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Fire chief outlines $511M budget, warns EMS workload and staffing limit flexibility
Summary
Fire Chief Janine Nicholson told the Budget & Appropriations Committee the San Francisco Fire Department’s FY24–25 budget is heavily salary-driven (roughly 90%); she flagged rising equipment costs, $33M in EMS revenue growth, and limits to cutting frontline positions while answering supervisors’ questions about EMS staffing and street crisis work.
Fire Chief Janine Nicholson presented the San Francisco Fire Department’s proposed budget to the Board’s Budget and Appropriations Committee on June 16, saying the department will spend roughly $511 million–$527 million across the next two fiscal years and remains heavily dependent on General Fund support. She told supervisors that about 90% of the department’s budget is salary and benefits, and that the largest year‑over‑year increases reflect recent union (MOU) settlements rather than new program investments.
Nicholson said the department brought in about $33 million in EMS revenue this year, driven by higher call volumes and prior authorization of additional positions. She described a constrained budget…
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