While various aspects of the FY 2021 Budget have caused debate amongst the Fisher County Court in recent months, one area where commissioners unanimously agreed was increasing the rural fire departments’ budget. The court is expected to wrap up budget discussions next Monday when the county will officially adopt this year’s budget.
Robert Hoffman with the Fisher County firefighters Association spoke to the commissioners in early August, as the court was deliberating the upcoming budget cycle. The rural fire departments had already responded to near 100 calls by early august and added one more to the list by the end of the day, as firefighters responded to a brush fire that started in Rotan proper just a few hours after the August meeting.
Hoffman reminded commissioners that the fire department operates on limited funds: with some County funds allocated toward the departments’ operations and revenues generated through fundraising events and charitable donations.
The annual County allotment toward the Fire Department budget is believed to have been established in 1986 when Fisher County also donated two fire trucks. Those trucks have long since been out of service, and two of the trucks currently in operations are undergoing significant repairs and others that will require attention in the upcoming year.
Fisher County currently provides $20,000 annually for fire and rescue services, which are divided between equipment needs, fuel, repair costs, continuing education, and insurance. Hoffman explained that $5,000 is budgeted toward equipment costs that range from telephones to truck tires and divided between Rotan and Roby departments.
“That's not enough,” said Fisher County Commissioner Gordon Pippin during the August court meeting, suggesting the county double the equipment budget at a minimum. “We just don't want y'all to say, ‘Hey, we can't come because we’re out of fuel,’ or ‘We don't have a tire to get there.’”
Hoffman assured the commissioners and members of the public that the fire departments would continue to be prepared to respond to emergency situations regardless of the budget. “Will dig it out of our back pocket if we have to,” said Hoffman.
However, he also added that this season has been particularly challenging due to higher call volume and corresponding fuel consumption. Hoffman added that the number of calls has been reduced this year with the assistance of the Fisher County Sheriff's Department, who has been cooperative in relaying when the fire department is not needed on scene.
“That has helped us a lot,” he had said, reminding the county of the almost 200 fires the department responded to in 2011. “This is shaping up to be a pretty active fire season, and we still have four months left.”
In 2011, Texas suffered the worst one-year drought conditions on record since 1895, and six of the 10 larges documented wildfires in state history burned in April.
The Swenson Fire that started near Aspermont in the community of Swenson in April 2011 was the ninth largest fire in Texas history, burning for 18 days and consuming 122,500 acres. There were two homes destroyed; fire crews were able to save 12 others.
The Fisher County Rural Volunteer Fire Department submitted a request for a $16,000 budget increase to offset additional expenses in fuel usage and the cost of the foam, which alone is a $3,000 expense this year. With an increase of house and vehicle fires, firefighters have used fire-suppression foam more frequently because of the synthetic materials used in modern vehicle and home construction.
Hoffman confirmed that while the departments are qualifiers for various grants, many of those options are cost-sharing programs that are often costprohibitive, and additional funding would benefit on both fronts.
The Court unanimously approved the budget increase, and after commissioners worked alongside fire personnel on a series of recent fires in mid-August discussed ways for the county to purchase an additional bulldozer. Commissioner Gordon Pippin said one fire got pretty close to some rural houses and a second dozer would be a significant benefit in the future.
Pippin said it would be a machine that all precincts could share for county purposes while also providing the much-needed support to the fire crews during what was proving to be an active fire season in Fisher County. Talks of selling surplus equipment such as trailers led to alternative options, and commissioners agreed the county would sell three of its 13 maintainers and surplus equipment to help cover the purchase price of a new county bulldozer.
The specific details of that plan have yet to be presented or approved, and while there are several budget revisions commissioners have flip-flopped on in recent meetings, the court seemed confident during the public hearing last month those issues would be “ironed out” during Monday’s September 14 meeting, when the court is expected to officially adopt the Final FY 2021 Budget.