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Morgan City urged to renew Cooperative Wildfire System participation; staff asked to sign extension
Summary
Morgan County fire warden briefed council on the Cooperative Wildfire System (CWS), urging Morgan City to renew participation and submit a short form that lists mitigation projects; presenter gave two different commitment figures in the meeting record and council members discussed completing the required form promptly.
Dave Vickers, Morgan County fire warden, told the Morgan City Council on Jan. 28 that the city’s Cooperative Wildfire System (CWS) participation agreement had expired Dec. 31 but the county obtained an extension and asked the city to sign an updated participating commitment so the municipality remains eligible for state cost-sharing for wildland fire response.
Vickers said the program has shifted to calendar-year agreements and outlined options for meeting the city’s “participating commitment,” including in‑kind community efforts such as a park or river cleanup, mitigation events, or using public-works equipment time. “For, $1600 commitment, it’s really, in my opinion, I would strongly recommend you. It’s a no brainer to continue participating,” Vickers said, and at another point in the presentation he stated the city’s calculated participating commitment was $166. He said he had left a blank form for signature and could meet with city staff to complete and submit it soon.
City Manager Ty Bailey and council members discussed how the commitment could be met with public-works projects or volunteer events and whether the city should simply write a check. Council member Dave Alexander and others said the city has mitigation activities—tree trimming, parks cleanups and brush removal—that could be listed on the form. Vickers noted the state will accept a check but emphasized there are multiple legitimate ways to document work and in‑kind services. He said the CWS program’s requirements are changing and that an updated community wildfire protection plan will likely be needed in coming months.
No formal council motion was recorded on the CWS form during the meeting. Vickers offered to meet with the city manager promptly to complete the form and submit the extension paperwork to the state, saying he had already negotiated an extension with the state office while the city prepared required documentation.
Why it matters: the CWS allows municipalities to share the cost of fighting wildland fires and to qualify for state reimbursements or support; without a current participating commitment, a jurisdiction can be exposed to a larger share of suppression costs if a fire starts inside or burns into city limits.
What’s next: Vickers asked to meet with city staff in the next day or two to fill out and sign the participating-commitment form; council members expressed support for completing and submitting the form quickly.
