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EMS director asks commissioners for higher personnel, contractual funding
Summary
Scott Harris told commissioners EMS revenues were roughly $107,000 in 2025 and year-to-date $40,000; he requested larger personnel and contractual lines (including $6,000 if a state training grant is unavailable) and flagged inflation and rising event standby costs as drivers.
Scott Harris, representing the county EMS department, presented his preliminary budget and urged increases to several lines to maintain service levels amid rising costs.
Harris said generated revenue for 2025 was "more or less $107,000" and year-to-date revenue was about $40,000 as of May. He told the board he had proposed personnel-line increases and explained his assumptions: a 4% inflation factor and a base pay increase scenario of 2% unless the board decides otherwise. Harris said he has requested a personnel adjustment (he discussed figures written in his worksheet including a proposed personnel total in the low‑hundreds of thousands) and asked for a $10,000 increase to contractual services. He also said he requested approximately $6,000 to cover EMT-class costs if the usual state grant is not available.
Harris described staffing and expense pressures tied to event standbys and training costs. Commissioners pressed him on why some contractual or commodity lines would rise relative to three prior years' actual expenditures; Harris said costs are trending higher and that he may return with more detailed breakdowns. He asked commissioners to consider pay adjustments—"If you go above [2%], I would appreciate it if you adjusted that part of the budget also,"—and said he would provide follow-up details if the board wished to probe individual line items.
The commission did not take a final vote on the EMS budget; Harris submitted his worksheet and said he would be available for further questions during the budget cycle.
