Andy Belknap, Managing Director
Rick Haydon, Project Manager
Larry Waterhouse, Special Advisor
Bob Leland, Special Advisor
Michelle New, Consulting Manager
Five Cities Fire Authority
Analysis of Fire Services
February 27, 2023
1 Presentation Overview – Areas of Focus
Project Overview
Observations & Recommendations
Service Level & Staffing Analysis
Fiscal Analysis
Alternative Models
2 OCSD’s Withdrawal from FCFA Assumes Divestiture Which is Unlikely by June 30, 2023
• On 1/11/2023, the OCSD Board
authorized the divestiture
application, and it was received by
LAFCO on 2/6/23
• LAFCO will do an independent
evaluation of the impact of
divestiture and possible County
operations / alternatives
• County decision on service is
discretionary and Board of
Supervisors action will be required
• LAFCO’s decision on divestiture is
also discretionary and will take 6 to
12 months to process
3 Engagement Objectives
Baker Tilly was engaged by the cities of
Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach to analyze
fire services provided by the Five Cities Fire
Authority (FCFA) to:
1. Provide an assessment of the financial
impacts of the departure of the Oceano
Community Services District (OCSD)
from the FCFA,
2. Provide staffing and fire service options
to the FCFA, and
3. Provide options to address the financial
gap created as a resulting of OCSD’s
withdrawal from the FCFA as well as a
new governance structure.
4 Project Deliverables
• Forecast model for FCFA, Grover
Beach and Arroyo Grande
Shows impact of different staffing and
cost allocation scenarios on each entity
• Written Report
Observations on operations, including
staffing recommendations with and
without OCSD
Discuss alternative fire service models
Recommendations on governance and
fiscal sustainability
5 Comprehensive Review
Baker Tilly interviewed:
• City Managers
• OCSD General Manager
• FCFA Command Staff
• Firefighter Union leadership
• Former FCFA Board Members
• LAFCO Executive Director
• City Finance Directors
• County Fire Chief
Documents reviewed included:
• JPA agreement and amendments
• Citygate Associates' Special District Fire
Protection Study
• Strategic planning fire study documents
• Budgets and CalPERS actuarial report
• Calls for service/call volume data
• Various FCFA operational documents
• Insurance Services Office (ISO) reports
6 Major Interview Themes
• FCFA personnel take great pride in the service they provide and are passionate about enhancing service levels
• Everyone, which included board members, city management, command staff, and floor personnel all were concerned about funding
• The departure of OCSD is a concern from a fire service delivery perspective and from a funding standpoint
• There is a low level of collaboration on fire operations between FCFA and member agencies
• According to floor personnel, organizational stress has caused low morale • Continued consolidation of fire resources from neighboring agencies makes the most sense rather than having two stand-alone City departments 7 Observations and
Preliminary
Recommendations
8 Overall Observations
• Recent annual financial contributions from participating agencies have not sufficiently financed the total operational costs of the FCFA • The need for an ongoing dedicated revenue stream to fully finance the operational and capital costs of the FCFA is paramount
• Calls for service for the existing service population are consistent with industry standards; however, public service (non-emergent) calls represent 40% of total calls, which is relatively high
• The FCFA faces numerous operational challenges resulting in personnel feeling stressed
• The divestiture or deactivation of OCSD fire service responsibility will not be a simple or quick matter to resolve
9 • NFPA sets standards for fire suppression, emergency medical operations, and special operations through
NFPA 1710
Requires four-person response units with a total of 17 personnel required for structure fires
• FCFA does not meet this standard with its current
deployment model
However, most small and rural agencies do not
10 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standards Observations on the Current Operation
Aside from not meeting NFPA 1710 standards, Baker Tilly also observed:
• Inconsistent staffing levels on all units
• OCSD Engine 3 is only staffed about 33% of the time
• Suppression personnel and battalion chief schedules do not align, creating operational and administrative challenges
