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Commission moves emergency management staff under emergency communications to free salary for firefighters
Summary
Berkeley County commissioners approved moving emergency management employees under emergency communications and using 9-1-1 fee funds to absorb their county-paid portion of salaries, freeing budgeted salary dollars to hire additional firefighters.
The Berkeley County Commission voted March 20 to reorganize emergency services by moving two emergency management employees into the county’s emergency communications unit and using 9-1-1 fee revenue to cover the county’s salary portion. The change will free existing salary funding to hire additional full-time firefighters.
Deputy county administrators explained the county has for years operated its fire department under the emergency-management umbrella; as the fire service grows, the county concluded functions should be separated. The proposal would place Emergency Management Director Randy Lilly and Emergency Manager Sean Wolford under Emergency Communications. The move will not change their duties or job titles, staff said.
County officials said the county currently receives a 50% reimbursement for those positions through the Emergency Management Performance Grant; the reorganization would shift the other 50% of salaries from the county’s emergency management line to the 9-1-1 fee fund. By doing so, the county expects to free up funding equivalent to three FTEs that can be used to staff 24-hour fire coverage and to reduce unplanned overtime caused by illnesses and vacations.
Deputy administrators and commissioners characterized the change as a cost-control and staffing-forecasting measure as the fire department expands. The commission moved to accept the deputy county administrator’s recommendation and voted to implement the reorganization.
