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Solano supervisors vote to withdraw from county EMS joint powers authority, delay advisory committee decision
Summary
The Board voted 4–0 to begin a 12‑month withdrawal from the Solano Emergency Medical Services Cooperative JPA and asked staff to return with more comparative data before finalizing a new LEMSA advisory committee; board members debated whether ambulance transport providers should hold voting seats.
The Solano County Board of Supervisors on May 12 voted unanimously to begin a 12‑month withdrawal from the Solano Emergency Medical Services Cooperative (SMSC) Joint Powers Authority and took up questions about how a new local emergency medical services agency (LEMSA) advisory committee should be structured.
County EMS Administrator Benjamin Gammon told the board that state law requires the LEMSA to oversee 24/7 ambulance coverage, set medical standards and coordinate among EMS, fire, hospitals and dispatch. Gammon recommended dissolving the JPA and forming a new advisory committee to maintain stakeholder input. "We adopt a resolution to withdraw from the Solano Emergency Medical Cooperative Joint Powers Authority that takes 12 months from the day that you guys sign," Gammon said during the presentation.
The board adopted that resolution 4–0. Gammon said the transition already places EMS oversight and ambulance contracting within county Health and Social Services and public health and that staff will continue rule‑making, RFP timing and contract oversight during the notice period.
Debate focused on the membership and voting rights of the proposed advisory body. A public commenter representing ambulance operations argued excluding the exclusive operating area (EOA) ambulance provider and 201 transport agencies from voting "is a significant omission that underrepresents one of the most essential operational components of the entire EMS system," urging providers be full voting members.
Several supervisors said they saw both sides. Supervisor Mashburn proposed allowing the contracted EOA ambulance provider to serve as a voting member only while it holds the active contract, saying that approach would avoid giving prospective bidders an ongoing seat. "It should be the ambulance provider that is contracted for the period of time that they are contracted; they sit on this board," he said. Other supervisors asked staff to gather comparative models from neighboring counties.
Faced with that dispute, the board voted 3–1 to postpone finalizing the advisory committee structure and requested additional information comparing how other counties include transport providers in advisory or operational committees. The motion to delay passed with Supervisor Mashburn dissenting on that procedural vote.
Gammon also gave schedule details for the EOA procurement: he said the RFP was returned to active status and bidders have 30 days (through June 5) to review a revised solicitation, with staff aiming to bring recommendations to the board in July. He told supervisors the county has an existing extension with the current provider that runs to Dec. 1 to avoid service interruption.
What’s next: the county will implement the JPA withdrawal process (a roughly 12‑month notice period) while staff prepares comparative surveys of other county advisory structures and returns with a recommendation on advisory‑committee membership and voting rules.
Sources: Presentation and remarks by Benjamin Gammon, Solano County EMS administrator; public comment representing ambulance providers; board discussion and roll‑call votes recorded May 12, 2026.
