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CC 2019-02-26_10a Direction Related to Fire ServicesMEMORANDUM TO: CITY COUNCIL FROM: JAMES A. BERGMAN, CITY MANAGER SUBJECT: PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE DATE: FEBRUARY 26, 2019 SUMMARY OF ACTION: The City Council will receive an update about ongoing funding negotiations regarding participation in the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA). This report highlights structural funding issues beyond the control of the participating communities. After a sustained effort to work to solve these funding issues and due to projected significant budget impacts, the City Manager recommends departure from participating in the current Five Cities Fire Authority. IMPACT ON FINANCIAL AND PERSONNEL RESOURCES: Five policy options are presented. All have varying impacts to the budget and personnel resources as detailed in the report. The recommended alternative, depending on the action of other potential partners, can result in significant savings to the General Fund but will also require the demotion of experienced personnel. RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended the City Council direct the City Manager to: 1.Not agree to the new formula, which will lead to the dissolution of the Five Cities Fire Authority on December 31, 2019; 2.Establish a fully staffed in-house City Fire Department no later than January 1, 2020 but preferably earlier in fiscal year 2019-20; 3.Continue to work with any willing communities to establish a partnership that will avoid duplication of personnel and specialized equipment in order to achieve cost savings compared to an in-house fire department; and 4.Consider outreach efforts with the County of San Luis Obispo to discuss funding options for the Oceano Community Services District. Item 10.a. - Page 1 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 2 BACKGROUND: California Government Code Section 38611 requires that the legislative body of a general law city establish a fire department. In doing so, wide discretion is given to the legislative body to establish service levels within each City. As such there is wide variation in level of services provided in Cities across California related to staffing requirements, apparatus inventory, equipment choice, and the number and location of stations (See Attachment 1 for basic service levels for local communities). Due to this framework, when setting fire service policy, a legislative body should have active input from the public at large, firefighting professionals, and others who are interested and knowledgeable. Currently the City of Arroyo Grande provides fire service as a member of the Five Cities Fire Authority. The Five Cities Fire Authority was formed June 7, 2010 based upon a Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement (JPA) entered into by the cities of Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach, and the Oceano Community Services District (OCSD). The purpose of the JPA is stated as “allowing the Jurisdictions to share a combined fire department in order to provide an efficient and economical fire protection service.” A large component of efficient and economical fire protection services is the avoidance of duplication of executive, command, and administrative personnel as well as specialized equipment such as ladder trucks, and other routine operating expenditures. Today, the FCFA is a consolidation of three individual fire departments, operating out of the three existing member community fire stations and has been successful in its efforts. A five-year Strategic Plan was developed by staff of the FCFA and ultimately adopted by the FCFA Board of Directors in 2017. The plan was established to identify needed investment in order to sustainably and professionally serve the communities by providing incident response, fire prevention and disaster preparedness, along with replacement funding for emergency response vehicles and capital equipment. An important and prioritized component of the Strategic Plan is to transition from Reserve Firefighters to Career Firefighters in order to provide consistent service levels by resolving recruitment and retention issues and related costs with this part-time employee pool (Attachment 2). The current fiscal year FCFA budget provided for the initial transition to Career Firefighters who are currently assigned to the Arroyo Grande fire station. The projected Fiscal Year 2019/2020 FCFA budget includes funding to continue this transition at the Grover Beach fire station and finally the Oceano Station in the following year. This firefighter personnel transition alone will create a base budget increase of over $1,300,000 annually when completed. This needed investment identified by the FCFA Board has created budget concerns due to increased funding required. Item 10.a. - Page 2 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 3 Figure 1. Cost (actual and projected) for implementing Phase 1 of the Strategic Plan using the current funding formula. Due to both a desire to reevaluate the JPA provisions and the Strategic Plan’s significantly increased investment in the FCFA, the member communities approved a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) amending the FCFA JPA in May 2018 in order to create time to reassess major components of the JPA. This agreement has clearly identified deadlines related to the negotiation process. Section 3 of the MOA states, During Fiscal Year 2018/2019, the Parties shall act in good faith to meet and confer for the purpose of considering amendments to the JPA including, but not limited to, modifications to the funding formula contained in Exhibit B of the JPA Agreement (“Funding Formula”), the provisions regarding member withdrawal, and future staffing levels beyond Fiscal Year 2018/2019, so that the JPA may be amended to meet the needs of each of the Parties. If the Parties cannot agree upon amendments and a restructured JPA by April 1, 2019, then any member agency may withdraw pursuant to the terms of this Amendment. If the Parties cannot agree upon amendments and a restructured JPA by April 1, 2019, then any member agency may withdraw pursuant to the terms of the Amendment. Notwithstanding the potential withdrawal of a member agency, if the remaining Parties cannot agree upon amendments and a restructured JPA by April 1, 2019, the JPA shall be terminated as of December 31, 2019 and assets and liabilities shall be distributed by and among the Parties pursuant to Sections 4 and 5 below. $0 $500,000 $1,000,000 $1,500,000 $2,000,000 $2,500,000 $3,000,000 $3,500,000 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Strategic Plan Cost Allocation Using the Current Funding Formula City of Arroyo Grande City of Grover Beach Oceano CSD Actual Projected Item 10.a. - Page 3 + t-i t-+ t-i CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 4 Section 6 of the MOA allows for a potential six-month extension “upon mutual agreement of the City Manager of Grover Beach, the City Manager of Arroyo Grande, and the General Manager of the Oceano CSD…” This period of time would provide an opportunity to address other potential revisions to the JPA Agreement. Since the execution of the MOA, the managers of the three communities have met regularly with the Fire Chief and Treasurer to conduct the good faith negotiations as required by the document focusing only on the funding formula due to its complexity and short time available. The results of these meetings has been a better understanding of each community’s needs and concerns. These meetings clearly showed an important fact that severely limited the range of potential outcomes of the negotiations - through no fault of their own, that the OCSD does not have easy access to additional funds. A second constraint advocated for was the acknowledgement of the cost of any agency providing independent and comparable fire services (approximately $2,600,000) in order to ensure cost savings of the partnership (see Attachment 3 for context information). This follows staff’s rationale used in Council’s consideration in joining the JPA in 2010 (Attachment 4). With these constrained facts, the managers developed a conceptual funding formula that would ultimately decrease Arroyo Grande’s contribution by 3.3%, decrease Grover Beach’s contribution by 0.7% and increase Oceano’s contribution by 4.0%. This was achieved by eliminating the Assessed Value component of the current formula and redistributing weighting factors to population, calls for service and station levels. The change in funding is shown below: The graph below indicates past and future funding by each jurisdiction according to the current funding formula (solid lines) and projected funding under the new proposed funding formula (dashed lines). Community Current Funding Conceptual Funding Arroyo Grande 47% 44% Grover Beach 34% 33% Oceano 19% 23% Item 10.a. - Page 4 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 5 Figure 2 – Contributions for Each Community – Current Funding Formula vs. Conceptual New Formula Achieving this conceptual formula is dependent upon two factors: 1. Property owners of Oceano approving a parcel tax increase of approximately $150 per year. (This figure was the maximum amount assumed to be potentially approved by the voters of Oceano as estimated by the OCSD manager); and 2. A delay in implementing the Strategic Plan until after the election of March 2020. At this time, staff has reservations related to the success of a parcel tax measure for two reasons. First, a successful parcel tax assessment requires approval by 2/3rds of the voters. At this time there has been no polling of eligible voters within the OCSD boundaries. The OCSD is investigating the possibility of a 50 percent requirement based upon a recent court decision but legal opinions differ. Second, if the Parcel Assessment fails, there is no identified alternative. This situation would delay Arroyo Grande from seeking other options for 12 months until the election results are known. ANALYSIS OF ISSUES: Beginning Notes: 1. Staff agrees that all three communities are better sharing and participating in a full Five Cities Fire Authority. This arrangement would foster cohesion in all communities, provide seamless response and training and maximize cost savings from elimination of duplicate staffing and specialized equipment. Item 10.a. - Page 5 Contributions for Each Communit y -Current Funding Formula vs. Concept ual New Formula $3,500,000 ------------------------------------------------------ S3,000.000 $2,500.000 $2,000,000 $1,500.000 Sl,000,000 $500,000 so 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 .. _______ ........... , ... -... -------.. -- .... -------♦-------.. .,.,,, .......... "" 2020 2021 2022 2023 -c•y ofAlroyoGrande -ciry ofGrovl!f8each -0ceanoCSD _,..