Amador County – Amador Fire Protection Authority board of directors last week learned their member agency boards and councils support fire consolidation, in a planned, unforced manner.
Supervisor Ted Novelli said the county faces a budget deficit of $3.8 million next fiscal year, and read a letter from Sheriff Martin Ryan, who said Amador County is the only county in California that gives Proposition 172 funding to fire departments. Ryan said he may be asking Supervisors to revisit the distribution formula for 172 funds, now going 35 percent to fire, 35 percent to law enforcement and the rest to emergency services.
AFPD Chief Jim McCart said Prop 172 funds were diverted from fire departments last year by Supervisors to fund the Amador Plan, which includes county-wide dispatching, and winter staffing of a upcountry firehouse by Cal-Fire.
Sutter Creek Fire District’s Hal Gamble recognized the entire county is in a fiscal crisis, but said the Prop 172 initiative was sold to voters “on the backs of fire fighters,” and because Amador is the only county giving the funds to fire departments does not mean the county is doing wrong. It means we are doing it right.
McCart said a recent letter from Supervisors sought accounting of fire spending of Measure M and 172 funds, and sought a consolidation plan that clearly spelled out timelines for consolidation. The letter asked McCart to get information from AFPA fire departments on their plan.
Ione Mayor Ron Smylie said Ione City Council favored consolidation, but in a planned fashion, not in mandatory fashion done rapidly. Ione Fire Chief Ken Mackey said a good example was Sacramento Metro Fire Department, which took 15 years to consolidate 18 departments.
Mackey said: “We are for it. We have no objections to the county consolidation over a period of 10 years.” He said 10 years is a maximum, and “if we get things in place in 1-and-a-half or two years, fantastic, but let’s not overshoot the runway.”
Jackson Valley Fire board member Jake Herfel supported voluntary reorganization, saying “we are slowly learning to work with each other,” and it will be better when they have good faith in one another.
Herfel said: “We all want to know that our stations are staying open and will be supported,” and that the taxpayers will be getting what they pay for. Novelli said that is the first he had heard of closures. Smylie said: “We did discuss it.”
Herfel said Jackson Valley and Lockwood Fire count as one vote on the AFPA board, and he was concerned about the chain of command, and who would oversee and govern the consolidated department. Gamble said they should have a committee assigned to go through those issues.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
