Conway firefighter urges council to use sales-tax revenue to address pay and staffing

Conway firefighter Ryan Wolf told the City Council during public comment that Conway’s fire department is understaffed relative to national recommendations and that recent raises have not kept pace with inflation, urging the council to allow revenue from a proposed sales tax to be used to address pay and staffing.

Wolf, a Conway firefighter, said the department had received raises totaling about 29% over eight years but that cumulative inflation over the same period is roughly 31%. “When multiple professional firefighters with decades of experience are telling you it's unsafe to operate the way that we do with our minimum staffing, and that's based on scientific research and our own personal experiences,” Wolf said. “...If this city is not willing to commit to supporting its first responders, then the citizen should be made aware of that.”

Why it matters: Wolf framed the concern as an operational risk tied to minimum staffing and recommended pay levels. He cited a national standard and called for the council and voters to understand whether a proposed local sales tax would free general-fund resources that could be used for salaries.

Details from the meeting: Wolf said the department “operate[s] the majority of the time with 2 less people than the national recommendation of 4 on half our fire apparatus,” referencing NFPA 1710 staffing guidance. He also disputed a narrative that firefighters were using “scare tactics,” saying instead that professional experience and research support the department’s staffing warnings. Wolf asked the council and the public to consider that salaries are recurring obligations: “Salaries don't sunset. They come due every year.”

Council context: At earlier meetings cited during Wolf’s remarks, city staff and attorneys had described limits and flexibilities of proposed sales-tax measures. Wolf referenced remarks by staff and counsel indicating that pay-as-you-go sales-tax revenue could be used for any general-fund purpose, including salaries, and that the general fund’s condition had been described by the CFO as the best it has been while cautioning about downturns.

What the council said: After public comment, Council member Grimes (who led the ballot-item discussion later in the meeting) told firefighters the council intends the largest permanent portion of the proposed tax to be dedicated to public safety capital and emphasized the council’s stated desire to address public-safety needs. “The only salary adjustments that were made midyear were for the firefighters,” Grimes said, adding that the sales-tax proposal is intended to expand the tax base to give the city more flexibility going forward.

What was not decided: No formal commitment was made during public comment that the council would dedicate sales-tax proceeds directly to firefighter salaries. Wolf and others pressed for clarity; the council and counsel repeatedly noted that ballot language and statutory limits shape how proceeds may be used, and the council said it would return with ordinance language for voter review.

Ending: Wolf closed by expressing appreciation for community support and saying that Conway firefighters will continue to respond despite concerns about compensation. The council proceeded to discuss and later vote to place multiple tax and bond questions on the November ballot, a separate agenda item.