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Fire department proposes staffing shifts to curb overtime; committee places three service changes on rec list
Summary
Fire and Rescue presented FY27 base budget and proposed three operational staffing changes (Hillandale Tower staffing adjustment, Laytonsville rescue reconfiguration, and converting a day EMS unit to 24‑hour service) intended to reduce overtime; committee placed the proposals on the reconciliation list 3–0 while debating operational vs. budgetary framing and safety implications from a recent NIOSH report.
Montgomery County Fire & Rescue staff presented the FY27 recommended budget (about $312 million) and a set of operational adjustments intended to reduce chronic overtime costs. Staff said FY26 overtime expenditures are already roughly $7 million over budget and that the department expects to request a supplemental appropriation for overexpended personnel costs.
Ms. Farag and Fire Chief Corey Smelly outlined three interrelated proposals the department recommended for committee consideration and reconciliation: (1) a staffing change at Hillandale Tower 724 that removes nine career FTEs from that tower (apparatus would remain at the station and staff would be reallocated), estimated savings of about $1.8 million; (2) a reconfiguration at Laytonsville Station 717 to remove six career staff from the rescue squad and rely on a rescue engine plus overlapping extrication coverage; and (3) converting a day EMS transport unit (Medic 732 at Station 32) to 24‑hour operation by shifting six FTEs, intended to improve consistency of advanced life support availability without hiring ten new positions.
Council members repeatedly noted that those items read like operational decisions (deployment and staffing) rather than pure budget line items, and several emphasized that the public could interpret committee action as the council ordering operational staffing decisions. Chief Smelly said he has operational authority to make staffing moves but acknowledged the political sensitivity; he also pledged to continue recruiting volunteers and testing changes under the master plan framework. Members referenced a recent NIOSH fatality report and discussed moving toward four‑person staffing on some trucks; the chief said the department is pursuing 4‑person staffing where feasible and will report back.
Outcome: the committee placed the Hillandale Tower staffing adjustment, the Laytonsville reconfiguration, and the Medic 732 conversion on the reconciliation list (3–0) for full council review, while asking staff for supplemental information on operational impacts and ensuring related line items travel together in reconciliation.
