Fire Commissioners Review Draft 2019 Budget

— by Susan McBain, Orcas Issues Reporter —

The Board of Fire Commissioners (BOFC) of Orcas Fire & Rescue spent much of their Oct. 15 regular meeting reviewing the draft budget presented by Fire Chief Scott Williams. Attending were Commissioners Tim Fuller, Jim Helminski, and Wes Heinmiller (by phone).

Chief Williams prepared a conservative budget based only on guaranteed revenue sources. He estimated the total of those revenues for 2019 at $2,345,000 and total expenses at $2,367,960, or $22,960 more than revenues. He also presented options for cutting the budget still further. The draft budget assumed the elimination of one administrative position in order to avoid cutting one firefighter/EMT, and a reduction in the professional services for the department’s wellness program.

The commissioners noted that while they applaud careful stewardship of resources, cuts that harm department services could do more harm than good, especially as demands on the department keep growing. The number of calls continues to increase by about 100 each year and has likely already exceeded 1000 this year. Commissioner Tim Fuller noted that the budget anticipates the possibility of extra expenses but not of extra revenues, which the department has received in past years. The Fire District may have additional cash reserves in the General Fund for 2018 due to some revenue fund increases, especially in cost recovery, and cost-efficient spending of District funds. Unspent revenue funding is predicted to be $70,000 more than expected. The general fund for the District was predicted to be $1,355,791 in this year’s budget but may reach about $1,428,000 by year’s end.

Other happenings of note:

• Department expenses for 2018 are at about 75% of budget, on track for the year.
• On October 6th, OIFR worked with the Lopez and Shaw fire districts on a very successful mass casualty drill, including fire, EMS, and rescue operations. Department members felt that they learned a great deal.
• OIFR is exploring how best to pay for purchase of a new ambulance in 2019.
• OIFR is working with the Orcas Island Health Care District and the two principal island clinics to track numbers and handling of emergency calls.
• OIFR has been approved to use ambulance drivers that are not medically trained, beyond the department’s CPR and first aid training.

The draft version of the budget will be reviewed again at the Nov. 19 BOFC meeting for final approval prior to submitting it to the County.