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County outlines options for 24/7 fire staffing and fire service areas to fund apparatus
Summary
County staff described requests from the fire commission for expanded 24/7 staffing and about $17 million in new apparatus, and explained how fire service areas or special taxing districts could fund capital without affecting county debt limits.
Lancaster County staff told the joint meeting the county is receiving requests from the fire commission for expanded 24/7 paid staffing in parts of the county and for millions in new capital apparatus.
County presenters said the county currently funds 15 paid positions that "rover" among stations during weekdays and that volunteers cover nights and weekends in many districts. The fire commission has requested 24/7 staffing for McDonough Green and additional 24/7 coverage elsewhere in the southern county; commissioners also submitted a capital request of more than $17,000,000 for new apparatus.
Staff explained one funding vehicle available under state law is a fire service area (FSA) or special purpose district that can levy a fee or millage within defined boundaries to pay for operating and/or capital needs. The meeting noted the county previously consolidated Indian Land and Pleasant Valley into a single district that now uses a per-rooftop fee (the presenter described $240 per household in that district) to pay for enhanced staffing there.
County staff emphasized that an FSA structured for capital purchases can avoid counting the apparatus against the county's state-imposed debt limit, allowing the county to borrow for fire apparatus without increasing the county's general debt burden. The county said it will need to examine different structures (millage vs. a per-rooftop fee) and project operating and capital costs to determine what an FSA for the remainder of the county would look like.
City finance staff noted the city's existing fire service is funded with city revenue and that if a countywide FSA were created the city would likely need to determine whether the district's capital assessments would include city territory (city staff said special-purpose districts typically do not include cities unless the county pays for city-provided services).
Ending: County staff said next steps will include modeling cost estimates, deciding the boundaries and whether a proposed FSA would fund operating, capital or both, and returning recommendations to county council for decision.
