Massachusetts State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine will retire Jan. 22, 2027, the Healey-Driscoll administration announced Nov. 6. The Massachusetts Fire Service Commission, which selects the marshal, had not set a process or timeline for choosing a successor as of Nov. 6.

Davine is the state's 19th fire marshal and was sworn in Aug. 16, 2023, according to the Department of Fire Services announcement. The release says the state fire marshal's role oversees almost 1,000 full-time employees and contract staff on three regional campuses.

The commission has eight members appointed by the governor, representing the fire service, the insurance industry and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security. The release says its members will meet after the announcement to determine the selection process and timeline.

The administration credited Davine with several initiatives during his tenure:

  • Coordinating chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive preparation and staffing for the 2026 World Cup games in Foxborough

  • Assigning State Police fire investigators and code compliance officers to the 2025 Gabriel House fire response and investigation

  • Deploying hundreds of missions during the 2024 brush fire season

  • Consolidating two hazmat districts to serve western Massachusetts

  • Broadening access to free firefighter cancer screening

  • Opening a new burn building for firefighter training in southeastern Massachusetts

  • Moving the state into the top 5 percent of states reporting fire data through the National Emergency Response Information System

The release also lists a 2023 lithium-ion battery fire symposium and data collection tool. These accomplishments are the administration's own description.

Before state service, Davine was chief of the Northampton Fire Department. The release says he was the first state fire marshal to graduate from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy and describes a 25-year career as a firefighter, hazmat technician and member of the department's Joint Hazard Incident Response Team. It describes his time in the fire service as nearly 30 years and says he is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran.

"Serving as State Fire Marshal and leading the Department of Fire Services has been my greatest professional honor and privilege," Davine said in the release. Gov. Maura Healey credited his calm and steady guidance in crisis planning and response. The release says Massachusetts appointed the nation's first state fire marshal in 1894.

The release does not name a successor or an interim marshal, and it does not say who will lead the department between Jan. 22 and an appointment.