__Cay ofAlr<Y'(OGraOOeNewformula ---ciryofGrover Beach New Formula ---OCSDNewfonnula 2024 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 6 2. Staff also acknowledges that shorter response times and the more responders on a scene, the better. 3. Staff also acknowledges that there are multiple components of response times including alarm transfer time, alarm answering time, alarm processing time, turnout time, travel time, and initiating Action/Intervention time. All feasible efforts to reduce all of these components should be undertaken when possible and cost effective. Staff assumes that the General Plan statements about response times were focused on travel time only (Attachment 5). 4. Response time maps are general and can vary depending on the attributes used to develop the maps (presented maps only use distance and speed limits). Staff recommends using response time maps to paint a general picture of how each option might meet the stated policy objectives. 5. Cost is an important factor for all. Acknowledgment of the true costs for fire protection and the responsibility by each community to pay this cost is central to the current situation. 6. A major contributing factor to this discussion as explained in the Districts Fire Protection Study For County of San Luis Obispo (Attachment 6) is the ongoing issue of Community Services Districts who “are unable to properly fund fire services due to inadequate revenue, community growth, greater expectations for fire service delivery, reduction in volunteerism and cost of full-time firefighting staff have combined to create funding problems for special districts providing fire protection in San Luis Obispo County and throughout California.” One of the many important findings of the report states: “The increase in the cost from staffing with all volunteers compared to paid/career staff is approximately $1.3 million annually. A fire chief and station operation costs are in addition to engine staffing.” This is important because the first phase of the Strategic Plan in essence requires costs associated from transitioning from reserve firefighters to paid/career firefighters and the OCSD currently receives $987,362 in property tax revenue of which 97 percent is used for fire operations. This $300,000 gap plus the costs associated with executive personnel and operations costs, was and is the significant factor in establishing any funding formula with the OCSD. Solutions to this funding issue include increased property tax assessments, or assistance from the County Board of Supervisors either through altering the formula for property tax distribution to the OCSD or through divestiture of fire service responsibilities by the OCSD to the County of San Luis Obispo through the LAFCO process. With this said, it is staff’s opinion that the best possible solution to fire service in the Five Cities area is for a recognition of the true costs to provide fire service for the OCSD, support of a parcel tax by property owners in Oceano, revised property tax distribution to the OCSD by the County of San Luis Obispo, and partnership between the OCSD and the Cities of Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach through the Five Cities Fire Authority. At the time of publication, two of the three solutions do not appear possible but staff hopes a larger conversation will develop. However, staff feels compelled to recognize the impact of increasing costs to the budget and Item 10.a. - Page 6 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 7 established Council priorities and feels it is imperative to move to a more cost effective approach in the short term. In order to assist in fostering a conversation with the County of San Luis Obispo, the Council could consider giving direction to utilize the six month extension in the MOA to coordinate meetings between members of the Board of Supervisors, County Staff and elected and staff representatives from the three communities. Consideration of this action should include a weighing of the delay Arroyo Grande would incur in seeking other options. Analysis This analysis utilizes common aspects of creating sound public policy by clearly defining the problem, defining goals to be achieved, and identifying and analyzing policy options for consideration. Problem Definition According to data provided by the FCFA, over the last 3 years Arroyo Grande generated an average of 1,845 calls per year or just over 5 calls per day. On average, ten percent (191) of these calls were dispatched as multi-company responses. On average, eight percent (155 calls) of the time during the year, there were two or more calls occurring at the same time in the City. A general distribution of call types are: These numbers do not fully indicate the importance or the full operational effects and benefits of an efficient and effective fire service to this community. However these numbers help to understand the importance of station location as well as adequate staffing to ensure enough resources on scene. The FCFA continues to operate under a “Boundary Drop” policy which was established early in the consolidation process before the establishment of the FCFA. Boundary drops assure that the closest appropriate engine company is dispatched to the call no matter where the incident or what community the engine is stationed. Due to the proximity of the Oceano and Grover Beach stations to the western area of Arroyo Grande, on average Oceano responds to 341 calls per year and Grover Beach 271 times per year. The operational policy of Boundary Drops reduces response times from a 6 minute zone to a 4 minute zone (see response time maps in this report) for 1/3 of the calls into Arroyo Grande. Fires 2.5% Emergency Medical  Services 61.8% Hazardous  Conditions 3.5% Service and Good Intent 27.3% False  Alarms 4.1% Other 0.8% Call Types  and Prevalence  Item 10.a. - Page 7 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 8 The development, adoption, and recommended implementation of the FCFA strategic plan created a budget impasse that required a MOA to be developed to allow time for staff from all three participating communities to review the funding formula and other major aspects of the JPA and give partners who are unable or unwilling to participate an exit path from the FCFA on fair terms and without penalty. The Strategic Plan is a rational guide for establishing an effective fire service in the Five Cities area however key issues for consideration by the City are:  Does the plan meet the current needs of the City of Arroyo Grande?  How much will the plan cost and how will funding affect achieving other policy priorities?  What are other options available to solve the policy problem? Goals to be Achieved Current adopted City guidance policy is found in the General Plan: Policy S3-3 Readiness and Response Maintain and improve the Fire Department’s ability to respond to emergency calls and suppress fires throughout the City within a maximum response time of six (6) minutes. Implementation Measures: Program S3-3.1 Prepare and work to achieve a maximum of six (6) minutes response time goal. This maximum response time will be based upon density of development, and the value at risk contrasted with an acceptable level of risk. More concentrated urban uses should be within four (4) minutes response time. Standard S3-3.2 Train staff and volunteer fire fighters to a level appropriate to their position and responsibilities; provide emergency medical care training and job-required specialized training; maintain and enhance training materials and instruction techniques; and provide educational incentives for all personnel. On March 13, 2018, the City Council reaffirmed the General Plan policy of response times and added a desire for a minimum base staffing to consist of a three person Engine Company (Captain, Engineer, and Firefighter) of fully paid and benefitted personnel (Attachment 7). Options to Meet General Plan Policies and Analysis Staff has identified the following options for consideration.  Option #1 - Continue to participate in the FCFA with the current funding formula Item 10.a. - Page 8 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 9  Option #2 - Continue to participate in the FCFA with the proposed modified funding formula  Option #3 - If agreement between partner agencies cannot be reached, re- establish an in-house fire department and establish mutual and automatic aid agreements.  