Rocky View County operates a composite rural fire service, consisting of both paid and volunteer firefighters.

Transcription

1 CANDIDATE BRIEFING ELECTION 2013 FIRE SERVICES OVERVIEW Rocky View County operates a composite rural fire service, consisting of both paid and volunteer firefighters. The County has invested heavily in the Fire Services department over the past decade to ensure that residents are safe and secure. At the same time, improvements in building codes, safer appliances (the leading cause of house fires), and greater public awareness have significantly reduced the number of structure fires in Rocky View County. Fire Services has received a significant amount of publicity surrounding the unionization of paid firefighters and changes the County made to ensure the service keeps residents safe while respecting taxpayer dollars. Rocky View County is confident it has a safe, professional, well-resourced Fire Services department. BACKGROUND Rocky View County has a proud heritage of volunteer firefighters who serve to protect their friends and neighbours throughout the community. Over the past decade, Fire Services costs have been rising at a rate of 60 percent per year as the County invested in new stations, new equipment, and for the first time paid firefighters. Rocky View County now operates a composite rural Fire Service. Three stations (Balzac, Elbow Valley, and Springbank) are resourced with unionized paid staff members. Three stations (Madden, Irricana, and Langdon) are resourced with trained, certified volunteers. In March of 2013, Rocky View County began a comprehensive look at Fire Services operations, including: Safety Response times Equipment Nature of responses Value for money Rocky View County Page 1 of 7 Fire Services

2 Background Continued The review was prompted by the significantly escalating costs of the service at a time when the number of fires was dropping significantly. A plan for changes was developed in very late May, announced in early June, and implemented. The plan was developed with the safety of the public and firefighters in mind. The changes reduced the rate of growth for the Fire Services budget, but did not cut the budget. The Fire Services budget grew by approximately $1 million in 2013 alone. The public announcement of these changes is shown in the appendix of this document, or can be viewed at Since Rocky View County made changes to Fire Services, the County has been severely tested with a major flood, an oil pump-jack fire, house fires, and traffic accidents. In every case, the right number of firefighters (or more) responded to the incident. In partnership with police, paramedics, and other professionals, all of the incidents were handled successfully and professionally. This is a testament to the soundness of the County s approach, and to the professionalism of our volunteer and paid firefighters. Despite the success, firefighter union officials took exception to the changes, and launched a bargaining-in-bad-faith complaint with the Alberta Labour Relations Board. The complaint is currently under review. The firefighters union has been making subjective, highly negative public and media comments about the County and the Fire Services department. Rocky View County is attempting to deal with the issue of firefighting and its related costs in an objective, rational, and professional manner. KEY POINTS In forming an opinion on Fire Services, the County encourages all candidates for political office to keep these facts in mind: Qualified Firefighters: All of Rocky View County s firefighters captains, paid-on-call, and volunteers are fully certified by the National Fire Protection Association. Rocky View County is proud of the skill set and dedication shown by all its firefighters. Rocky View County Page 2 of 7 Fire Services

3 Key Points Continued Staffing: The City of Calgary has one paid frontline firefighter for every 918 citizens. 1 Rocky View County has one paid frontline firefighter for every 759 citizens 17 percent more than Calgary. Rocky View County also has a core of certified, dedicated volunteers that Calgary does not have, which nearly doubles the size of Rocky View s pool of talent. Additionally, the County is backstopped by various co-operative agreements with fire departments in neighbouring communities. Stations: The City of Calgary has one fire station for every 28,864 residents. Rocky View County has one station for every 6,342 residents. This is reflective of the larger land area that needs to be covered in the County, but it also shows the comparatively small number of residents that pay for each station through their taxes. Staff Per Shift: The number of staff on a Rocky View County fire station shift (one captain and three firefighters) matches that of most neighbouring communities. That said, the number of staff on a shift of firefighters is not the number of firefighters who respond to any particular incident, but rather the number waiting at a fire station for something to happen. Once an incident occurs, additional alarms can be called in, off-duty firefighters can be called in (as happened during June s flooding), or the County can request assistance from neighbouring communities. Workload: In 2012, the average Calgary fire station responded to a call every 6.3 hours. 2 Rocky View County s busiest fire station received one call every 16.2 hours, and the least busy station every 54.4 hours. In 2013, the County s number of calls will be even lower, since firefighters no longer respond to minor, non-emergency medical calls. Well-Paid Firefighters: Rocky View County s unionized firefighters are the secondhighest paid in the province (after Fort McMurray). Fire captains make more money than 94.3 percent of all Canadians, even without considering their benefit package. Firefighters make more money than 92.5 percent of all Canadians, not including benefits, and paid-oncall firefighter pay is based on this rate. 3 Including the value of benefits, each of the County s 12 fire captains cost taxpayers $135,131 annually. Full-time firefighter positions would have cost taxpayers $110,763 each year, but the County s move to using paid-oncall firefighters reduced that cost to $62,996 annually for each of the 36 paid union staff. It must be remembered that half of the County is still served by dedicated volunteers. Fire Fighter Tasks: At lower levels of pay, it is acceptable to have firefighters sweep roads after traffic accidents, attend minor medical calls, and complete other duties outside their profession. At higher levels of firefighter pay, those other tasks are best done by road maintenance crews, paramedics, and other specially-trained staff. The County s changes to Fire Services ensured that we had the right number to firefighters to fight fires and attend true emergencies. 1 Source: 2012 Annual Report, Calgary Fire Department 2 Ibid. 3 Source: Canada Revenue Agency Income Statistics Rocky View County Page 3 of 7 Fire Services

