Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fire chief warns of staffing shortfall, rising equipment costs and large pension hit if amendment passes
Summary
Martin County Fire Rescue told commissioners its FY27 tentative budget responds to sharply higher call volumes, equipment and fuel costs, and an unexpected Florida Retirement System increase; the chief said losing recruits to neighboring counties risks mandatory overtime and quality of service.
Martin County Fire Rescue officials on July 13 told county commissioners the department faces sustained demand growth, steep equipment cost increases and a sudden state pension adjustment that together pose substantial operational risk.
"Our FY27 tentative budget is 77,500,000," Fire Chief Chad Chanchully said, describing a 4.92% budget increase from the prior year and stressing that personnel account for roughly 93% of the department's costs. He told the board that call volumes have climbed markedly over the past decade and that specialized equipment and replacement costs have surged: a truck that cost roughly $539,000 in 2020 now costs about $1,000,000, and diesel and bunker gear prices have risen substantially.
Chief Chanchully highlighted a state legislative change that added a recurring 1.5% cost‑of‑living adjustment to a special‑risk class in the Florida Retirement System (FRS). He said the FRS change has driven a large recurring expense for the department.
The chief also described recruitment and retention pressures: he said about 40 currently qualified Martin County firefighter‑paramedics are in active hiring pipelines with agencies to the south, and that replacing one experienced firefighter‑paramedic with a less‑trained recruit can cost the department hundreds of thousands of dollars over a three‑year training and overtime cycle.
"If we lose 40, that is catastrophic to this organization," Chanchully said, asking commissioners for continued support to maintain staffing and avoid mandatory overtime.
Deputy Chief Rocco Napoli provided response statistics: the department reported 46,215 total unit responses in the most recent year (about 127 responses per day) and described trends of rising motor‑vehicle collisions and brush/outside fires.
Commissioners thanked the department and moved to tentatively approve the fire rescue budget; the motion passed unanimously. Chief Chanchully and staff said they will return with additional briefings on how a potential property‑tax amendment could affect public‑safety funding and staffing.