• Program management and oversight is delegated to floor personnel • Fire prevention is not supported at an acceptable level • Inadequate resources are devoted to training, especially high-risk/low frequency scenarios
• Communication systems need upgrading (station alert system, phone system, Motorola Radio platform upgrade)
11 Observations on the Current Operation (continued)
• There is a lack of maintenance support from partner agencies for vehicles/apparatus
• There are no replacement funds for apparatus replacement • Departmental policies and procedures are minimal
• Station 3 (Oceano) has many deficiencies (no office space for necessary administrative work and inadequate living quarters)
• There are no separate facilities for female firefighters at any stations • With the loss of OCSD funding and an accompanying reduction in staff, FCFA will not be able to fill Master Mutual Aid requests, resulting in decreased reimbursement revenues
• Given their limited resources and operational challenges, FCFA personnel is to be commended for the services they provide the community 12 Preliminary Operational Recommendations
Conduct a Community Risk Assessment and Standards of Coverage and adjust staffing to meet service area, community risk, and call volume
Hire an additional battalion chief and place all battalion chiefs on shift schedules consistent with floor personnel
Contract for fire marshal and fire inspection services, or fill those positions with FCFA employees Develop an inventory of all mission-critical equipment and apparatus, and establish an asset replacement schedule and fund it
Develop a comprehensive operations policy and procedures manual 13 Preliminary Operational Recommendations (continued)
Restructure the governing board and create a five-person board, two from each city (an elected official and city manager) and one mutually agreed-upon board member; Fire Chief to report to one or both City Manager Assess the feasibility of a parcel tax or Mello-Roos assessment to help finance FCFA operational and capital costs Discuss with CalFire representatives the cost for providing fire prevention and suppression services and/or enter into discussions with City of Pismo Beach representatives to expand the current regional fire authority model Work on resolving and strengthening interagency relationships and collaboration Develop either an agreement to contract-back fire service for the Oceano area or create a fourth amendment to the JPA, thereby allowing OCSD to continue to be part of the FCFA until LAFCO can render a divestiture decision 14 Service Level &
Staffing Analysis
15 Current Fire Suppression and Prevention Operation
The current operation consists
of 26.5 full-time equivalent
employees (FTEs):
• 22 FTEs in a three-company
deployment, with two
three-person companies
and one two-person
company (on "B" shift only)
• 4.5 FTEs in administration/
management including two
battalion chiefs
16 Fire Chief's Recommended Staffing Plans
• Both plans significantly enhance staffing
levels, adding a fourth company (three-person), and augmenting administration, training, and fire prevention staffing:
Plan A adds 22 FTE over the next six years
Plan B adds 24 FTE over the next four years
17 FY22 Act FY23 Bud FY24 Est FY25 Est FY26 Est FY27 Est FY28 Est FY29 Est Plan A $6,771 $6,880 $9,069 $10,034 $11,608 $11,709 $12,316 $15,410 Plan B 6,771 6,880 10,152 10,874 11,904 14,729 15,051 15,591 TOTAL FCFA COST ($ in 000)
Baker Tilly Alternative Staffing Plans
• Baker Tilly developed several staffing plans that
were variations on Plan A, including the following:
A-3 (if OCSD stays) reduce the third company to two
persons, add a battalion chief, fire marshal & part-time inspector (net add of 5 FTE from current, total of 31.5)* A-4 (same as Plan A-3) except contracts for fire marshal and inspection services (net add of 3.5 FTE, total of 30)* A-5 (if OCSD leaves) same as A-4 except delete the third company leaving two three-person companies (net
decrease of 2.5 FTE, total of 24)*
*based on fire chief’s plan to increase clerical to 2 FTE’s in FY 2025 18 Calls for Service Show Moderate Growth
• Average annual
growth in calls
from Arroyo
Grande and Grover
Beach was 3.58%
from 2012 to 2021
Figures from 2022 are not yet audited
19 Comparisons Within the Region
20 1 The FCFA calls for service are from 2021; calls for 2022 have not yet been received. 2 Third station is currently unstaffed.
