TO: PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE AND FROM: Robert Sapien, Jr.
STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE
SUBJECT: FIRE DEPARTMENT SWORN DATE: October 5, 2022
STAFFING LEVELS ANNUAL
REPORT
_________________________________________________________________ Approved Date
____________________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION
Accept the annual report on Fire Department sworn staffing levels for 2021-2022, including filled and vacant position status, the use of relief staffing and overtime to maintain daily staffing levels, and a comparison of San José’s apparatus staffing models to other comparable and surrounding agencies.
BACKGROUND
The San José Fire Department’s (Department) mission is to protect lives, property, and the environment through prevention and response. The Department deploys resources to provide timely and effective response to all community risks including fire, rescue, hazardous materials releases, and emergency medical services (EMS) requests. The Department’s geographical service area is 208.17 square miles including 181.36 square miles within City limits and an additional 26.81 square miles of area serviced by agreement between the Santa Clara Central Fire Protection District and the City of San José (City). The State of California Department of Finance estimates a City population of 976,482
1 as of May 2022. In Fiscal Year 2021-2022, the
Department responded to 103,145 incidents, 8.82% more than the prior year.
Emergency response resources are deployed out of 34 fire stations including 5 Battalion Chiefs, 33 Engine Companies, 9 Truck Companies, 1 Urban Search and Rescue Company (US&R), 3 Rescue-Medic Units (formerly “Squad”), 1 Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) Company, and 1 Paramedic Coordinator.
The Memorandum of Agreement between the City of San José and International Association of Firefighters (IAFF), Local 2302specifies the following staffing levels:
1 https://dof.ca.gov/forecasting/demographics/estimates-e1/ 2 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/40510/637068396204500000 PSFSS COMMITTEE: 10/20/2022
ITEM: (d)3
10/11/2022
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
• Each single piece Engine Company shall have a minimum of four (4) line personnel. • Each three (3) piece Engine Company shall have a minimum of six (6) line personnel. • Each Truck Company or Urban Search and Rescue vehicle shall have a minimum of four (4) line personnel.
• Each Battalion shall have a minimum of one (1) Battalion Chief or person acting in the capacity per shift.
Additionally, the Squad Program Side Letter Agreement Between the City and IAFF Local 2303 specifies that Rescue-Medic Units (Squads) will be staffed with two (2) line personnel.
The resulting daily minimum staffing level for regularly deployed resources is 190 personnel working 24-hour shifts. To maintain the minimum staffing levels, position vacancies are backfilled by either on-duty relief personnel or by off-duty personnel on an overtime basis.
Augmented Staffing Levels/Mutual Aid
The Department continuously monitors conditions and augments staffing levels to meet periodic hazards such as high fire danger periods (i.e. Red Flag Warning), flood potential, large events (i.e. sporting events), and others. During these periods, resources that best meet the forecasted hazard are staffed by relief personnel or on an overtime basis in addition to normal daily staffing.
For example, when high fire danger is predicted, the Duty Chief may require additional personnel to staff wildland firefighting equipment such as Type 3 and/or Type 6 Engines that have four-wheel drive capability, and/or Water Tenders.
When resources are deployed for extended mutual aid assignments throughout the State of California, similar reserve resources are staffed by relief personnel or on an overtime basis to bring local coverage to normal levels. For example, when 22 personnel are deployed to a significant incident as a Strike Team (5 Engines, 1 Strike Team Leader, 1 Strike Team Leader trainee), 5 additional reserve Engines and 2 Battalion Chiefs are placed into service with the equivalent number of personnel to provide standard coverage locally, restoring the daily local staffing minimum to 190 personnel.
Department Staffing
The Department reached its highest staffing levels in Fiscal Year 2007-2008 with 758 authorized sworn positions. In subsequent years, the Department proposed substantial reductions to meet budget reduction targets as the impacts of the Great Recession challenged City resources. The Fiscal Year 2010-2011 Adopted Operating Budget4eliminated 75 sworn positions resulting in the closure of Fire Engine 30, Fire Engine 33, Fire Engine 34, Fire Engine 35, Truck 3, and reduced the Hazardous Incident Team (HIT 29) from four to two personnel. Fiscal Year 2011- 2012 Adopted Operating Budget5action resulted in the elimination of 28 sworn positions 3 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/40520/637068396235430000 4 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/50625/637152074933900000 5 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/50645/637152094524730000
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
achieved by the reduction of Truck and US&R company daily staffing from 5 to 4 and Truck Company minimum staffing was reduced from 5 to 4 in the IAFF Local 230 Memorandum of Agreement. In that same year, the 6 remaining positions on the HIT 29 were eliminated and hazardous materials response was transferred to Truck 29. While many Department resources have been restored, Truck 3 and Engine 33 remain out of service indefinitely and Truck 29 is placed out of service when HIT 29 is committed to a hazardous materials response. The 2020- 2021 Adopted Operating Budget authorized 707 sworn positions and the 2021-2022 Adopted Operating Budget authorized 719 sworn positions, which includes 14 new positions for Fire Station 37 and the elimination of a Battalion Chief and a Fire Captain position (incumbents were placed in vacant frontline positions) that were replaced with civilian positions. 2016 Fire Department Organizational Review
The Department first presented its City Council-directed Fire Department Organizational Review to the Public Safety, Finance and Strategic Support Committee (PSFSS) on February 18, 20166.
