Then they’re not volunteers. They’re PRN employees. What you have in your town is a paid, professional fire department. Volunteers on the other hand not paid. They don’t make a dime at any fire call. The law generally allows small, nominal cash rewards as incentives while still being considered volunteer, like awarding a couple hundred bucks at the end of the year for top responders, or a small dispensation of cash per call, but that’s it. More than 80% of the fire departments in the United States operate this way, with over 65% of firefighters in the country being unpaid volunteers. The firefighters in your town are not included in these numbers.