Binghamton Fire Chief presented the department’s proposed 2026 budget to the finance committee on Sept. 30, telling councilors that personnel services comprise the majority of the roughly $12.26 million operational request and that the department faces persistent overtime pressure.

The chief said the department’s overtime expenditures were running roughly $895,000 year‑to‑date as of Sept. 14 — well above the adopted 2025 budget — and that the proposed 2026 overtime estimate (roughly $550,000) may be optimistic. He explained overtime drivers as largely contractual and caused by retirements, sick time, training, special events and multiple‑alarm fires, and added that unfilled positions also raise overtime costs. “Whether we’re going to bring it back down enough remains to be seen,” he told the committee.

The department has added firefighters under the federal SAFER grant and is hiring a 15‑person recruit class next spring; the chief said that increase has already helped reduce overtime but that ongoing retirements and long‑term staffing cycles make exact projections uncertain.

Chief Gartner also described capital needs. The department has requested a new quint aerial to replace a 2012 aerial that, he said, is experiencing corrosion, brake‑system air tank deterioration and other emerging failures. He told councilors the replacement price estimate is $1,875,000 and that current manufacturer lead times are roughly 18–24 months. “We could be in a pickle,” he said, noting that an in‑service failure of the existing tower would require costly emergency repairs.

The department proposed establishing a recurring capital transfer (the chief cited $100,000 a year) to fund routine replacement of turnout gear and to allow firefighters to have a second set of gear while sets are laundered and repaired to NFPA standards. The chief said annual funding of that magnitude would produce roughly 15–16 turnout sets per year and help maintain compliance with equipment life‑cycle guidance.

Other capital requests discussed included two utility pickup trucks to replace aging vehicles, maintenance of AEDs and medical equipment, and two med‑car units that staff described as still needed but not yet included in the proposed capital spreadsheet. The chief said some federal grant options have limited effectiveness for vehicles and that ambulance billing and related contracts are periodically reviewed.

Councilors asked for additional clarity on overtime assumptions and for projections tied to retirements and hiring schedules; the chief and comptroller said they would follow up with more detailed figures.