The Organizational Review, conducted by Citygate Associates, LLC, included a community risk assessment and a Standards of Response Coverage (SOC) assessment that analyzed Department fire crew deployment. The SOC evaluated a variety of factors including response time performance, effective firefighting force (resources) assembly time, call volume, and others. The recommendations contained in Organizational Review have since guided the Department’s Strategic Business Plan goals and objectives and recommendations to City Council. On August 10, 2018, Council voted to place the Disaster Preparedness, Public Safety, and Infrastructure Bond Measure on the November 2018 ballot. The passage of Measure T enabled the City to address some of the gaps identified in the Fire Department Organizational Review SOC analysis including the construction of new Fire Stations 32, 36, and 37. 42 sworn positions will be required to staff newly deployed Fire Engines 32, 36, and 37 (12 front-line and 2 relief positions per fire station).
6 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/18961/636683753806870000
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
Current Authorized Sworn Positions
The 2022-2023 Proposed Department Operating Budget7authorizes 720 sworn positions.
Authorized full-time sworn positions by classification are shown in Table 1 below.
Table 1: Authorized Full-Time Sworn Positions
Sworn Position (Rank) Authorized
Positions
Fire Chief 1
Assistant Fire Chief 1
Deputy Fire Chief 4
Battalion Chief 21
Fire Captain 175
Arson Investigator 4
Fire Prevention Inspector 13
Fire Engineer 234
Firefighter 267
Total 720
Six of the authorized sworn positions are senior management classifications including Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief, and Deputy Fire Chiefs. 30 sworn positions are assigned to 40-hour administrative staff roles. One Arson Investigator is on-duty daily on a 24-hour schedule across three shifts. A fourth Arson Investigator position was authorized in the 2022-2023 Proposed Operating Budget to address absences or temporary vacancies for the Arson Unit. The remaining 680 authorized positions are assigned to 24-hour shift field assignments, approximately 226 per shift (A, B, C) to cover the daily 190 personnel minimum staffing level. Daily vacancies are filled by unassigned on-duty personnel (relief) or by off-duty personnel on an overtime basis.
Actual staffing levels fluctuate due to attrition and timing of Fire Fighter Recruit academies. As of June 30, 2022, actual staffing (filled positions) was 677 personnel. The next Fire Fighter Recruit Academy of 9 recruits began on September 6, 2022.
ANALYSIS
Filled and Vacant Position Status
The Department maintains ongoing recruitment processes to keep pace with vacancies in sworn ranks which occur due to retirements, separations from employment, or added budgeted positions. Promotions to sworn ranks below Deputy Fire Chief are filled internally, and new sworn employees are onboarded at the Firefighter Recruit level. Firefighter Recruits must hold either Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certification or Paramedic licensure at the time of hire. The Department generally conducts one or two 25-person Firefighter Recruit Academies per year. From Fiscal Year 2018-2019 to Fiscal Year 2021-2022, the Department averaged 33 7 https://www.sanjoseca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/85356/637872546793930000
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
sworn employee separations annually, approximately 4.5% per year. The average sworn vacancy rate over that period was 4.96%. Actual Department separations and hiring experience for Fiscal Years 2018-2019 to 2021-2022 are provided in Table 2 below.
Table 2: Separations and Hiring Experience Fiscal Year 2018-2019 to Fiscal Year 2021-2022 Fiscal
Year
Retirements
(Service and
Disability)
Other
Separations
Total
Separations
Total
Hires
Actual
Staffing as
of 6/30/22
Authorized
Positions
2018-2019 21 6 27 50 690 710
2019-2020 19 6 25 22 689 711
2020-2021 27 3 30 24 681 707
2021-2022 36 15 51 47 677 719
Maintaining Minimum Staffing Levels
On a daily basis, absences and vacancies in field positions are backfilled with on-duty relief personnel and/or off-duty personnel who are called in on overtime to meet minimum staffing requirements. The total absence and vacancy rate of 28.2% in 2021-2022 required 559,553 hours of backfill.
