Kings County supervisors approve retroactive fire‑department agreement for turnout gear

Kings County supervisors on June 9 approved a retroactive three‑year agreement for the county fire department to buy 50 sets of personal protective equipment from Bower Compressors, saying the purchase restores depleted stock and sets a scheduled replacement plan going forward.

Fire Chief John Chamberlain told the board the department found itself without sufficient turnout gear when he arrived last year and that the vendor offered a “one‑time deeply discounted purchase opportunity” requiring a prior commitment. He said staff negotiated a discount “greater than 40% per set” and that the proposed contract spans one year of retroactivity (back to July 1, 2025) plus two years forward.

"You don't send a police officer or sheriff into a gunfight without bullets," Chamberlain said. "We can't fight fire without turnouts." He described the purchase as a necessary single infusion to reestablish a staggered replacement program and said that, on average, the negotiated pricing reduced list prices by roughly 35–45% on parts compared with catalog list.

Chamberlain said the department has seen gear losses in major incidents — he cited about $24,000 in turnouts lost in a tanker collision and oil spill event — and noted that the protective ensembles have a roughly 10‑year shelf life but can degrade sooner from heat or contamination. He also explained that operational practice requires two sets per firefighter so that one set can be laundered and repaired while crews remain ready to respond.

The motion presented to the board combined three related items: (a) approval of the retroactive purchase and contract with Bower Compressors, (b) authorization of the County to enter the three‑year agreement, and (c) a four‑fifths budget shift using a one‑time Salis Rado fund to cover the immediate cost while building a non‑negotiable replacement line into next year’s budget. County staff said some CDBG reimbursements and procurement complexity delayed the item from reaching the board earlier.

The board recorded a unanimous vote in favor (Joe Nevs — yes; Doug Verbbo — yes; Resty Robinson — yes; Robert Theer — yes). No recorded dissenting comments were made at the time of the vote.

With the contract approved, staff said purchasing and inventory steps will follow under standard county procurement and risk‑management reviews; the agreement had been cleared by county legal and risk management before the vote.

Meeting minutes show the board treated the purchase as a one‑time catch‑up to allow a planned annual replacement schedule thereafter.