South Berwick staff propose town-run EMS under fire department; budget would rise if approved

South Berwick town leaders outlined a plan on March 4 to bring ambulance service under the town—s fire department, saying municipal EMS would address gaps in private ambulance coverage and improve response reliability.

Town Manager told the council that private ambulance providers have shown growing staffing and financial instability and that the town had experienced occasions when the contracted ambulance was unavailable. "I will not look at anybody in this audience as a town member and say, I'm good with a provider not providing," the manager said during the budget workshop.

Chief Hamill, the fire chief, presented operational details and a timeline. He proposed purchasing two ambulances (one new, one used), hiring eight full‑time firefighter/EMTs and paramedics (four paramedic/firefighter positions and four EMT/firefighter positions) and modifying the fire station to house unified fire/EMS operations. The chief said the town would apply for the municipal EMS license required by Maine EMS and that cross‑training firefighters as EMTs already underway would support staffing.

The town manager and the chief presented cost estimates and funding options. They estimated the first full year of operating a municipal EMS would raise the fire/rescue budget from roughly $950,000 (current fire budget baseline reported at the meeting) to about $1.26 million; adding start‑up and equipment costs raised the total one‑time and operating impact into the $1.6 million neighborhood when including a contingency and equipment purchases. The manager said the net increase in taxpayer cost for the first year of stand‑up would be roughly $658,880, which he tied to a 6.53% increase in the municipal budget under one scenario. When the town—s required separate town‑hall bond payment is included, the manager said the comparable overall increase range could rise to about 7.75 percent under the larger scenario; using a larger undesignated‑fund draw (other funding assumptions) would produce a lower set of percentage changes (examples the manager gave: 5.54% and 6.76%).

The presenters noted possible offsets. The town would bill transports (outsourcing billing to a third‑party vendor was planned) and the chief projected some ambulance billing revenue, though the presentation used conservative assumptions that counted only transports of South Berwick residents. The manager also pointed to pending state proposals that would tax non‑municipal ambulance providers; he told the council that if such a state assessment passed, private providers would likely pass the cost to patients while a municipal provider could capture that revenue locally.

Councilors asked about start‑up timing, recruitment and alternatives. The chief said a realistic launch date would target July 1, 2026, with hiring beginning early in 2026 and recruitment emphasizing in‑house firefighters who are already pursuing EMT certification. He said paramedics would be more difficult to recruit but that municipal benefits and a stable schedule would be a draw. Councilors also asked whether neighboring towns could contract for service; the chief said other communities had inquired and that outside contracts would be considered case‑by‑case.

Council discussion focused on tradeoffs: improved reliability and local control versus the higher taxes and start‑up cost. Several councilors and the manager said they were open to continuing to the next step (a meeting with the town—s contracted ambulance service), not to vote tonight but to authorize further study and discussion. The manager said he planned a Thursday meeting with the contractor and requested direction from the council whether municipal EMS should remain a working option.

The presentation materials and the manager—s budget scenarios remain preliminary; councilors requested supplemental scenario runs showing the budget impact if earlier capital‑improvement cuts were restored or if different amounts of undesignated funds were used to smooth taxpayer impacts.

Ending

Councilors did not take a formal vote at the workshop. Several members said they supported continuing to study the proposal; others urged caution because of timing and tax impacts. The manager and fire chief said they would return with more detail, including recruitment plans, a finalized start‑up budget and options for presenting the proposal to residents if the council chooses to move forward.