REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: KERRI L. DONIS, Fire Chief
Fire Department
SUBJECT
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Authorize the Fire Chief to apply for the 2021 SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) Grant, deadline for submissions is February 4, 2022.
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RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended Council authorize the Fire Chief to apply for the 2021 SAFER grant pursuant to the resolution passed by council on September 4, 2020.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The 2022 SAFER grant opened on January 3, 2022 and will close on February 4, 2022. Prior to submission of the application, this item is being brought before the council to ens ure it remains the will of the C ouncil to apply. With this SAFER application, the Fire Department seeks to hire twenty-four (24) firefighter recruits under the grant. The grant pays for all s alaries and benefits, excluding overtime pay, for all recruits for a period of 36 months. Note: There is no requirement to retain the firefighters following the 36-month performance period.
BACKGROUND
The Fresno Fire Department currently has 347 authorized sworn safety positions serving a population of 537,000 residents. This firefighter per capita rate of 0. 65 members per 1 ,000 residents is one of the lowest in the State and country for comparable cities. The increasing population and demand for services requires the Department to expand its capacity to preserve and improve service levels. With the approval of this application, the Department would increase the number of members’ on-duty each day from 95 to 102, adding a 4th firefighter to six apparatus and opening a new 2 -person Medical Squad ; increasing the Department’s ability to meet the challenges of responding to 4 7,000 calls for service each year with our growing population .
Should council approve this grant, adding 24 new members, the per capita firefighter ratio per thousand residents would be .69. The state average is .82 firefighters per thousand residents.
Under the grant, the Fire Department intends to hold a 16-week drill school in August/September 2022. Recruits for the drill school would be hired through an open general population recruitment, casting a wider net for a pool of applicants . General population recruitments normally require a sixteen (16) week drill school to ensure adequate training is received.
Once the recruits are ready for service, the department intend s to add a 4th firefighter to six (6) engine companies, and open a new (becoming the department’s fourth) Medical Squad furthering the Department’s ability to meet NFPA 1 710 industry standards of having 4 -0 staffed apparatus, improved response times and effective firefighting forces for emergency calls for service.
Currently, members in a 3-0 staffed company cannot make entry until a second company arrives with additional firefighters. However, with a 4-0 staffed company, two members can immediately make entry to a structure without the delay of the next arriving apparatus. In many fire emergencies every second can be critical. This staffing improvement would provide for an additional six (6) fire engines to have 4 -0 staffing, meeting the “Two-in-Two-out” firefighter safety requirement and result in 18 of the Department’s 20 engines to be staffed with 4-0 staffing. This would improve the Department’s ability to meet the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) 1710 standard regarding appropriate apparatus staffing, which states, “Personnel assigned to the initial arriving comp any shall have the capability to implement an initial rapid intervention crew (IRIC).”
Adding an additional Medical Squad will improve emergency responses to medical emergencies, while keeping our larger apparatus more readily available for fire-related and rescue emergencies.
The approval of this SAFER grant application will result in significant improvements in responding to all emergency incidents within the City of Fresno.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
This item is not a project as defined by CEQA.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference was not implemented because this item is a re -appropriation of an existing project.
FISCAL IMPACT
There will be no Fiscal Impact in Fiscal Year 22. Costs will commence in Fiscal Year 2023. A cost schedule accompanies this re port detailing the 3-year expected fiscal impacts to the General Fund. Net of grant reimbursements, the fiscal impact s to the General Fund will be as follows: Fiscal Year 202 3 - $1,167,413; Fiscal Year 202 4 - $680,821; Fiscal Year 202 5 - $667,664.
Attachment: 3 Year Costing for SAFER Recruitment