The North Carolina General Assembly passed a bill — backed by 90th House District Rep. Sarah Stevens — aimed at helping volunteer rescues squads and fire departments continue to attract young people interested in serving.

Other bills the Assembly has passed over the years take aim at setting up limits on what type of employment those under 18 can take on, with the aim of ensuring teens are not placed in positions that compromise their safety or ability to maintain their school work while also working.

Such laws are right in their intent, but sometimes such measures have unintended consequences, and there has been some fear that volunteer rescue squads and fire departments might find themselves losing valuable volunteers if teens younger than 18 are prohibited from membership and training activities.

Don’t misunderstand, we don’t advocate teens being allowed to take part in dangerous activities with volunteer agencies either, and there are strict guidelines in place regarding just how much a teen can do with one of these volunteer agencies. The bill will primarily allow such members to train without actually taking part in live calls.

But even with such limitations, teens who get involved with rescue squads and fire departments often remain involved for years — sometimes throughout their entire adult life. To prevent such involvement at this age could harm long-term recruiting efforts for these vital community organizations.

We’re glad Stevens had the foresight to champion such legislation, and that the rest of the General Assembly passed the bill. Now we hope Gov. Beverly Perdue will sign the measure into law.