Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Beaumont approves CalFire and county fire agreements; council hears paramedic staffing plans
Summary
Council authorized a one‑year local responsibility area reimbursement agreement with CalFire and approved a separate one‑year fire protection agreement with the County of Riverside Fire Department. Staff said current contract changes restore paramedic coverage and standardized unit staffing, and that paramedic training pipelines are expanding locally.
Beaumont’s City Council approved two separate public‑safety agreements related to wildland and municipal fire protection during its meeting.
For the local responsibility area (LRA) wildland protection agreement (J2), staff described a one‑year reimbursement arrangement with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire). Deputy Chief Mike Beverlin answered council questions and noted the agreement term is one year; staff told council the FY27 figure in the staff report is slightly lower than the prior year by $2,674.
On the county agreement (J3), staff presented a one‑year fire‑services contract with the County of Riverside Fire Department that includes emergency response, fire protection and supervisory services. Staff said the FY27 contract reflects approximately a $257,000 increase associated with restoring paramedic staffing and standardizing unit staffing to a model of one captain, one engineer, one paramedic and one firefighter per unit. Staff reported the initial year cost is about $10.5 million and could increase to approximately $10.99 million under a one‑year extension; council authorized the mayor (or authorized designee) to execute the agreement and authorized the city manager to exercise a one‑year renewal option subject to future council approval of funding.
Deputy Chief Beverlin explained the paramedic shortage that emerged during COVID and said local paramedic training capacity is now improving, citing a renewed paramedic program at College of the Desert with a growing class size.
Both agreements were approved by roll call vote. Council also discussed signatory practice and recusal procedures to avoid the appearance of impropriety where a councilmember or spouse has employment relationships relevant to the contracts.
What’s next: staff will finalize contract signatures and proceed with procurement and budget actions necessary to implement the agreements; staff will monitor implementation and return if council action is required for renewal funding.