Option #4 - If agreement between partner agencies cannot be reached, re- establish the Five Cities Fire Authority with Grover Beach (if they are willing)  Option #5 - If agreement between partner agencies cannot be reached, obtain an outside agency to provide fire service Option #1 - Continue to participate in the FCFA with the current funding formula Benefits – Meets General Plan policies (see FCFA Response Time Map of Attachment 5). Continues regional efficiency benefits to all participating communities and the operational policy of boundary drops, thereby shortening response times into a portion of Arroyo Grande from the Grover Beach Station (average of 271 calls per year) and the Oceano Station (average of 341 calls per year). Drawbacks – Cost will increase significantly [$250,000 (FY 2019-20), $368,000 (FY 2020-21), $577,000 (FY 2021-22), $679,000 (FY 2022-23)], which will require substantial budget adjustments. Recommendation - Due to extreme cost, staff does not consider this a viable option. Option # 2 - Continue to participate in the FCFA with the proposed modified funding formula Benefits – Meets General Plan policies (see FCFA Response Time Map of Attachment 5). Continues regional efficiency benefits to all participating communities and the operational policy of boundary drops, thereby shortening response times into a portion of Arroyo Grande from the Grover Beach Station (average of 271 calls per year) and the Oceano Station (average of 341 calls per year). Drawbacks – Cost will increase substantially [$103,950 (FY 2019-20), $129,952 (FY 2020-21), $321,083 (FY 2021-22), $414,117 (FY 2022-23)] and will continue into the future, which will require significant budget adjustments that will likely include layoffs in other departments, reductions in service levels, reduction in capital improvement budgets, or reduction of reserves or a combination of some Item 10.a. - Page 9 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 10 or all. At this time there is uncertainty of success of a parcel tax measure. A successful parcel tax assessment will require a 2/3rds voter majority in the OCSD service area. OCSD is investigating the possibility of a 50 percent requirement based upon a recent court decision. At this time there has been no polling of eligible voters within the OCSD boundaries. Recommendation - Staff considers this a viable but not preferred option. Option # 3 - Re-establish an in-house fire department and establish automatic aid agreements. Benefits – Meets General Plan policies although not optimally (see FCFA Station 1 Response Time Map of Attachment 5). Stops the trend of rising funding cost and keeps rising costs comparable to cost of living increases. Funding changes of [savings of $72,280 (FY 2019-20), savings of $43,571 (FY 2020-21), increase of $67,996 (FY 2021-22), increase of $142,419 (FY 2022-23)], which will not require substantial budget adjustments to fund. Drawbacks – Discontinuation of regional efficiency benefits to all participating communities through the FCFA and the operational policy of boundary drops, thereby lengthening response times into a portion of Arroyo Grande from the Grover Beach Station (average of 271 calls per year) and the Oceano Station (average of 341 calls per year). These efficiencies can be continued outside the FCFA if the communities desire through automatic aid agreements, however the likelihood of establishing these agreements is unknown. The effort to separate the assets of the FCFA will require much of the City Manager’s time as well as billable hours to the City Attorney. Recommendation - Staff considers this a viable and the second preferred option. Staff believes that this choice should be made first with parallel efforts to achieve a Five Cities Fire Authority with Grover Beach (Option #4) Option # 4 - Re-establish the Five Cities Fire Authority with Grover Beach (if they are willing) Benefits – Meets General Plan policies although not optimally (see FCFA Station 1 and 2 Response Time Maps of Attachment 5). Stops the trend of rising funding costs and keeps rising costs comparable to cost of living increases. Continues the operational policy of boundary drops, thereby lengthening response times into a portion of Arroyo Grande from the Grover Beach Station (average of 271 calls per year). Substantial and long-term yearly cost savings every year into the future and then cost increase estimated to be comparable to cost of living increases. Item 10.a. - Page 10 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 11 These savings will return to the General Fund and can be reinvested into the community for any uses as seen fit by the City Council including but not limited to open space fuel management, reducing unfunded pension liabilities, and reducing unfunded infrastructure maintenance. Drawbacks - Elimination of the operational policy of boundary drops, thereby lengthening response times into a portion of Arroyo Grande from the Oceano Station on average of 341 calls per year (19% of 1,844 calls). The effort to separate the assets of the FCFA will require much of the City Manager’s time as well as billable hours to the City Attorney. Additionally, the FCFA Fire Chief has added: 1. A reduction in current staffing levels (as the number of incidents increases), will have an impact to the community including longer response times, ability to manage simultaneous and multi-company responses, and a change to a defensive posture for fire attack due to staffing levels and OSHA requirements. 2. This model assumes that the next three career firefighters are hired for the Grover Beach station (currently scheduled for July 2019); so three full time staff at each of the two stations each day. Drawbacks of a two station model Year Savings From 2018 Contribution 2020 458,083$                                                        2021 416,746$                                                        2022 298,154$                                                        2023 225,915$                                                        2024 219,137$                                                        2025 212,563$                                                        2026 206,186$                                                        2027 200,001$                                                        2028 194,001$                                                        2029 188,181$                                                        10 Year Savings 2,618,965$                                     2030 182,535$                                                        2031 177,059$                                                        2032 171,747$                                                        2033 166,595$                                                        2034 161,597$                                                        2035 156,749$                                                        2036 152,047$                                                        2037 147,485$                                                        2038 143,061$                                                        2039 138,769$                                                        20 Year Savings 4,216,609$                                     Item 10.a. - Page 11 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 12 • Will result in fewer personnel available to respond to emergency incidents (depth of staffing) • Increased response times and reduction in ability to respond to multi- company and simultaneous calls • Reduction in staffing will result in the demotion of experienced personnel (e.g. Three Captain positions will be reduced; one position is currently vacant), resulting in current Captains being demoted to Engineer, and Engineers being demoted to Firefighter). This process is identified in the Labor Unit’s Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). • If the three additional Firefighter positions are not funded, two current FCFA positions will be eliminated. Recommendation - Staff considers this a viable and preferred option. Option # 5 - Obtain an outside agency to provide fire service Benefits – Cost estimates for the County of San Luis Obispo / CAL FIRE to staff a three person fire station is 1,890,5701. This does not include operational costs such as apparatus, equipment, and command and support staffing. It is estimated that total costs would be commensurate with Option #3. Drawbacks – A contractual relationship in the provision of fire and emergency services. It is unknown if County / CAL FIRE would be willing to undertake this request. The effort to separate the assets of the FCFA will require much of the City Manager’s time as well as billable hours to the City Attorney. Recommendation – Staff considers this a viable option but due to the diminished local connection to the provision of Fire Service, staff ranks this alternative behind Options #4 and #3. The chart below illustrates costs for each option presented. 1 Special Districts Fire Protection Study for County of San Luis Obispo. November 2018  Item 10.a. - Page 12 CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 13 Figure 3 cost comparisons of fire service options ALTERNATIVES: The following alternatives are provided for the Council’s consideration: 1. Approve staff’s recommendations; 2. Select one of four alternative policy options presented; or 3. Provide direction to staff. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: None required. PUBLIC NOTIFICATION AND COMMENTS: The Agenda was posted at City Hall and on the City’s website in accordance with Government Code Section 54954.2 ATTACHMENTS: 1. Basic service levels for local communities 2. Five Cities Fire Authority Strategic Plan Prioritization 3. Context Information To Understand the Cost of Providing a Fire Department 4. Staff Report, June 8, 2010; Consideration of Five Cities Fire Joint Powers Authority 5. Response Time Maps Item 10.a. - Page 13 Sce narios $3,500,000 3,202,639 __'.3~,1:oo~,6'.:66:,_ _________ .AG Current (Option #1) $3,000,000 2,773,185 2,937,778 2,844,744 ______ -•AG Managers' New Formula _.