The Public Safety & Welfare Committee voted Oct. 29 to forward the Kenosha Fire Department’s 2026 operating budget and 2026–2030 capital improvement plan to the Finance Committee.

The mayor praised the department’s leadership and described the budget as maintaining service levels without major staffing increases. The fire chief told members the department will keep current staffing (150 line firefighters, nine sworn administration and four general employees) while investing in apparatus replacement, station maintenance and radio infrastructure.

On EMS, the chief reviewed the blood‑on‑board program that equips ambulances with blood for pre‑hospital transfusion and said the department has used the blood supply in the field nine times so far. The program’s consumables and monitoring software are included in budget and CIP lines.

Committee members discussed long lead times and rising costs for ambulances and rescue apparatus. The department said remount/re‑chassis programs saved substantial dollars historically (about $100,000 per remount compared with buying new), but rising remount costs and delays mean the program is near its end and the city is planning to replace remaining rigs. Committee members also discussed the planned replacement of the tone/alert system, repairs to Station 2 (including kitchen work), and roof and siding projects at headquarters.

A motion to recommend the fire executive operating budget and the 2026–2030 fire CIP to the Finance Committee passed on a voice vote; the transcript records the chair saying the motion carried and members saying ‘‘aye.’’

The materials were forwarded to Finance for further review.