conference
who expressed your extreme concern
around this issue and the devastating
consequences that would impact the standards
you rely on to do your jobs. Many of
you were gravely troubled that the entire
standards system is being put in jeopardy
because of the misguided actions of a few.
Many of you were
gravely troubled that
the entire standards
system is being put
in jeopardy.
You realized that if our copyright protection
went away, standards could end up being
developed by the government-a scenario
that has a myriad of issues associated with
it-or by those with the most to gain by an
imbalanced set of standards requirements.
We continue to fight this battle on all
fronts to unequivocally confirm what we
know: that our standards are protected by
copyright, even when they are incorporated
by reference.
We will undoubtedly be asking for your
support in some way, so stay tuned.
OFFICERS
Russell B. Leavitt, Chair
Telgian Corp.
Tempe, Arizona
James Pauley, President
President and CEO, NFPA
Quincy, Massachusetts
R. David Paulison, First Vice Chair
Global Emergency Solutions
Davie, Florida
John D. Bonney, Second Vice Chair
Alendi Consulting Ltd.
Ropley, United Kingdom
Roger W. Montembeault, Secretary
The Montembeault Group, Inc.
Tampa, Florida
Donald R. Cook, Assistant Secretary
Dewberry-Edmonds Engineering
Pelham, Alabama
Kwame Cooper, Assistant Secretary
Los Angeles Fire Department, retired
Los Angeles, California
Michael Wallace, Treasurer
West Palm Beach, Florida
Stacy N. Welch, Assistant Treasurer
Marriott International
Bethesda, Maryland
Amy R. Acton, Immediate Past Chair
The Phoenix Society for
Burn Survivors, Inc.
Grand Rapids, Michigan
*Sally P. Everett, Assistant Secretary
Secretary of the Corporation, NFPA
Quincy, Massachusetts
*Paul DeFronzo, Staff Officer
Chief Financial Officer, NFPA
Quincy, Massachusetts
Term Expires 2023
Dr. Denis Onieal
US Fire Administration,
Federal Emergency
Management Agency, retired
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Terms Expire 2024
Raj Arora
Jensen Hughes
Baltimore, Maryland
Brion Callori
FM Global
Johnston, Rhode Island
Reginald D. Freeman
Oakland Fire Department
Oakland, California
William J. Fries
Department of Defense
Washington, DC
Lou Paulson
California Public Employment Relations
Board
Walnut Creek, California
Terms Expire 2025
H. Butch Browning
National Association of
State Fire Marshals
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Adrián Gallardo Landeros
SIE Consultores
Mexico City, Mexico
Mark Ghilarducci
California Governor's Office
of Emergency Services
Mather, California
Patrick J. Morrison
International Association of
Fire Fighters
Washington, DC
*Not a board member
NFPA
NFPA Journal - Fall 2022

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