________ (Option#2) __ -----2,666,080 2,62!,?50 ___________ 2'65!.6!;-----2,59~,657 4, AG Alone (Option #3) $2,500,000 2,45 1,381 2,480,090 : $2,000,000 2,065,578 £----- 2'297 ·'l'/; and GB (Option 4) 2,22s,so7 S 0rover Beach Current 2,106,915 ----►-------------GB Managers' New Formula -~-------------- • Ca l Fire Reference 1 $1,500,000 • -------_______ .. ________ ------•OCSD Managers ' New Formula -- .. -_ ----------OCSD Current $1,000,000 $500,000 so ~----------~----------~----------~----------~----------~ 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 ~City of Arroyo Grande ~City of Gr<Ner Beach ~Oceano C50 -.. • City of Arroyo Grande -• • City of Gr<Ner Beach -.. • Oceano CSO c::::::e,:::::.Any Community Alone -11-1/2 Split --+-Cal Fire CITY COUNCIL PROVIDE DIRECTION RELATED TO FIRE SERVICE WITHIN THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE FEBRUARY 26, 2019 PAGE 14 6. Special Districts Fire Protection Study for County of San Luis Obispo; November 2018 7. City Council Minutes; March 13, 2018; Policy and Early Budget Direction Regarding Fire and Emergency Services Due to Anticipated Cost Increases Item 10.a. - Page 14 ATTACHMENT 1 Item 10.a. - Page 15 Agency Paso Robles Atascadero SLO Morro Bay Arroyo Grande Grover Beach Oceano Based on 18-19 18-19 18-19 17-18 18-19 18-19 18-19 Fire Expenditure $6,211,500 $4,210,300 $12,763,588 $2,489,902 $2,523,661 $1,798,108 $987,362 Fire % of General Fund 14% 20% 19% 18% 12% 16% 97% Total General Fund Exp $45,869,170 $21,100,950 $67,288,247 $13,628,778 $20,731,300 $11,499,000 $1,018,753 Square Miles 19.5 26.1 12.9 10.3 5.9 2.3 1.5 Population 31,000 30,418 47,541 10,635 18,123 13,628 7,286 Fire Costs per Capita $200.37 $138.41 $268.48 $234.12 $139.25 $131.94 $135.51 Stations 2 2 4 1 1 (3) 1 (3) · 1 (3) Ca 11s for Service 4,268 3,400 6,280 1,861 1,987 1,198 583 $1,455.37 $1,238.32 $2,032.42 $1,337.94 $1,270.09 $1,500.92 $1,693.59 ATTACHMENT 2 Item 10.a. - Page 16 Five Cities Fire Authority Strategic Plan Prioritization -February 16 2018 Board Meeting Position Title Comments ~ July 2018 July 2019 Ju ly 2020 July 2021 Firefighter Initial Hire of FTE's (First 3) 3 $309,000 $318,300 $327,800 $337,600 Acting Battalion C hief Succession Planning/ Temporary fix for Duty Chief 1 $133,500 $137,500 Firefighter Second Phase of FTE's (Second 3 -Total 6) 3 $318,000 $327,500 $337,300 Battalion Chief Transistion to Shift Position (Industry Norm) 1 $225,000 $231,800 Firefighter Third Phase of FTE's (Total 9) 3 $337,600 Reserve Firefighter Elimination of Program ($31,900) ($198,900) ($198 ,900) ($368 ,000) Subtotal Staffing $410,600 $574,900 $681,400 $876,300 Truck 5 50% Replacement Funding (Replacement 2025) $118,000 $118,000 $118,000 IGran d Total $410,600 $692,900 $799,40 0 $9 94 ,3001 Allocations by Community (FY 17/18 Budget)*: Arroyo Grande (47%) $192,982 $325,663 $375,718 $467,321 Grover Beach (34%) $139,604 $235,586 $271 ,796 $338,062 OCSD (19%) $78,014 $131,651 $151,886 $188,917 $410,600 $692,900 $799,400 $994,300 * Calendar Year 2018 Response Data will likely impact FY 2018/2019 Budget Allocation Revised 2/22/2018 ATTACHMENT 3 Item 10.a. - Page 17 Context In forma t io n To Underst and the Cost of Prov iding a Fire Department What does it Cost to Provide a Fire Department? Opt ion 1 (2019} What does it Cost to Provide a Fire Department ? Option 2 (2019} Taxes& Total Salary & Taxes& Total Salary & Posit ion Salary Benefits Benefits Pos it ion Sa lary Benefits Benefits Executive, Command and Adm inistrative Personnel Executive, Command and Administrative Personne l Chief $ 167,808 $ 76,395 $ 244,203 Chief $ 167,808 $ 76,395 $ 244,203 Battalion Chief $ 137,352 $ 66,871 $ 204,223 Batta lion Chief $ 137,352 $ 66,871 $ 204,223 Batta lion Chief $ 137,352 $ 66,871 $ 204,223 Battalion Chief $ 137,352 $ 66,871 $ 204,223 Battali on Chief $ 137,352 $ 66,871 $ 204,223 BaUalie A bRief $ 13 7,35 ;! $ 66,871 $ ;!Q 4,;!;!3 Adm in Asst $ 73,356 $ 56,003 $ 129,359 Admin Asst $ 73,356 $ 56,003 $ 129,359 Sub Total $ 653,220 $ 333,009 $ 986,22 9 Sub Total $ 515,868 $ 266,139 $ 782,007 Response Personnel (Per Station) Response Personnel (Per Station) A Shift A Shift Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Engi neer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Engi neer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Fire Fighter II $ 60,233 $ 38,325 $ 98,558 Fire Fig hter II $ 60,233 $ 38,325 $ 98,558 B Shift B Shift Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Engineer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Engineer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Fire Fighter II $ 60,233 $ 38,325 $ 98,558 Fire Fighter II $ 60,233 $ 38,325 $ 98,558 C Shift C Shift Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Captain $ 100,925 $ 60,592 $ 161,517 Engineer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Engineer $ 86,981 $ 45,225 $ 132,206 Fi re Fighter II $ 60,233 $ 38 ,325 $ 98,558 Fire Fig hter II $ 60,233 $ 38,325 $ 98,558 Unexpected Overtime $ 150,000 Unexpected Overtime $ 150,000 Sub Total Response Personnel $ 1,326,846 Sub Total Response Personnel $ 1,326,846 Hard Costs Hard Costs Se rv ices & Supplies $ 239,800 Services & Supp li es $ 239,800 Lease Purchase Payments $ 33,743 Lease Purchase Pa yments $ 33,743 Equipment Replacement $ 50,300 Equipment Replaceme nt $ 50,300 Sub Total $ 323,843 Sub Total $ 32 3,843 Total Cost $ 2,636,919 Tota l Cost $ 2,432,696 These budgets use all cost from the adopted 2018-19 FCFA budget TO: FROM: MEMORANDUM CITY COUNCIL STEVEN ADAMS, CITY MANAGER . ii MICHAEL HUBERT, DIRECTOR OF BUILDING & FIRE (f\fc:Q SUBJECT: CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY DATE: JUNE 8, 2010 RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended the City Council: 1) approve a Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement with the City of Grover Beach and Oceana Community Services District (OCSD) to form a Five Cities Fire Joint Powers Authority (JPA); 2) adopt a Resolution approving the FY 2010-11 Annual Budget for the JPA; 3) adopt a Resolution approving the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 4403; 4) appoint a Board Member to the JPA Board of Directors and an alternate; 5) direct staff to request a proposal from the City of San Luis Obispo for contract police and fire dispatch services and continue to work on recommendations for a joint dispatch operation for Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and OCSD. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Formation of the JPA will result in an annual increase of approximately $5,800 to the City of Arroyo Grande in FY 2010-11. However, it is estimated to result in $350,000 to $500,000 in annual future savings when compared to providing fire services independently. It is proposed to fund this amount from Local Sales Tax funds since it is a service level enhancement that falls within the needs and priorities established for these funds when the ballot measure was proposed. It will still result in a reduction in use of these funds for fire services due to the grant and cost sharing for the aerial apparatus. BACKGROUND: In 2004, the City of Arroyo Grande entered into a joint fire services agreement with the City of Grover Beach. Under that agreement, the City of Arroyo Grande provided a Fire Chief and the City of Grover Beach provided a Training Captain. The agreement was coordinated by a Fire Oversight Committee, consisting of two Council representatives, both City Managers and the Fire Chief. ATTACHMENT 4 Item 10.a. - Page 18 r I CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGE2 In November 2005, under contract with the City of Pismo Beach, Citygate Associates prepared a Fire Department Consolidation Feasibility Analysis for Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, Oceano Community Services District (OCSD) and Pismo Beach. The study concluded that stand alone fire departments are "not cost effective, nor will stand alone services have the technical depth needed in a world that grows more technical, complex and regulated every year. While all the partners in this study are providing some level of fire services today, if the communities were to pool their efforts, they could cost effectively operate a full service agency, meeting everyone's needs more effectively." However, while the concept of joint services was supported, the staffing recommendations of the study were determined excessive and resulted in costs that made the consultant's recommendations infeasible. In 2007, the Joint Fire Services Agreement was modified to enhance the Captain position to a Battalion Chief, have both positions employed by the City of Arroyo Grande, and to share the costs based upon an agreed upon formula. Since that time, the agreement has been expanded to share reserves, equipment and to add OCSD. In 2008, the Fire Oversight Committee directed staff to develop a proposal for full consolidation of the three agencies. Options were presented at the September 23, 2008 meeting and the Council voted in favor of a joint powers authority as the preferred structure. At the June 23, 2009 meeting, the Council directed staff to proceed with the formation of the fire joint powers authority; designated the Fire Oversight Committee as the Interim JPA Board of Directors for the purposes of providing direction to labor negotiators to prepare a MOU with the firefighters' union; approved an amended Joint Fire Management, Administrative, and Training Services and Equipment Sharing Agreement to expand services to OCSD; and approved the Fire Personnel Cooperative Agreement, which allowed sharing of staff. After months of extensive meetings and work, the staff of the three agencies have completed preparation of an agreement to form the JPA, the proposed budget, and an MOU with the new labor union. Each of the items requires approval from the three elected bodies. If approved, the JPA Board of Directors will also need to approve the budget and the MOU at their first meeting. At their May 14, 2010 meeting, all items were unanimously recommended by the Fire Oversight Committee. The City of Grover Beach City Council will consider the item at their meeting on June 7, 2010 and the OCSD Board of Directors will consider it on June 9, 2010 meeting. For consolidation of fire services to operate most efficiently, consolidation of dispatch services is also necessary. As a result, at the January 13, 2009 meeting, the City Council approved funding to contract with a consultant to prepare a study on providing joint dispatch