4 Fewer Fires: Despite a population increase, Rocky View County is seeing fewer building fires. For the past five years, the County has seen an average of 63 building fires per year. In the five years before that, the number averaged The numbers include unoccupied buildings (such as barns), which make up the majority of building fires. Wealth: The level of wealth a community possesses is not a determining factor in the cost of fire services. Fire coverage and services are based on public safety, firefighter safety, and careful analysis of needs and trends. Residents should not be paying more for services than the value they receive from those services, regardless of economic situation. Powerful Union: The international fire union that represents Rocky View County paid firefighters is powerful, litigious, and politically active. In the U.S., for example, the union is the sixth largest Political Action Committee 5, along with Wall Street brokers, banks, and insurance companies. Additional Changes Coming: Rocky View County continues to examine its Fire Services department to ensure that it remains a safe, effective, and cost efficient service for residents. A number of improvements are being examined, planned, and piloted. For example, the County is piloting a process to assign paid-on-call firefighters to specific fire stations. Currently, they work where needed, but by assigning them to specific locations they can better learn the neighbourhood and build stronger bonds as a firefighting team. New Station: Rocky View County is currently constructing a fire station in Bearspaw, slated to open in the early fall of How that station will be resourced (volunteer, unionized staff, or other as-yet unidentified options) has yet to be determined. Prevention is Key: Experts agree that the best way to save lives and prevent property damage from fires is not to invest in larger fire departments, but to enhance prevention and awareness. Rocky View County believes this is particularly true in a rural setting, where the distances a fire department needs to travel are great. ADDITIONAL READING Rocky View County Fire Services Bylaw under the Government and then Bylaws tabs at Canada s New Upper Class Firefighters (Mclean s): Fire Stations Increasingly Idle (National Post): Firefighters Don t Fight Fires: 4 Source: Office of the Fire Commissioner, Government of Alberta, Source: International Association of Fire Fighters website Rocky View County Page 4 of 7 Fire Services

5 APPENDIX LETTER TO COUNTY RESIDENTS ON FIRE SERVICES June 6, 2013 Re: Changes to Rocky View County Fire Services I m writing you today to let you know about a number of changes the County is making to our Fire Services in order to enhance response times, adapt to changing needs, and reduce the impact of dramatically rising costs. We began a process to review Fire Services in early spring. The price tag for County Fire Services has risen by as much as 600 percent over the past 10 years, and those costs continue to increase at a rate well above what we would see with inflation and population growth. The substantial cost for what is essentially a rural fire service caused us to look at the value that was being added for our residents and our community. In some cases, such as attending a house fire, the value is obvious. In other cases there was little or no value, such as sending a fully-equipped, fully-staffed fire truck to back up paramedics treating someone with a broken arm. I want to assure you our review was undertaken with public safety in mind. Rocky View County s plans were reviewed for safety by a former independent fire chief and past official with the International Association of Fire Fighters union. We considered this outside review an important step in reassuring you of the safety of these changes. Based on the analysis, County administration recently decided to take action in three main areas of fire service, with implementation set to begin next week. Even with the changes, Rocky View County s $7.3 million Fire Service budget will rise by close to $1 million this year, primarily due to increased union staff costs. However, in the longer term the changes will save the County approximately $4 million over the next three years. The three areas of change are: Emergency Response Vehicles The County has introduced two new Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) to enhance response times and reduce the unnecessary use of fully-equipped fire trucks. Larger fire trucks can be slow, particularly in inclement weather. The new four-wheel-drive ERV pickups can generally respond to emergencies faster, providing immediate assistance and situational awareness and assessment. In a serious situation, ERV responders could call in additional alarms long before the first full fire truck even reaches the area. Rocky View County Page 5 of 7 Fire Services

