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Fire/EMS present constrained budget, hold off on new training chief; emergency management warns federal grant uncertainty
Summary
Fire/EMS said the department is managing a tight budget and deferred a proposed training and wildfire chief position pending completion of a strategic plan; Emergency Management reported that about 80% of its budget is salaries and that key federal grants such as EMPG and SHSP are uncertain.
Teton County Fire/EMS leaders told the Town Council and county commissioners April 29 that they are tightening budgets but aiming to maintain service levels while completing a standards-of-cover strategic review.
Fire Chief Mike Moyer said Fire/EMS submitted a recommended budget that trims capital and operations where possible; one requested new position, a division chief for training and wildfire, was not recommended pending completion of a strategic plan and more detail about operational needs and revenue offsets. County staff explained that a recent sale of two Darley apparatus returned roughly $1 million to the fund balance and that some of that money is earmarked to replace Rescue 44 and other vehicles in FY2026.
Emergency Management Coordinator Rich Oakes warned elected officials that his office relies heavily on state and federal grants. He said about 80% of his department budget is salaries for two positions; roughly half that salary cost has been paid with the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) in prior years. Oakes told the boards that as of an April morning update, the state Office of Homeland Security had advised local offices not to assume grant funding will continue on prior terms and that some federal mitigation and DOT grants appeared to be paused or canceled at the federal level.
Why it matters: Fire, EMS and emergency management are core public-safety services. Loss of grant support would shift costs to local taxpayers or require service reductions; emergency management functions such as public alerting and crisis software are largely grant-funded and can be expensive to operate locally.
Key details
- Fire/EMS: The department requested one new FTE (division chief for training/wildfire). Staff recommended delaying that hire until the strategic planning work clarifies levels of service. A $400,000 replacement of Rescue 44 was singled out as funded from recent vehicle sale proceeds.
- Emergency management: Oakes said several federal grant programs (EMPG, SHSP and other mitigation programs) were in flux and that some FEMA mitigation programs had been canceled. He asked elected officials to consider whether the town and county should preserve critical capabilities with local funding if federal programs disappear, noting that supplanting federal grant funds with local funds can create compliance issues if not carefully budgeted.
Quotes
- "This is a year where we need to tighten our belts a little bit," Chief Mike Moyer said, adding that the department is focusing on maintaining levels of service while identifying cost savings.
- "We just got an e-mail from the Office of Homeland Security this morning pretty much telling us not to count our chickens," Rich Oakes said about the status of federal emergency-management grants.
Next steps: Fire/EMS will finalize a standards-of-cover assessment and strategic plan this summer and return to elected officials with clear options for levels of service. Emergency Management asked elected officials to consider contingency funding paths and noted that if the county or town put local general funds in place to maintain services, that could affect grant eligibility and trigger federal supplanting rules if not structured properly.