Table 3: Fiscal Year 2021-2022 Absence, Vacancy, and Backfill Hours Rank Total Hours Absence
Hours
Vacancy
Hours
Hours
Requiring
Backfill
Battalion Chief 52,416 11,089 4,032 15,121
Fire Captain 474,656 121,651 27,440 149,091
Fire Engineer 681,408 170,077 61,488 231,565
Firefighter 774,592 117,185 46,592 163,777
Total 1,983,072 420,001 139,552 559,553
The Department’s relief staffing model estimates the number of relief positions needed to backfill absences and vacancies. The baseline is the lowest number of absence and vacancy hours used by the personnel in each rank in any Fiscal Year 2021-2022 pay period. Once the baseline is established based on the actual absence and vacancy data, it can then be determined, by rank, how many relief positions should be staffed. The Fiscal Year 2021-2022 baseline hours (lowest absence and vacancy hours that occurred in any pay period) excluding Battalion Chief positions8are as follows:
• Fire Captain = 4,180 hours (in 2017-2018 = 495 hours) • Fire Engineer = 7,217 hours (in 2017-2018 = 3,411 hours) • Firefighter = 4,557 hours (in 2017-2018 = 4,375 hours) 8 Battalion Chief positions are excluded from baseline analysis due to the limited number of duty positions (15 for 3 shifts).
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
To determine baseline hours by rank, five years of data by rank on absence and vacancy hours are used to smooth out potential anomalies in any given year. Utilizing this methodology, a comparison of the vacancy/absence average baseline hours and coverage hours by relief positions is presented in the following table.
Table 4: Average Five-Year Baseline Data and Relief Personnel (Hours) Fiscal Year 2017-2018 through Fiscal Year 2021-2022
Rank
Average
Absence and
Vacancy Hours
Baseline
Coverage
Hours by
Relief Positions
Coverage Hours
by Relief
(shortfall)/
surplus
Relief Positions
Needed to Cover
Average Baseline
Absence and
Vacancy
Fire Captain 2,854 3,136 282 2.5 FTE available
Fire Engineer 4,734 4,032 (702) 6.3 FTE needed
Firefighter 3,885 4,928 1,043 9.3 FTE available
Total 11,473 11,984 623 5.6 FTE available
As reflected in Table 4, the number of relief positions for the Fire Captain and Firefighter positions is adequate to meet the daily minimum staffing level. However, the Fire Engineer position falls short by roughly 6.3 full-time equivalents (FTEs) (702 hours). It is important to note that this methodology guides the Department in determining the appropriate number of budgeted relief positions to maintain; it does not serve to predict the number of hours that will need to be backfilled on an overtime basis. The Fiscal Year 2014-2015 Adopted Operating Budget added 12 Fire Engineer positions and deleted 12 Firefighter positions to improve relief staffing levels. In Fiscal Year 2015-2016, 26 sworn positions were added to restore Fire Engine 30 and Fire Engine 34, which were previously eliminated in the Fiscal Year 2010-2011 Adopted Operating Budget. The 26 added positions included 11 Fire Captains, 14 Firefighter, and only 4 Fire Engineers. The Department will seek to realign relief staffing levels through the budget process in Fiscal Year 2022-2023.
In Fiscal Year 2021-2022, year-end overtime expenditures were $31,611,627, $7,336,336 of which was reimbursed by the State of California through the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services for mutual aid resources provided by the Department. Total absence hours in 2021-2022 increased by approximately 9.6% to 420,001, largely attributable to vacation and disability leave.
In Fiscal Year 2021-2022, the combined absence and vacancy rates were 28.2%, requiring 559,553 hours of backfill9covered by a combination of available relief staffing and overtime.
Santa Clara County Fire Company Staffing Models (Fiscal Year 2021-2022) The Department cooperates with other Santa Clara County fire agencies to provide resources when and where they are most needed through local mutual aid and automatic aid agreements.
While apparatus types are standardized, each agency is unique relative to how many resources they deploy and how they are staffed. Tables 5-8 below provide individual Santa Clara County 9 In 2020-2021, combined impact of absences and vacancy hours required 459,903 hours of backfill.