AgencyPopulation
Area
(SqMi)
Fire
Stations
2022 Calls
for Service
Staffing Model
FCFA w/ OCSD
(Plan A-4)1 38,154
9.6533,957
Two three-person companies and
one two-person squad/engine
FCFA w/o OCSD
(Plan A-5) 1 31,000
8.1523,326Two three-person companies
Pismo Beach8,00013.522,487Two two-person companies
Atascadero30,50026.1323,453Two three-person companies
Lompoc43,80011.6724,201
Two three-person companies
and one two-person rescue squad
Paso Robles31,75918.932 4,290
Three three-person companies
Fiscal
Analysis
21 Key Factors Influencing Fiscal Impact
First, determine if OCSD remains—at least until LAFCO action and transition to new fire service, as this affects staffing needs
Next, determine the future staffing configuration for FCFA, since this is the main cost driver
Cities must meet that cost and maintain an adequate reserve for FCFA (forecast assumes 10% reserve)
Should OCSD remain - determine eligibility for SAFER and FEMA grants (a temporary, not permanent, reduction in the amount paid by cities for adding floor personnel) Update basis for allocating costs between cities
Determine OCSD unfunded liability and equipment/debt contributions upon leaving FCFA (estimates not included in model)
22 Fire Service Comparison Costs
• Compares forecasted FCFA costs
with nearby agencies
• Pismo Beach operates under a
CalFire contract at a lower level
of fire staffing than the other
agencies
Generally is two-person
staffing, but under Amador Plan
one crew is a state asset available
on demand for wildfires, and
when unit is in Pismo Beach its cost
is subsidized by CalFire in exchange
• Paso Robles has higher staffing
level, larger fire prevention staff
23 Higher City Contributions Will Be Required
Even at Lowest Staffing Level
• Chart shows impact if contributions
continue to be held flat
Cost continue to rise
Without OCSD, revenues will drop by $1.1
million
Total revenues reflected by dotted red line
(contributions plus other revenues such
as strike team reimbursements)
Vacancy savings, state reimbursements,
other revenue, and O&M savings are reasons
FCFA has not already run deficits
• Absent new FCFA funding, the
contributions from member agencies
will have to increase to fill the gap
FY 2024 and FY 2025 expense based on Plan
A-5, which is a lower staffing level to reflect
loss of OCSD service area; gap worsens with
other staffing plans
24 Parcel Tax or Mello-Roos Assessment Option
• Parcel tax or a Mello-Roos assessment would provide a dedicated funding source for FCFA, but requires 2/3rds voter approval
Timing of vote is an issue as higher contributions are needed starting FY 2024, and there is a lag time getting onto next property tax bill • Of the 29 statewide parcel tax ballot measures placed on the November 2022 ballot by local agency, 14 were successful (8 renewals and 6 new) • In lieu of obtaining a dedicated funding source, the options would be for each city to (a) find their own additional revenue source(s) or (b) make substantial reductions to their other general fund expenditures Reducing fire service levels or contracting with CalFire could lower FCFA costs and thus the contributions required of the member agencies
25 FCFA Forecast
Based on staffing Plan A-4, two three-person/one two-person companies 26 Staffing increases from current 26.5 FTE to 30 FTE
Grover Beach Forecast
Based on staffing Plan A-4, two three-person/one two-person companies 27 FCFA Forecast
Based on staffing Plan A-5, two three-person companies
28 Staffing decreases from current 26.5 FTE to 24 FTE
Grover Beach Forecast
Based on staffing Plan A-5, two three-person companies
29 Alternative Models
for Consideration
30 • Modify FCFA staffing based on call
volume to include:
Plan A-4 (to cover the Oceano service area):
two three-person companies and one two-person unit, plus a battalion chief and contract for fire marshal and inspection
services
Plan A-5 (to only cover the two cities): two
three-person companies, plus a battalion
chief and contract for fire marshal and
inspection services
• Contract Service Model
• Contract with CalFire
• Regional Consolidation (long-term)
Revised FCFA
Governance
Structure
31 Adjust the FCFA governance structure to a
five-person board consisting of an elected
official and city manager from each City and
one mutually agreed-upon board
member which could consist of either:
a rotating member of the public;
the San Luis Obispo County Fire Chief;
a San Luis Obispo County Administrative
Office representative;
a rotating member of the Board of
Supervisors from Districts 3 and 4; or
consider exploring other member alternatives
• Fire Chief to report to one or both of the
City Managers
In Summary
Operationally -
• Conduct a Community Risk Assessment and Standards of Coverage to determine the appropriate staffing to meet the service area, community risk, and call volume;
• An additional battalion chief is warranted, and place all battalion chiefs on shift schedules to align with floor personnel; • Need to provide more fire prevention/inspection services to the community and increase the training resources for existing personnel; • Develop an asset replacement schedule and sufficiently fund it; and • Expand the governance structure and have the Fire Chief report to one or both of the City Managers.
32 In Summary
Financially –
• Previous financial contributions from participating agencies were not sufficient to cover operational costs;
• There is a need to increase financial contributions from participating agencies regardless of whether OCSD stays in the Authority; • Once a level-of-service has been determined for the OCSD, the cost to contract-back fire services will need to be identified; and • A new ongoing dedicated revenue source to finance the operational and capital costs of the FCFA is needed.
33 Thank you!
Andy Belknap|[email protected]
Rick Haydon|[email protected]
Larry Waterhouse|[email protected]
Bob Leland|[email protected]
Michelle New|[email protected]
Questions
and
Comments
34