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Volunteer fire chiefs urge restoration of funding after county cuts
Summary
Chiefs from several volunteer fire departments told the budget committee cuts from $120,000 last year to $50,000 in the proposed budget would strain operations, citing insurance, equipment testing and PPE costs; commissioners deferred a final decision to the June 17 budget meeting.
Volunteer fire department leaders appealed to the Rutherford County Budget Committee to restore funding reduced in the proposed fiscal plan.
Amable Fire Chief Mark Bricker described operational strain: the department was dispatched to 836 incidents last year and responded to 651, a 77.9% response rate; he listed annual costs including about $40,000 for insurance, roughly $65,000 for testing and compliance, and approximately $5,000 per turnout set for PPE replacement.
Chief Bricker said the department’s operating budget was about $225,000 and that cuts to $150,000 or $50,000 would force tough tradeoffs in services or staffing. He asked commissioners to consider returning funding close to the $120,000 the departments received in the prior year.
Commissioners and the mayor’s office noted the county’s budget constraints and that three volunteer departments (Amable, Eagle/Iglə and Christiana) were affected by similar reductions; the mayor indicated he would propose options for addressing the reductions. Several commissioners emphasized the need to balance public-safety coverage against county-wide budget limits and agreed to reconsider the request at a June 17 meeting when the commission will finalize budget actions.
Next steps: county staff said it is too late to alter published budget notices before the June 16 public hearing but the committee will consider adjustments at the June 17 meeting and the full commission will take final action thereafter.