6 Emergency Response Vehicles Continued Deploying the ERVs will also save the County money. The vehicles are far more cost efficient than a full fire truck in responding to the County s numerous false alarms, controlled-burn smoke complaints, and medical emergencies. Each ERV unit features basic fire apparatus plus automatic defibrillators and other first-aid equipment. ERVs will both patrol the County and respond to calls. They will not replace full fire trucks, but will reduce the number of times the large, expensive equipment is needlessly deployed. The Emergency Response Vehicle approach puts Rocky View County at the forefront of fire protection for rural communities in Canada. It s an innovative approach, but based on ideas that have been tested and proven throughout North America. High-Value Medical Response Rocky View County Fire Services will change how it responds to medical calls. The department will continue to attend medical emergencies, but will generally dispatch the new Emergency Response Vehicles unless the situation warrants a fully-equipped fire truck. Medical emergencies include serious threats to life such as heart attacks, uncontrolled bleeding, or traumatic injury. Firefighters will no longer attend non-emergency medical incidents where paramedics or ambulance personnel are the more-appropriate responders, such as a broken leg or a patient with dementia needing to be taken into care. Fire Service personnel are not paramedics. They re skilled firefighters, but what they can provide in medical situations is limited. Their efforts are more suited to true emergencies, and we will continue to respond to those. Reduction in Fire Positions Each shift at staffed County fire stations currently consists of a fire captain and four firefighters. The streamlining and changes will see a reduction in firefighter positions. The improvements in how we respond to calls and the elimination of sending full crews to absolutely every minor incident will allow us to staff fire trucks and stations safely and effectively with fewer people. The number of people on a shift or on a truck does not represent the number of people needed for any particular incident. As soon as a fire truck or an Emergency Response Vehicle responds to the scene, they begin to make decisions about how much equipment and personnel are needed. A second or third alarm can be sent in, and because of the other changes we ve made it s more likely those units will be available. All Rocky View County firefighters will continue to be required to be provincially certified under the National Fire Protection Association s Standard 1001 program. Rocky View County Page 6 of 7 Fire Services

7 Investment in Equipment One thing the County will not be changing is its investment in equipment. Over the past five years, Rocky View County has invested heavily in new equipment, with everything from digital heads-up displays in a firefighter s mask to new fire trucks. The tools County firefighters use are state of the art. We will continue to maintain fire equipment to a high standard, and purchase new equipment when needed. Our rationalization was about effectiveness. We found that our investment in equipment was an important part of offering excellent fire protection to residents, and ensuring the safety of our firefighters. We ll continue with that investment. Significant Challenges Remain Controlling fire services costs will be an ongoing challenge. The County s contract with the local fire union is currently in arbitration. Even once awarded, the contract expires at the end of A new fire station will open in Bearspaw in 2014, and there are two additional stations in the planning stages. Rocky View County is facing a significant challenge in how to best structure and resource our fire department. The costs increases are even more concerning when you consider that half our county is served by volunteer firefighters who cost us very little. In looking to the future, we have a number of hard decisions to make about how we resource and grow Fire Services while continuing to ensure public safety, firefighter safety, and a responsible level of County taxes. What we re announcing now will not be the end of changes. As taxpayers who support the costs of Fire Services, you need to know about our plans, and the potential cost of not taking the actions we ve outlined. As residents, I want to stress to you that nothing changes in how you deal with an emergency. You should continue to call 9-1-1, and Rocky View County Fire Services will continue to respond. There is always an element of concern in any change to a fire department, but our plans are sound, and will meet the challenge of ensuring public safety, firefighter safety, and a responsible level of County taxes. Rocky View County Page 7 of 7 Fire Services