Cowlitz County awards Title III emergency grants to three fire districts and the sheriff’s office

The Cowlitz County Board of Commissioners voted to award the county’s fiscal-year 2026 Title III allocations to local emergency responders, approving $7,000 each for Cowlitz County Fire Districts 6, 3 and 7 and $13,500 for the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office.

Commissioner Sean Roehrig, presenting the applications, said the county solicited projects under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act and received four proposals. "The county received 4 project applications," he said, listing fire districts seeking $10,000 each and a sheriff’s request of $22,467.28 to enhance search-and-rescue drones.

Sheriff’s Office representative Troy Brightbill described the drone request and workarounds the office offered to fit the county’s limited pool: "Our request is for drones to be used, searching and locating subjects, and there's some special equipment that attaches to that such as infrared illumination... If we're trying to make this work for all parties, we could drop that to 1 drone and cut the number of batteries in 0.5." That downscoping reduced the sheriff’s ask to roughly $13,417, staff said.

Chief Eustis of Fire District 7 explained the fire district’s need for rapid-access equipment, including e-bikes and a specialized litter: "We had a call actually just here on Sunday that ended up being an 11 hour ordeal to get to a patient... This would tremendously help us to get these people out of the areas they are in." Applicants and commissioners characterized the Title III program as a reimbursement model: districts log runs and submit expenses to the county for reimbursement rather than receiving lump sums in advance.

Roehrig told the board the county had about $34,500 available and the funds must be obligated by Sept. 30. After discussion about proportional cuts and operational need, staff recommended the distribution the board approved by voice vote: $7,000 to each of Fire Districts 6, 3 and 7 and $13,500 to the sheriff’s office. Commissioners noted the small size of the pools but approved the awards so funds could be obligated in time.

The board moved directly from public testimony to the vote and approved the recommendation. The awards will be administered under the county’s established reimbursement and reporting procedures; the county noted a small remainder (approximately $100) that could be rolled into the next fiscal year or allocated to a district by future directive.