services. Other jurisdictions in the County were invited to participate to also evaluate the potential for a countywide dispatch center. The study Item 10.a. - Page 19 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGE3 included Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, Oceana, Paso Robles, Atascadero and San Luis Obispo. Dhillon and Associates was selected to prepare the study after a Request for Proposal (RFP) was distributed. The study is now complete, which is attached for your review. ANALYSIS OF ISSUES: Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement The proposed Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement contains the following key provisions: •Authorizes the Creation of the Five Cities Fire Authority; •Creates a governing Board that consists of one elected official and alternate from each of the member Agencies; •Requires the Board to meet a minimum of bimonthly during the first year of the Authority's existence and at least quarterly during subsequent years; •Specifically outlines the powers of the Authority; •Designates the Fire Chief as the Executive Officer of the Authority; •Provides a funding formula for the allocation of costs amongst the jurisdictions; •Defines the ownership of buildings, equipment and apparatus; •Provides for an allocation of administrative support functions; •Provides a termination clause; and •Provides for distribution of assets in the event of termination or the withdrawal of a member agency. Under the Agreement, buildings will continue to be owned and maintained by the respective jurisdictions. Equipment, vehicles and apparatus will all become property of the JPA. Any existing vehicles and apparatus would be returned to its original owner if the JPA were to be dissolved. Items purchased in the future will be joint property of the JPA and distribution of the value would be negotiated at the time it was dissolved or an agency withdraws. Item 10.a. - Page 20 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGE4 Items voted on by the JPA Board of Directors will require a majority vote except for decisions relating to the budget, labor relations agreements, and any unbudgeted non-emergency contract for services that exceeds $75,000, which shall require a unanimous vote of the Board for approval. This will help ensure that no jurisdiction will be required to commit to expenditures that are infeasible for them to fund. It is proposed that all employees will technically become employees of the City of Arroyo Grande primarily for the purposes of PERS retirement benefits. However, the City of Arroyo Grande will delegate all personnel decision making authority to the JPA. The City of Arroyo Grande will also provide payroll, finance and IT services to the JPA under a separate agreement. The City will be reimbursed for the actual costs of these services. It should be noted that that the Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement is a master agreement and the Authority once formed will most likely be required to enter into other such supplemental agreements with its member agencies in order to provide or receive specialized services to or from a member agency. Budget Over the past several months, staff from the member agencies have prepared the recommended budget for the new Fire JPA agency after a series of joint meetings. The recommendations have incorporated input from the Fire Chief, City Managers and General Manager, finance, human resources and fire staff from each of the agencies. The total proposed budget is $3,356,670. This represents an increase of approximately $170,000 over the total budgets of the member agencies combined. However, after considering revenues and reimbursements that will be paid to member agencies, the net cost impact is approximately $97,000. This is relatively consistent with preliminary projections when the process began. The costs are proposed to be allocated per the formula approved by the Fire Oversight Committee and member agency elected bodies when the JPA formation process was initiated. It is set forth as follows: Population (Customer Base) 25% Service Calls (Service Volume) 25% Assessed Value (At Risk Property Protected) 25% Stations/Dedicated Engine Company Staffing (Service Level) 25% After applying the data for each category, the following percentage breakdown was arrived at: Arroyo Grande Grover Beach OCSD 45% 35% 20% Item 10.a. - Page 21 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGES Based on this formula, the cost allocation to each agency is as follows: Arroyo Grande Grover Beach OCSD $1,478,489 $1,149,936 $657,106 These figures are based on the budget minus proposed revenues. It does not include proposed reimbursements to each of the agencies, which will be determined based upon actual costs. Attached is the proposed budget, along with a summary comparing it to the existing budget of each agency. The summary identifies estimates of revenues that are proposed to be transferred from each of the agencies to the JPA and reimbursements to each agency for services provided to the JPA. Revenues that will be transferred to the JPA include fees for burn and fireworks permits, reimbursements for response to medical calls and participation in OES strike teams, and expense recovery. Reimbursements include costs incurred by OCSD associated with the shared facility and supplies at their offices and fire station, maintenance of non-fire apparatus vehicles and legal services to be provided by the City of Grover Beach, and provision of payroll, personnel and information technology staff support by the City of Arroyo Grande. Budgeted amounts are estimates and may vary based upon actual costs once the time required can be determined during the first year of operation. After taking into account these adjustments and payments currently made for joint administrative costs, the estimated cost impact to each of the agencies when compared to current budgeted amounts is as follows: Arroyo Grande Grover Beach OCSD $5,801 $44,226 $46,964 There may be additional future adjustments for payments associated with work contracted by member agencies to the Fire JPA, primarily including Fire plan check and apartment inspections. However, it is proposed that costs for these items be made as adjustments to the FY 2011-12 budget after more specific determinations can be made on provision of the services and time involved. While the JPA formation results in an initial cost increase, it is important to emphasize again that it will serve as a significant ongoing and future cost efficiency measure. When compared to operating independently, it results in a substantial cost savings. However, these savings are already being experienced by the agencies. The existing agreement was only intended as an interim measure. The proposed Item 10.a. - Page 22 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGES JPA is necessary in order to make the joint service structure successfully sustainable on a permanent basis. As part of the budget recommendations, staff proposes the Fire JPA utilize the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (CJPIA) for workers' compensation coverage and Fire Agencies Insurance Risk Authority (FAIRA) for liability coverage. Since the Fire JPA employees will technically be on the City of Arroyo Grande's payroll, it is necessary that workers' compensation be provided through the CJPIA, which Arroyo Grande is currently a member. The CJPIA has indicated that they will assist the Fire JPA in providing a formula to calculate the independent cost for the Fire JPA employees each year so claims of JPA employees will not impact City costs above its share. Meanwhile, after a lengthy analysis, it was determined that the Fire JPA can reduce its costs by approximately $50,000 by enrolling in the FAIRA program for liability insurance. Coverage amounts are less than that provided by the CJPIA, but staff has determined they are sufficient for the risk provided by the Fire JPA operations. In addition, the deductible amount will be less than subject under the CJPIA coverage. MOU The new JPA will require a labor agreement with the represented staff in order to operate. Therefore, this required development and negotiation of an entirely new labor agreement as set forth under State laws requiring public agencies to meet and confer regarding issues of salary, benefits and working conditions. The staff formed a combined union, which is identified as International Association of Fire Fighters Local 4403. The JPA was represented in negotiations by the Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach City Managers and the OCSD General Manager. The Human Resources managers from Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach also participated on the negotiation team. The Fire Oversight Committee was briefed in closed session at key points in the negotiation to provide direction and authority to the negotiating team. After months of negotiation and multiple meetings, agreement has been reached on a final agreement, which is attached for the Committee's consideration. The MOU has been approved by a vote of the Union membership. Negotiation of the MOU utilized the existing City of Arroyo Grande Firefighters MOU as a base document, but terms were taken from each of the agencies' existing agreements, and new terms were also negotiated. The MOU sets forth management rights and overall terms of salaries, benefits and working conditions. The term of the MOU will be from the effective date of the JPA through June 30, 2012. Since it is a two-year agreement, it will ensure relative cost stability to the JPA through the first two years of existence, as well as enable management to focus its Item 10.a. - Page 23 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGE7 efforts on other issues related to initiation of the agency before having to engage in the next negotiation process. The terms of the MOU will achieve the goal of reaching parity in pay rates between the