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
fire agency resource deployment and staffing relative to population, square miles protected, fire stations to population ratios, and fire company staffing levels. Areas protected by CalFire including state responsibility areas, the City of Morgan Hill, and South Santa Clara County Fire Protection District are excluded.
Table 5: Santa Clara County Fire Agencies Staffing to Population (Fiscal Year 2021-2022) 10 Fire Agency Population
Served Sworn Personnel Staffing to Population
San José* 976,482 720 0.73 per 1,000
Santa Clara County 225,000 251 1.11 per 1,000
Sunnyvale DPS** 156,234 81 .52 per 1,000
Santa Clara 130,127 137 1.05 per 1,000
Mountain View 83,864 70 .83 per 1000
Milpitas 80,839 72 .87 per 1000
Palo Alto 67,473 91 1.3 per 1000
Gilroy 59,269 42 .70 per 1000
*Excludes population within 26.81 square miles of Santa Clara County Zone 1 Contract coverage area. **Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety provides both law enforcement and fire protection.
Table 6: Santa Clara County Fire Agencies Square Miles Per Fire Station (Fiscal Year 2021-2022)
Fire Agency Square Miles Fire Stations Square Miles per Fire Station
San José 235* 34 6.9
Santa Clara County 132 15 8.8
Sunnyvale DPS 24 6 4
City of Santa Clara 20 10 2.0
Mountain View 12 5 2.4
Milpitas 14 4 3.5
Palo Alto 52 7 7.4
Gilroy 16 4 4
*Includes 26.81 square miles of Santa Clara County Zone 1 Contract coverage area. 10 https://dof.ca.gov/forecasting/demographics/estimates-e1/
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
Table 7: Santa Clara County Fire Agencies Fire Stations to Population Ratio (Fiscal Year 2021-2022)
Fire Agency Population Fire Stations Fire Stations to
Population
San José 976,482* 34 28,720
Santa Clara County 225,000 15 15,000
Sunnyvale DPS* 156,234 6 26,039
Santa Clara 130,127 10 13,013
Mountain View 83,864 5 16,773
Milpitas 80,839 4 20,210
Palo Alto 67,473 7 9,639
Gilroy 59,269 4 14,817
*Excludes population within 26.81 square miles of Santa Clara County Zone 1 Contract coverage area.
Table 8: Santa Clara County Fire Agencies Fire Company Staffing (Fiscal Year 2021-2022)
Fire Agency Engine Staffing Truck Staffing Daily Staffing San José 4 4 186
Santa Clara County 3 4 66
Sunnyvale DPS 2 2 26
City of Santa Clara 3 4 36
Mountain View 3 3 21
Milpitas 3 4 21
Palo Alto 3 3 24
Gilroy 3 3 9
On February 18, 2016, the PSFSS Committee requested that the Department evaluate conducting a pilot study for three-person staffing on Fire Engine Companies. The Three-Person Staffing Pilot11 was not recommended by the Department. The Fire Department Organizational Review evaluated company staffing and determined that changes were not advisable. The Review’s analysis was based on several factors including existing deployment levels, response times, risk assessment, applicable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) law, and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) information.
National Staffing Levels
According to a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) U.S. Fire Department Profile 2019 (published December 2021), from 1986 to 2019 the rates of career firefighters per 1,000 people have remained in the range of 1.54 to 1.81 in mostly-career or all-career departments12. 11 http://sanjose.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?meta_id=562289 12 https://www.nfpa.org/-/media/Files/News-and-Research/Fire-statistics-and-reports/Emergency-responders/osfdprofile.pdf
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
Amongst cities with populations of 800,000 or greater, all but one provides 4 or more personnel per Engine Company. In that same group, staffing to population ratios range from 0.69 to 1.88 per 1,000 residents in Fiscal Year 2021-2022. San José and San Diego ranked lowest at slightly over 0.70 per 1,000 residents. Philadelphia and New York City ranked highest at 1.88 and 1.80 respectively. NFPA 1710 5.2.3 requires that engine companies be staffed with a minimum of four on-duty personnel13. 16 of the 17 most populous U.S. cities meet this requirement. Table 8 below details the 17 most populous U.S. cities.
