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Arapahoe County commissioners approve five‑year fire operating plan to secure aviation and mutual‑aid support
Summary
Commissioners signed a five‑year multiagency operating plan that clarifies dispatch boundaries, preserves short‑term aviation cost coverage and authorizes the chair and sheriff to sign; the plan will be placed on the consent agenda for formal ratification.
Arapahoe County commissioners on Monday approved a five‑year Fire Operating Plan renewal that county staff said preserves short‑term aviation cost coverage and updates mutual‑aid and dispatch arrangements.
County emergency management staff told commissioners the multiyear plan replaces the former annual renewal, and that the signed local cover sheet will be forwarded to the Division of Fire Prevention and Control (DFPC) for final execution. "This is the mechanism that allows us to receive financial support. Primarily, for us, it's in the terms of aircraft. So when we get the helicopters and the planes, the first 24 hours is generally covered," said Nate, emergency management staff, who led the presentation.
The plan, staff said, consolidates how local fire departments, the state and federal suppression partners operate together. It also reflects recent changes to interagency dispatch boundaries: a statewide realignment moved Arapahoe County from one federal/state dispatch area into the northern center (NCC), requiring updates to local operational plans and aviation request procedures. The plan also describes the Colorado Mutual Aid System (CMAS), which can deploy crews and resources for 72–96 hour assignments when state and federal resources are exhausted. "CMAS is where they will call up ... typically when we get to a preparedness level at a state or national level where there are no more state and federal resources," Nate said.
Commissioners asked whether anticipated federal changes would affect the plan. "Is this mostly concerning ... our state funding? Or would some of these federal potential changes have an impact on this plan as well?" asked Commissioner Keri Warren Gully. Staff replied the plan is primarily tied to state funding and relationships, but noted one federal program—FEMA's Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG)—could be available in extreme incidents, saying, "The 1 exception ... would be what's called FMAG, the Fire Mitigation Assistance Grant." Staff characterized FMAG as unlikely for typical local incidents but relevant in very large disasters.
County staff asked the board to authorize the chair of the board and the sheriff to sign the local cover documents and to place the item on the consent agenda. Commissioners expressed no further objections and indicated approval by a show of thumbs: "Let's, if you would like to approve this with a thumbs up? We have 5 thumbs up to approve and put on consent agenda," the chair said. Staff confirmed the signed package will go next to DFPC for the director's signature and that the executed plan will be valid for five years, with an annual review clause and a provision to revise if significant changes occur.
The plan author and county liaison Steve (identified by staff as the primary author) and emergency‑management staff said routine, minor edits could continue via annual review without requiring elected sign‑off; major changes would trigger a rewrite and signatures.
The board placed the executed local cover sheet and authorization for the sheriff and chair to sign on the consent agenda for formal ratification.
