Board of Fire Commissioners Approves 2018 OIFR Budget

— by Susan McBain, Orcas Issues reporter —

The Board of Fire Commissioners of Orcas Island Fire & Rescue (OIFR) held its regularly monthly meeting on Nov. 20. Commissioners Barbara Bedell, Tim Fuller, Wes Heinmiller, and Amanda Montague and Chief Scott Williams were present.

• Chief Williams presented the final draft of the OIFR 2018 budget, which the Board approved. It predicts income of $2,565,767 and expenses of $2,564,246.
• The Board of Fire Commissioners has created a Finance Committee consisting of two board members, who met directly with Chief Williams to plan the 2018 budget. Chief Williams felt these meetings were very productive and saved the Board as a whole a good deal of time. He would like the Board to establish a Policy Committee and perhaps a Strategic Planning Committee. The next Strategic Plan will cover 2019–2023.
• Expenditures for the year generally continue at or below budgeted amounts. Facilities and vehicle/equipment maintenance expenditures are low, but the most important maintenance and repair tasks are now under way, and further work is scheduled for the rest of this year.
• The number of calls for the year topped 1,000, continuing the trend of an increase of about 100 calls each year. Burn season is now open but no incidents have resulted. There have been some opioid reports, so the department is preparing for potential opioid overdoses.
• The new department website is in development and is expected to go live in February. It will include new features such as a calendar, videos, and links to other services such as county burn permits.
• Funding for one or two community paramedics has been delayed from January to possibly March.
• An EMT training course will begin in December and go through February 2018. A Fire Academy to train new volunteer firefighters will begin in December and go into mid-spring.
• Chief Williams, Commissioner Jim Helminski, and department staffers Jim Schuh and Micki Nichols attended the Washington Fire Commissioners Association conference in Spokane in October. The conference provided valuable information addressing legal issues affecting fire/EMS agencies in Washington, state auditor updates on the state’s Budgeting, Accounting and Reporting System (BARS) and fire district accounting practices, and the importance of risk management practices.
• Chief Williams appointed Jim McCorison as Station 22 (West Sound) volunteer officer lieutenant.

The regular commission meeting for December will take place as scheduled on Dec. 18. Because of the Martin Luther King holiday, the regular commission meeting for January has been moved to Tuesday, Jan. 16.