Table 9: Staffing to Population is Largest U.S. Cities (Population >800,000)14 Rank City/Town (Engine Company
Staffing)
Estimated
Population
Sworn/Responders
(Budgeted)
Staffing to
Population
1 New York, New York (5/4) 8,467,513 15,252 1.80
2 Los Angeles, California (4) 3,849,297 3,510 0.91
3 Chicago, Illinois (5) 2,696,555 4,766 1.77
4 Houston, Texas (4) 2,288,250 3,648 1.59
5 Phoenix, Arizona (3) 1,624,569 1,671 1.03
6 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (4) 1,576,251 2,960 1.88
7 San Antonio, Texas (4) 1,451,853 1,781 1.23
8 San Diego, California (4) 1,381,611 996 0.72
9 Dallas, Texas (4) 1,288,457 2,305 1.79
10 San Jose, California (4) 976,482 720 0.73
11 Austin, Texas (4) 964,177 1,266 1.31
12 Jacksonville, Florida (4) 954,614 1,690 1.77
13 Fort Worth, Texas (4) 935,508 963 1.03
14 Columbus, Ohio (4) 906,528 1,582 1.75
15 Indianapolis, Indiana (4) 882,039 1,249 1.42
16 Charlotte, North Carolina (5/4) 879,709 1,104 1.25
17 San Francisco, California (4) 815,201 1,395 1.71
Span of Control
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1561(2020 Edition): Standard on Emergency Services Incident Management System and Command Safety states that “an effective span of control shall be determined by the ability of each supervisory position to monitor the activities of assigned subordinates and to communicate effectively with them.” NPFA fire officer instructional texts define the span of control as “the maximum number of personnel or activities that can be effectively controlled by one individual (usually three to seven).” The Department 13 https://www.nfpa.org/~/media/Files/Code%20or%20topic%20fact%20sheets/NFPA_1710_Fact_Sheet.pdf 14 City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021 (census.gov)
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
maintains a 3 to 1 span of control on Engine and Truck companies with a Fire Captain (company officer) assigned to each deployed resource. Five Battalion Chiefs supervise 43 company officers with a span of control of 8-10 as indicated in table 9 below.
Table 10: Current Battalion Chief/Company Officer Span of Control Battalion 1 Battalion 2 Battalion 5 Battalion 10 Battalion 13 Company
Officers 8 9 8 8 10
In 2018, San José voters passed Measure T: Disaster Preparedness, Public Safety, and Infrastructure Bond which will enable the construction of new Fire Stations 32, 36, and 37. The addition of Engine 32, Engine 36, and Engine 37 will stretch the Battalion Chief span of control further beyond the 3 to 7 range to approximately 9.2 to 1. The Department is evaluating the addition of a sixth battalion to improve the Battalion Chief/company officer span of control to 8 to 1.
Arson Unit Staffing
The Arson Unit is the sole law enforcement division within the Department and is staffed with 4 Arson Investigators and 1 Fire Captain (supervisor). Arson Investigators are assigned to 24-hour shifts (A, B, C) to maintain around-the-clock response availability and the Arson Fire Captain is assigned to a 40-hour work week. To ensure 24-hour availability for investigation and prosecution of arson crimes, the 2022-2023 Proposed Operating Budget added 1 additional Arson Investigator to address absences and vacancies.
EMT Certification and Paramedic Licensure
To deliver advanced life support services on all response resources, the Department maintains 94 EMTs and 173 paramedics in the Firefighter rank. At the end of Fiscal Year 2021-2022, there were 56 Firefighter/paramedic vacancies. Firefighter Recruit EMT applicants far exceed paramedic applicants, and the Department is hearing of Firefighter/paramedic recruitment challenges across the state from other fire agencies. Shelter-in-place orders across the state slowed paramedic development as both classroom, clinical instruction, and internships were temporarily halted by many paramedic schools. Presently, the Department is evaluating recruitment and internal staffing options to increase the number of available paramedics to reduce mandatory overtime assignments.
CONCLUSION
The Department deploys resources to provide timely and effective response to all community risks including fire, rescue, hazardous materials, and emergency medical services (EMS). As the City’s emergency response demands and physical environment evolves, the Department must evaluate and adjust resource and staffing levels to maintain its effectiveness. In the short term, the Department’s top priority is to address paramedic recruitment challenges and to continue
PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE, AND STRATEGIC SUPPORT COMMITTEE October 5, 2022
Subject: Fire Department Sworn Staffing Levels Annual Report
recruitment, hiring, and training efforts to keep pace with retirement attrition and the addition of Fire Stations 32 and 36.
EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
The Department evaluates recruitment and hiring needs on an ongoing basis. Information provided in this report will be revised and reported to the PSFSS Committee annually.
COORDINATION
This memorandum was coordinated with the City Attorney’s Office and the City Manager’s Budget Office.
ROBERT SAPIEN, JR.
Fire Chief, Fire Department
For questions, please contact Robert Sapien, Jr., Fire Chief at (408) 794-6952.