Morgan Hill is currently drawing up a contract with Calfire to provide fire protection services to the city and it’s something other cities in the county should seriously consider.
Currently, South County is served by three different agencies, with the city of Morgan Hill contracting with the Santa Clara County Fire Department for fire and emergency medical services. Unincorporated areas including San Martin are in the South Santa Clara County Fire District, which contracts with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection or Calfire. And the city of Gilroy has its own municipal fire department.
That’s a redundancy that in this day – with this economy – needs to change.
And back in 2009, at the height of the recession, a joint services committee consisting of then-County Supervisor Don Gage and elected officials from the cities of Morgan Hill and Gilroy, and members of the South County Fire District board of commissioners discussed the possibility of combining the local region into one fire district.
The city of Gilroy backed out of those talks last year when city officials determined they could not save money by giving up its own fire department or incorporating it into a single management arrangement.
But Morgan Hill will save about $800,000 per year.
The proposal offers service coverage at least equal to – and possibly better than – the existing services offered by Santa Clara County fire department, and lower costs attributable partly to Calfire’s existing resources in Morgan Hill and surrounding areas, according to Mayor Steve Tate. Those resources include a Calfire station in south Morgan Hill on Monterey Road, as well as training and personnel in the South County Fire District, for which Calfire is also the contractor.
A large portion of the savings in Calfire’s proposal is attributable to the lower wages paid to Calfire staff, according to Calfire Santa Clara Unit Chief Steve Woodill.
A regionally operated department means less duplication of administrative services and lower costs. Calfire’s proposal is attributable to the lower wages paid to Calfire staff, Woodill said.
“The state salaries are set more on a statewide average, versus a local average” set by local agencies, Woodill said. “Our employees are paid at a lesser base salary rate.”
Plus, Calfire personnel operate on a 72-hour work week, rather than a 56-hour work week employed by many other agencies, Woodill explained.
That allows Calfire staff to work 12 days per month instead of 10 days per month, without billing for overtime for the two additional days.
And while SCCFD has done an admiral job – they provided great service and were a part of the community – since they took over in the early 90s for a beleaguered city looking to save money, the cost savings is significant.
And it’s something all other cities in the county that have their own fire department should consider.
The time is now.
