Mayor Pro Tem says Ocilla can’t afford fire department as council weighs cuts

At the Aug. 18 Ocilla City Council meeting, Mayor Pro Tem Chris Paulk said the city can no longer afford its fire department and urged budget reductions rather than continued borrowing.

"We simply can’t afford the Fire Department," Paulk said during a discussion about budget pressures and departmental costs. He pointed to what he described as excessive overtime and the department's inability to generate revenue, and said rising interest rates make borrowing for operations unsustainable.

Council Member Lemora Moses pressed for clarification on why the Fire Department was recommended for closure rather than cuts to other departments. Paulk said the recommendation was not personal to Fire Chief Will Towson or the firefighters but a fiscal necessity given the city's borrowing and interest expense.

The minutes record this as discussion only; the council did not take a formal vote or pass a motion to close or restructure the Fire Department at the meeting. The agenda also shows an item described as a Memorandum of Understanding concerning the Fire Department was tabled, but the minutes do not show further action on that item.

The discussion highlights a budget challenge the council is confronting; the minutes do not include proposed savings figures, an implementation plan, or a timetable for further action. Questions about next steps and any required public-notice or regulatory approvals were not recorded in these minutes.