Cheatham County volunteer fire chief warns new contract cuts donations, says department would start year in the red

PJ Duncan, a volunteer who said he has served about 34 years with his department and recently has been paid as the fire chief, told the Cheatham County Commission on May 12 that proposed contract language would remove his department's ability to solicit donations and immediately cut roughly $50,000 from its annual revenue.

Duncan said the department has long used donations that explicitly note the donor's taxes support emergency response and that losing the solicitation option would push the department 'in the red day 1.' "If we sign this contract, we're gonna be in the red day 1," Duncan said. He told commissioners his board of directors was likely to refuse the contract if the solicitation language remained.

Why it matters: Duncan told the commission the cut would compound existing operating shortfalls: the…