staff of the existing agencies. The MOU establishes the existing Arroyo Grande salary ranges as the ranges for all employees in the new JPA. Employees from Grover Beach and OCSD will begin at their current salary amount, but will be eligible to advance to the next highest salary step at their next anniversary date. If an employee's existing salary is less than 1 % from the next highest step, the employee will be eligible for advancement to the next step above. JPA employees will receive retirement benefits under the CalPERS 3% at 55 plan, which is consistent with benefits currently provided to Arroyo Grande Fire employees. Under the terms of the MOU, the JPA will have the right to implement a two-tiered retirement system in the future at any time at its discretion. There are a number of reasons why it is not recommended to implement the two-tiered system immediately. However, maintaining the right to do so is an important provision to provide flexibility to the JPA to better control future costs. The number of special pay options have been limited in order to simplify negotiations and better control initial costs. It will also be helpful to allow the new agency to better define its operational practices and priorities before some of the other special pay alternatives are reconsidered based on the service priorities established. Appointment of Board Member and Alternate It is necessary for the City Council to appoint a JPA Board Member and Alternate. Council Member Costello has served on the Fire Oversight Committee since its inception. Mayor Ferrara is currently the alternate. Council Member Costello has expressed an interest in serving as the Board Member since he has been intimately involved in the formation of the new agency. Joint Dispatch The Joint Dispatch Study provides analysis of options involving a joint dispatch operation serving Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and Oceana, as well as contracting for dispatch services with the City of San Luis Obispo. The staffing and cost analysis is based primarily on call volume. As a result, staff has identified concerns regarding the ability of some of the recommended staffing levels to address overall service level goals. However, staff does believe the analysis demonstrates that joint dispatch can reduce costs and increase service levels. After a series of meetings, it was determined that either Arroyo Grande or Grover Beach could provide joint dispatch services, but Arroyo Grande would be the most feasible. In addition, if the bond measure passes on June 8th, it will enable the JPA to take advantage of the opportunity to design an entirely new dispatch center. Item 10.a. - Page 24 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGES Therefore, a cost proposal was developed by the City of Arroyo Grande. After reviewing other staffing and cost impacts, it was determined by Grover Beach that there may ultimately be a negative cost impact and did not recommended proceeding at this time. However, the concept is still supported and it is recommended that staff continue to work on a potential solution. Staff has also discussed the concept of contracting dispatch services with the City of San Luis Obispo, who has recently completed construction of a new dispatch center. Preliminary estimates indicate that meaningful savings could be possible. However, they have indicated that a formal request would be necessary in order for them to develop a specific proposal, which would first need to be considered by their City Council. Therefore, it is recommended the City Council authorize such a request at this time. ALTERNATIVES: The following alternatives are presented for City Council's consideration: •Approve staff's recommendations; •Request modifications to any of the proposed items and approve -the primary alternatives discussed by the JPA Board have included the following: o Establishing a requirement in the Agreement that certain items be referred to individual jurisdictions for approval; o Modifications to the MOU to reduce personnel costs; o Making staff employees of the JPA rather than the City of Arroyo Grande; o Modifications to revenues and/or reimbursements for specific services provided to each agency; o Modifications to how liability and workers' compensation coverage is provided; •Do not approve proceeding with the JPA; or •Provide direction to staff. ADVANTAGES: Formation of the JPA will further increase public safety efficiencies and service levels. By formalizing a fully consolidated fire agency, it will help establish an organizational structure that can be maintained on a permanent basis both in terms of funding and staffing. This will help ensure the City will continue to experience substantial existing savings. It would otherwise be infeasible for Fire staff to continue to maintain the current workload involved in providing direct administrative services to each separate agency, manager and governing board. If the City were to return to providing independent fire services, there would be a substantial cost increase for Fire management staff and equipment costs, as well as make it difficult to maintain a successful reserve program. Meanwhile, the JPA will provide reduced response times and more effective joint response through standardized training, procedures and equipment. Item 10.a. - Page 25 CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF FIVE CITIES FIRE JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY JUNE 8, 2010 PAGE9 DISADVANTAGES: There is a minor initial cost increase and some loss of control by participating in the JPA. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: No environmental review is required for this item. PUBLIC NOTIFICATION AND COMMENTS: The Agenda was posted in front of City Hall on Thursday, June 3, 2010 and on the City's website on Friday, June 4, 2010. No comments were received. Attachments: 1. Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement 2. Comparison to Existing Member Agency Budgets 3. Joint Dispatch Study Item 10.a. - Page 26 FCFAStation 1FCFAStation 61FCFAStation 68FCFA Response Time Map4, 6, & 8 Minute Response AreasCity / CSD Boundaries²This map displays response areas by the amountof time it takes to travel. Time was calculated in minutes by taking the length (miles) of each roadsegment and multiplying it by the quotient of 60divided by the posted speed limit for each roadsegment. Response areas are dissolved and donot specify station specific responses. Figure 6OCTOBER 2016Created by: Camilla Greenbach, GIS Technician, City of Arroyo Grande0120.5Miles4 Minute Response (All Stations)6 Minute Response (All Stations)8 Minute Response (All Stations)attachment 5ATTACHMENT 5Item 10.a. - Page 27a: FCFAStation 1FCFAStation 61FCFAStation 68FCFA Station 1 Response Time Map4, 6, & 8 Minute Response AreasCity / CSD Boundaries²This map displays response areas by the amountof time it takes to travel. Time was calculated in minutes by taking the length (miles) of each roadsegment and multiplying it by the quotient of 60divided by the posted speed limit for each roadsegment. Response areas are VSHFLILFWR6WDWLRQFigure 7OCTOBER 2016Created by: Camilla Greenbach, GIS Technician, City of Arroyo Grande0120.5MilesStation 1: 4 Minute Response AreaStation 1: 6 Minute Response AreaStation 1: 8 Minute Response AreaItem 10.a. - Page 28 FCFAStation 1FCFAStation 61FCFAStation 68FCFA Station 2 Response Time Map4, 6, & 8 Minute Response AreasCity / CSD Boundaries²This map displays response areas by the amountof time it takes to travel. Time was calculated in minutes by taking the length (miles) of each roadsegment and multiplying it by the quotient of 60divided by the posted speed limit for each roadsegment. Response areas are VSHFLILFWR6WDWLRQFigureOCTOBER 2016Created by: Camilla Greenbach, GIS Technician, City of Arroyo Grande0120.5MilesStation 2: 4 Minute Response AreaStation 2: 6 Minute Response AreaStation 2: 8 Minute Response AreaItem 10.a. - Page 29CITY OF -~ ~~· ~ FCFAStation 1FCFAStation 61FCFAStation 68FCFA Station 3 Response Time Map4, 6, & 8 Minute Response AreasCity / CSD Boundaries²This map displays response areas by the amountof time it takes to travel. Time was calculated in minutes by taking the length (miles) of each roadsegment and multiplying it by the quotient of 60divided by the posted speed limit for each roadsegment. Response areas are VSHFLILFWR6WDWLRQFigureOCTOBER 2016Created by: Camilla Greenbach, GIS Technician, City of Arroyo Grande0120.5MilesStation 3: 4 Minute Response AreaStation 3: 6 Minute Response AreaStation 3: 8 Minute Response AreaItem 10.a. - Page 30 Page 1 of 155 Special Districts Fire Protection Study For County of San Luis Obispo November 2018 ATTACHMENT 6 Item 10.a. - Page 31 SanLuiiObi>p;, Oountj"Spttial. Dittricr:.FUe .