Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Mayor's proposed SFFD budget seeks $424 million and adds EMS and prevention staff
Summary
City budget staff presented a proposed $424 million allocation for SFFD with most funding for salaries; the mayor's plan includes hiring academies, five EMS 6 FTEs, three fire-prevention inspectors, an assistant deputy chief for health & safety and multi-million-dollar equipment allocations.
Director Mark Corso, the Fire Department's finance and planning director, gave commissioners a high-level review of the mayor's proposed budget and the calendar for Board of Supervisors consideration. Corso said the department's proposed total is $424,000,000 for the coming year, an increase driven largely by salary and fringe benefit costs; he said approximately $371,000,000 goes to salaries and benefits, leaving roughly $53,000,000 for other operations and capital.
Corso highlighted several allocations that the department included in its submittal and the mayor's proposal: one H2 firefighter academy per year and a paramedic academy to sustain staffing; five additional full-time equivalent positions for the EMS 6 pilot program, with supporting training; three new fire-prevention inspectors funded by fee revenue; and a reclassification to add an assistant deputy chief to lead health and safety functions including cancer prevention and workers' compensation coordination. "This is just a brief overview by type of expenditure for the department," Corso said, walking commissioners through fund breakdowns and timelines.
On equipment and capital, Corso said the budget included more than $9,000,000 over two years for the equipment plan (about $6,000,000 in year one and $3,300,000 in year two) and listed a roughly $11.5 million first-year equipment allocation that covers fire engines, ladder trucks and other fleet needs. He also noted $200,000 for records digitization and planning funds related to the city's bond projects. Corso said fee-funded positions and improved EMS billing are expected to help offset some costs.
Corso reviewed the budget schedule: the department presentation at the Budget & Finance Committee, a follow-up hearing, a public comment day on June 21, committee deliberations the week of June 24, and the Board's first and second votes on the budget in late July. Commissioners asked about the timing and effects of a proposed ~4% fee increase; Corso said the increase is modest and would take effect after budget approval, likely in late August.
