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Fire chief outlines Measure E spending priorities: stations, vehicles, staffing and a new CAD
Summary
LA County Fire presented a draft Measure E spending plan that would provide an estimated $152 million annually beginning 2026 for station replacements, vehicles and apparatus, a phased increase to four‑person engine staffing, helicopter replacement and CAD modernization.
Los Angeles County Fire Chief presented a draft spending plan Tuesday for Measure E, the parcel tax voters approved in November. The department estimated Measure E will generate roughly $152 million annually and outlined priorities that include replacing seismically unsafe stations, increasing vehicle and apparatus replacement funding, adding personnel on select engine companies, and modernizing dispatch (computer‑aided dispatch or CAD).
Chief Maroney told the Board that the department operates from 261 facilities with an average age of over 50 years; the oldest station was placed into service in 1926. The draft plan prioritizes $15 million per year for the next five years for replacement of five seismically compromised stations, $6.8 million for facility repair and seismic retrofits, and $35.6 million to fund replacement of Fire Station 81 in Agua Dulce and a new station in Lancaster to relieve Station 33, one of the busiest in the nation.
On vehicles and apparatus, the department proposed increasing annual replacement funding from about $13.8 million to $38.8 million (a $25 million augmentation) to address a fleet with many frontline vehicles well beyond National Fire Protection Association recommended service life. The department also described a phased plan to convert the first 15 engine companies from three‑person staffing to four‑person staffing at an ongoing cost of roughly $12 million per year; a full conversion of all 163 engine companies to four‑person staffing would carry a much larger ongoing cost (the chief cited $72 million annually if fully implemented).
Other priorities included replacing an aging Sikorsky Firehawk helicopter (one unit estimated at $36.4 million), investing in communications and IT (including a planned CAD replacement targeted for early 2027), adding routers and console upgrades, and continued development of APRUs (advanced practitioner response units). The presentation also referenced a whole‑blood pilot program funded by a Productivity Investment Fund grant and planning for blood program expansion after the pilot.
Supervisors thanked the department and discussed prioritization, co‑locating or coordinating CAD procurement with the Sheriff’s Department, timeline expectations and the need to align Measure E spending with the county’s capital and operating plans. Chief Maroney and the CEO said the spending plan will be refined and brought back for board approval in the months ahead; the board received the presentation as a receiving file.