• , s {J other Fte Prctection S~r,.SOrilll DIStrio:ts 0 -Special Di51rid fire Pn~ectioo fl ourmrv Spec.,I Oi$rict fi'e Proteotion San Luis Obispo County Special • CALFIRE/Co<rirf HeStstions Page 2 of 155 Special Districts Fire Protection Study For County of San Luis Obispo November 2018 COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS John Peschong First Supervisorial District, Chair Bruce Gibson Second Supervisorial District Adam Hill Third Supervisorial District Lynn Compton Fourth Supervisorial District Debbie Arnold Fifth Supervisorial District, Vice Chair COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE Wade Horton, County Administrative Officer Lisa Howe, Administrative Analyst COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT Scott Jalbert, Fire Chief STUDY TEAM Dan Turner, Fire Chief (retired), Cal Fire, San Luis Obispo Mike McMurry, Fire Chief (retired), Scotts Valley Fire Protection District Item 10.a. - Page 32 Page 3 of 155 Acknowledgements This study was supported by several organizations and people that contributed invaluable time and information. The study team of Turner and McMurry are very grateful for the assistance we received; the study would not be possible without their cooperation. The Study Special Districts: • Cambria Community Services District • Oceano Community Services District • San Miguel Community Services District • Santa Margarita Fire Protection District • Templeton Community Services District The district representatives we met with were professional, engaged , and committed to helping us understand, and report, the fire protection situation in their districts. They clearly care about their communities and are dedicated to the future of fire service delivery. County Offices and Departments: • County Administrative Office • County Tax Assessor • County Auditor-Controller-Treasurer-Tax Collector • County Clerk-Recorder • County Counsel • County Fire The study team is immensely grateful to Lisa Howe, County Administrative Office, for joining us during our district interviews and providing insight and guidance. Aaronne Kessler, County Auditor-Controller-Treasurer-Tax Collector’s Office provided excellent assistance in special district tax rate area and tax distribution information. Hannah Panno, County Fire GIS Specialist was outstanding in analyzing data and creating professional map displays. San Luis Obispo County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO): David Church, LAFCO Executive Officer was very helpful in district history, district processes, and organizational dynamics. Item 10.a. - Page 33 Page 4 of 155 Table of Contents Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... 5 Special District Study Scope of Work ............................................................................................ 14 Study Methodology....................................................................................................................... 15 Special District Organization ......................................................................................................... 17 LAFCO Process to Change Fire Protection Service Delivery Model .............................................. 20 Change in Fire Service Provider .................................................................................................... 21 New Governance Models for Fire Protection Service Delivery .................................................... 22 Overview of Challenges Facing Districts ....................................................................................... 24 Special District Funding ................................................................................................................. 33 Property Tax .................................................................................................................................. 34 Other Funding Sources ................................................................................................................. 42 Benefit Assessment Districts (Proposition 218) ............................................................................ 42 Grants ............................................................................................................................................ 49 Fire Agency Staffing ...................................................................................................................... 52 County Fire Strategic Plan ............................................................................................................. 60 County Fire Interview .................................................................................................................... 60 Cambria Community Services District .......................................................................................... 62 Oceano Community Services District ............................................................................................ 78 San Miguel Community Services District ...................................................................................... 97 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District ..................................................................................... 113 Templeton Community Services District .................................................................................... 131 List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. 153 Item 10.a. - Page 34 Page 5 of 155 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY During the hearings for the dissolution process the Cayucos Fire Protection District, the County Board of Supervisors directed county staff to conduct a study of five (5) independent special districts that deliver fire protection in the unincorporated area of the county. The study’s purpose was to determine the operational and financial sustainability of the districts. The study districts are: • Cambria Community Services District • Oceano Community Services District • San Miguel Community Services District • Santa Margarita Fire Protection District • Templeton Community Services District FIRE PROTECTION IN UNINCORPORATED SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY Figure 1: The five special districts in the study that provide fire protection in San Luis Obispo County are shown in orange. Item 10.a. - Page 35 S-L\UIIObi,p0 OountySptti.ol ·*· ' S'-"""''"""olC>istricls -SpeciolOistridfireP,lllectionBoundar, SpecialOiotactfRl'fotection .CALFIREICo,..,tyFi>eSt!ltions "'-'Ros"5 San Luis Obispo County Specia l Page 6 of 155 ISSUES FACING DISTRICTS The districts are proud of their fire department traditions and identity as an important part of each community. District concerns range from the immediate potential for fire service delivery failure to a significant change expected in the five-year horizon. Inadequate revenue, community growth, greater expectations for fire service delivery, reduction in volunteerism and cost of full-time firefighting staff have combined to create funding problems for sp ecial districts providing fire protection in San Luis Obispo County and throughout California. • The districts are very different in demographics, funding, and fire service demand. In the event of dissolution/divestiture, the County’s plan for service would need to be specifically tailored to the individual community based on those factors. • Because property taxes are the primary source of funding, Proposition 13 (passed by the voters forty years ago) and subsequent allocation formulas limit districts’ funding to provide services. • Districts with low assessed valuations, limited growth, and relatively small share of property tax have limited revenues while costs have risen exponentially. • The increase in the cost from staffing with all volunteers compared to paid/career staff is approximately $1.3 million annually. A fire chief and station operation costs are in addition to engine staffing. • The community service districts studied allocate varying percentages of property tax for fire protection service from 62 - 93% of total property tax; Santa Margarita FPD allocates 100% of property taxes to fire protection. • To permanently transfer funding between agencies, a property tax exchange agreement is necessary. Increasing a district’s property tax share requires a reduction of County’s share. • Special districts do not receive any sales tax (including Prop 172 Public Safety sales tax) or transient occupancy tax (TOT) and are not authorized to levy such a tax. • SAFER Grants were used to augment staffing in three of the districts, but existing tax revenue could not sustain staffing cost after grants ended. • All five districts in this study included volunteer fire departments. Volunteer firefighters have all but vanished in San Luis Obispo County. • Significant factors that have impacted a reduction of volunteer firefighters: o Increase in training and incident hour requirements. o Volunteer firefighters experience difficulty with time commitments due to their “real job” along with conflicts with family and other volunteer opportunities. • Various forms of compensation to recruit and retain Paid Call (PCF) and Reserve firefighters are in use by the districts. • Recruitment and retention of PCFs and development of PCF fire officers and fire chiefs requires a long-term plan and ongoing community commitment. • Reserve Firefighters (intern firefighters) are currently being used in place of career staffing. Item 10.a. - Page 36 Page 7 of 155 ORGANIZATION AND CHANGE OF FIRE SERVICE DELIVERY PROVIDER Any jurisdictional change for the delivery of fire protection involves a thor ough review and approval process through LAFCO. The method is different for community service districts (CSD) and fire protection districts (FPD). CSDs must divest their fire protection authority while retaining their other responsibilities. A FPD must dissolve since they provide no other services. Dissolution was the process utilized in the case of the Cayucos Fire Protection District. COUNTY FIRE STRATEGIC PLAN The County Fire Department strategic plan includes a service level strategy to determine appropriate service level for communities of differing demographics and fire department demand. • Urban, Suburban, and Rural service levels are determined by analyzing population, land use type, building characteristics, assets at risk, incident activity, special hazards, and risks. • The primary difference between the service levels is response time and effectiveness of the response. • There are areas in County Fire’s jurisdiction that are currently underserved. • Each of the districts in this study was evaluated to determine the level of service recommended utilizing the County Fire formula. • County Fire staff expressed concerns that reductions of County Fire’s budget to su pport a divesting/dissolving district would cause reductions of services in other areas of the County. • County Fire staff reported they are at their “tipping point” for certain of their overhead and support positions and may need augmentation in the event one or more of the districts divests fire protection and increases workload, including: 1. Fire Prevention/Fire