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Board discusses fire and EMS levy increase as apparatus costs and staffing pressure mount
Summary
Supervisors reviewed a proposed increase in the countywide fire and EMS levy to support equipment replacement and market wage adjustments; staff said the equalized levy rate is 11¢ while the budget is based on 16¢ (17¢ was previously advertised for reassessment notice).
Orange County officials told the board that pressure on fire and EMS finances and staffing is the principal driver behind a proposed countywide levy increase, and the board discussed how that levy interacts with the county's overall tax-rate picture.
County staff reminded supervisors that the county adopted an ordinance in 2020 creating a separate fire and EMS fund and countywide levy to address volunteer shortfalls, apparatus replacement and other emergency-services needs. Staff said the equalized levy for fire and EMS is 11¢ but the proposed budget is written at 16¢ (staff noted the reassessment advertisement previously included 17¢ as a published real-estate component). The combined equalized general-fund and fire/EMS rates equaled about 58¢ in staff calculations; the proposed budget as written would produce a nominal combined rate of about 64¢.
Staff described recent and near-term apparatus purchases: the county has ordered several rescue engines, and the most recent units cited in the session cost roughly $1.8 million apiece. Officials said those replacement costs, along with recruitment and retention pressures in the EMS labor market, have strained the fund and required drawing down fund balance in recent years. To help retention staff proposed market wage adjustments and included two proposed fire/EMS training-officer positions in the draft budget; staff said those two positions are included at the proposed 16¢ levy level.
County staff told the board they had spent most of the available fund balance in the fire and EMS fund while waiting for the reassessment results and that the proposed levy is intended to stabilize long-term funding for apparatus replacement, volunteer-company apparatus true-ups, emergency management, radio systems and other supporting costs that the levy is permitted to pay under county ordinance.
Board members discussed trade-offs between accepting a higher levy and relying on general-fund dollars or fund balance, and whether to brief the public on both pieces clearly at the upcoming hearings. Staff said the levy is constrained by the county ordinance's permitted uses and that the levy revenues must be dedicated to fire/EMS-related costs.
No final decision on the levy was taken at the work session; staff will present the advertised levy and budget at the public hearings, and the board may amend the levy or budget before adoption.
