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Lee County EMS asks commissioners for $632,194 increase in annual subsidy
Summary
At the Aug. 11 Lee County Commission meeting, EMS director Austin Bayless asked the commission to raise the annual subsidy by $632,194 per entity to cover rising vehicle and labor costs, saying response times average about 14 minutes and that adding and staffing another 911 truck approaches $1,000,000 per year.
At the Aug. 11 Lee County Commission meeting, Austin Bayless, the presenter identified by the chair as representing county EMS, asked the commission to approve a subsidy increase of $632,194 per entity to cover rising costs and maintain response capacity.
Bayless said the county’s average EMS response time is "running us right now around 14 minutes," and that the program is meeting state benchmarks. He described recent capital purchases of new ambulances and said vehicle prices have risen 20–30% compared with previous purchases. "To purchase the truck, the maintenance on the truck, and to staff it for a year runs close to 1000000 dollars," Bayless said, adding that labor costs are the largest ongoing expense.
Bayless told commissioners the service is adding an additional 911 truck this year, which will bring the total to eight 911 trucks running 24 hours a day; the county is currently running seven. He said the department is already staffing one additional unit early and is asking FY26 partners to help cover costs.
When commissioners questioned historical subsidy numbers, Bayless and a commissioner exchanged figures: Bayless said last year’s subsidy was "447,780," while another participant recalled a figure nearer to 457,000. Bayless said the requested increase would allow EMS to "break even" and that if actual revenues exceed projections by more than 1% the department would share the excess back with the entities.
Bayless described other revenue sources as billing insurance, Medicare and other chargebacks, but said those do not cover the full cost of service. He also noted geographic coverage issues — some units travel outside the county for longer calls — and that Smiths Station currently has one ambulance that is backfilled when it goes out.
The discussion concluded without a formal vote on the subsidy increase at the meeting. Shortly after the presentation, the commission approved moving an executive session earlier on the agenda and announced an executive session to discuss personnel matters. Commissioners indicated they expected formal action at the end of that executive session.
