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Lawrence–Douglas County Fire Medical lays out two budget‑cut options; county review urged as city seeks reductions
Summary
Lawrence–Douglas County Fire Medical presented April 9 data showing rising call volume and longer 90th‑percentile response times in some planning zones, and described two budget‑reduction options after a city request to identify roughly $1.9 million in 2026 savings.
Lawrence–Douglas County Fire Medical (LDCFM) presented commissioners with detailed response‑time data, historical trends and two service‑reduction proposals following a city request for budget reductions.
Acting Fire Chief Joe Hardy and interim Chief of Staff Mackenzie Ezell opened the April 9 presentation with a review of incident counts and response‑performance tables drawn from the agency’s annual compliance and standards‑of‑cover work. LDCFM staff highlighted five planning zones in the city, additional rural demand zones and an overall multiyear rise in call volume—about 5% year‑over‑year in recent years—that has outpaced added unit capacity.
Chiefs said response performance is declining in several planning zones, with 90th‑percentile travel times for first LDCFM units rising in some districts since 2020. Staff noted the county and city operate under a joint governance and cost‑sharing model and said station optimization analysis from 2020 identified resource‑location and capacity gaps.
The City of Lawrence asked LDCFM to identify options that would reduce the city’s 2026 share by about $1.9 million. LDCFM presented two alternatives:
- City “preferred” proposal (presented to the city manager): shift some costs to the county by removing Engine 5 (Station 5), up‑staffing Ladder 4 (add one firefighter), and adding a medic unit (additional ambulance). LDCFM said that adding a medic unit would likely cost more than $1 million per year.
- An aggressive cut option to hit the full $1.9 million in city savings with deeper reductions in city‑funded posts: cut three battalion‑chief positions (reducing daily battalion coverage), reduce prevention and training staff and remove Engine 5; LDCFM described this option as a significant reduction of service.
Chiefs emphasized the difficulty of reconciling growing EMS demand with proposed reductions and suggested that non‑emergency transfer reform, mobile integrated health work and other demand‑reduction strategies could help but would not fully offset the need for more operational units. LDCFM noted 2017 station recommendations remain relevant and that a new reporting system in 2026 will provide more granular incident data.
Commissioners asked for more detailed, county‑oriented data, clarification of benchmarks and modelling of where an added medic unit would be located and how options would affect rural response. Several commissioners and county staff urged LDCFM and the City of Lawrence to pursue joint meetings and to provide more complete financial detail to county budget reviewers. Commissioners did not take action; they requested follow‑up briefings and materials to evaluate fiscal and service impacts ahead of county budget decisions.
