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Hundreds of residents and volunteer firefighters press Onslow County commissioners over proposed fire-service contract
Summary
Dozens of volunteer fire department members, community residents and business owners urged commissioners to renegotiate a proposed county contract that volunteers say could strip departments of assets and autonomy; commissioners defended oversight and funding increases.
Dozens of volunteer firefighters, department leaders and residents urged the Onslow County Board of Commissioners on May 19 to delay or rewrite a proposed county contract governing volunteer fire departments, saying the draft would strip departments of autonomy and allow the county to seize locally funded assets.
The appeals came during the meeting’s public-comment period, where speakers representing multiple departments described decades of volunteer service and raised concerns about contract provisions that they said were vague, coercive and could undermine recruitment.
“I'm strongly against the new fire department contract,” said Mac McDonald, a retired Half Moon fire chief. “The fire chief, the president, and the board of directors of the fire department will have little to no control over the fire department assets.”
Why it matters: Commissioners are proposing a one-year agreement tied to increased county funding; volunteers warned that clauses allowing transfer of equipment or property if a department cannot provide service…
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