Marshal 2. Mechanic/fleet service 3. Battalion chief coverage (Depending on region of the County) Item 10.a. - Page 37 Page 8 of 155 SUMMARY OF DISTRICT SUSTAINABILITY FINDINGS AND COUNTY OPTIONS Special District Sustainability Findings Potential County Options Specific Request Cambria CSD Cambria CSD indicated that they do not intend to divest fire protection service. N/A N/A Oceano CSD Oceano CSD intends to remain with Five Cities Fire Authority; however, withdrawal of one of the other JPA members could cause Oceano to seek other options, including divestiture. Based on County Fire’s Strategic Plan service level analysis, if Oceano CSD divests fire protection, it would require staffing at the Oceano Fire Station. Annual staffing and operational cost to the County is approximately $ 600,000 in addition to the current $900,000 allocation of property tax from the District. N/A San Miguel CSD San Miguel CSD indicated that they can sustain the current staffing model for five years, but the future is uncertain after that. San Miguel is not forecasting divestiture of fire protection service. Based on County Fire’s Strategic Plan service level analysis, if San Miguel CSD divests fire protection, it would require staffing at the San Miguel Fire Station. Annual staffing and operational cost to the County is approximately $1.3 million in addition to the current $300,000 allocation of property tax from the District. San Miguel CSD request the following support from the County: • Increased auto aid support from County Fire • Water tender that they can staff and respond. • Fiscal support for mobile data computers and dispatch costs. Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Santa Margarita FPD indicated that they can sustain the current staffing model for five years, but the future is uncertain after that. Santa Margarita Fire Station is in serious need of replacement. There is limited opportunity for the district to obtain sufficient funding for this project. If Santa Margarita FPD dissolves, and, based on County Fire’s Strategic Plan, Engine 40 should be relocated to a new fire station in Santa Margarita or Garden Farms. Since the County and Santa Margarita FPD are planning on building fire stations in the same proximity, consideration should be given to a joint facility to avoid redundancy. One time expense required for fire station construction. Santa Margarita made no specific request from county other than continued automatic aid support from Station 40. Item 10.a. - Page 38 Page 9 of 155 Special District Sustainability Findings Potential County Options Specific Request Templeton CSD Templeton CSD indicated that they are in imminent fiscal peril without financial augmentation and that they will be seeking a benefit assessment in August 2019. If additional funding is unsuccessful, the district may apply for divestiture thereafter. Options for the County: 1. Agree to a property tax transfer of $485,000 to Templeton CSD to augment their funding. 2. County Does Not Support Tax Transfer and Templeton CSD divests fire protection. Three options for County delivery if divesture: Templeton CSD transfers property tax to county. Option A: Relocate County Engine 30 to Templeton Fire Station with 3 on duty augmented staffing. No extra funding required. Option B: County adds funding, Templeton engine staffed with at least two 24/7; Engine 30 remains at Cal fire Station 30 staffed with at least two career firefighters 24/7. Annual staffing and operational cost to the County is approximately $485,000 in addition to the current $ 833,000 allocation of property tax from the District Option C: County adds funding, relocate Engine 30 to Templeton and augment staffing for a second staffed fire company at Templeton Fire Station. Annual staffing and operational cost to the County is approximately $350,000 in addition to the current $ 833,000 allocation of property tax from the District. Options A-C includes retaining a PCF company for Templeton and Station 30 and adding a deputy fire marshal position. Templeton CSD is specifically requesting a permanent property tax transfer in the amount of $485,000 on an ongoing basis since they receive less than 10% of the taxes in each of the District’s tax rate areas. The funds will be used to fund a full-time fire chief, and two additional career firefighters. Additional staffing will provide for one career and one part- time reserve firefighter on duty daily. Item 10.a. - Page 39 Page 10 of 155 STUDY BACKGROUND This study is authorized by the County Board of Supervisors to determine the current status of fire protection delivery by special districts in the unincorporated area of San Luis Obispo County. Concerns about funding and sustainability of fire protection provided by multiple special districts warranted the examination. Of particular concern is any urgent action required and resultant impact if any other district is in similar circumstances that led to the dissolution of the Cayucos Fire Protection District. The County Fire Department was in the process of updating their 2012 Fire Protection Strategic Plan and Service Level Analysis. Retired Fire Chief Dan Turner is updating the strategic plan and the Board of Supervisors accepted staff’s recommendation to add this study to the scope of work of Strategic Plan update. Retired Fire Chief Mike McMurry from Scotts Valley FPD and former President of the Fire Districts Association of California assisted in the study. The Board of Supervisors directed a study of five (5) of those districts be completed: 1. Cambria Community Services District (CCSD) 2. Oceano Community Services District (OCSD) 3. San Miguel Community Services District (SM CSD) 4. Santa Margarita Fire Protection District (SM FPD) 5. Templeton Community Services District (TEM CSD) Fire PROTECTION: UNINCORPORATED AREA OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY There are eight (8) local government agencies and four (4) state agencies that provide fire protection from 29 fire stations in the unincorporated area of the county. Local Government: 1. County of San Luis Obispo* 2. Avila Beach Community Services District (CSD)* 3. Cambria Community Services District (CSD) 4. Los Osos Community Services District (CSD)* 5. Oceano Community Services District (CSD) 6. San Miguel Community Services District (CSD) 7. Santa Margarita Fire Protection District (FPD) 8. Templeton Community Services District (CSD) 9. Cayucos Fire Protection District (Completed dissolution in October 2018; now part of County Fire Department) *Avila Beach CSD and Los Osos CSD have active fire protection authority, but do not maintain their own fire departments; instead, they contract through the County for fire protection service delivery from the County contract with CAL FIRE. Item 10.a. - Page 40 Page 11 of 155 State Agencies in the unincorporated area: 1. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) 2. California National Guard - Camp Roberts 3. California Men’s Colony – CDCR 4. California Parks and Recreation- Hearst Castle State Historical Monument Figure 2: Fire station locations throughout San luis Obsipo County FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT HISTORY Historically, there were ten (10) Fire Protection Districts (FPD) in the County. Most of the FPDs became part of either a CSD formation (Los Osos, Templeton, San Miguel, Cambria , Oceano) or absorbed through the formation of an incorporated city (Atascadero and Morro Bay). Avila Beach County Water District activated their fire protection authority and operated the Avila Beach Fire Department until the water district was reorganized into the Avila Beach CSD. The single remaining fire protection district in San Luis Obispo County is Santa Margarita Fire Protection District now that dissolution of the Cayucos Fire Protection District is complete. Item 10.a. - Page 41 SanLUUObisp;, Oount,.Spe~W Di6t.ictsfh e Protection .• , ' {I Other F l"e Prctection S~rvOSOri!II Dtstricts 0 -SpeciolOtstric!firePrDlecbanBoun<lary Spec.,I Oi'!'lrict fi'eProtectian S a n Luis Obispo County Special • CALFIRE/Co...-.t,neSt!llian$ Page 12 of 155 CAYUCOS FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT DISSOLUTION The Board of Directors of the Cayucos Fire Protection District (CFPD), an independent special district, determined the district had insufficient funding and operational capacity to sustain itself and applied to LAFCO for dissolution. Dissolution means the district would cease to exist and the fire protection services they provide would become the responsibility of the county as the successor agency. Dissolution of a special district is a complicated process and not undertaken lightly. Assurance of an appropriate level of service, funding for that service, clarity of governance, and disposition of assets and liabilities must be clear. The process was finalized in 2018 after several hearings, approved plan for service, budgets, and a final public protest period. The CFPD Board of Directors, County Board of Supervisors, and LAFCO agreed to dissolve the district, turn fire protection responsibilities over to the county fire department, and transfer assets and tax revenues to the county to partially fund that service. The Board of Supervisors approved the recommendation of the Count y Fire Chief to establish a level of service for Cayucos to staff the former CFPD station with 2 firefighters 24/7. The county will absorb the cost above and beyond taxes, benefit assessment fees, and other revenues transferred from the former district. OTHER SPECIAL DISTRICTS Other San Luis Obispo County special districts that provide fire protection observed the Cayucos dissolution closely. Templeton CSD and Oceano CSD representatives stated their districts were in similar financial distress and if they do not find a solution soon they may need to divest fire protection as well. Templeton CSD has inquired about the possibility of a property tax exchange with the County. In this scenario, the county would permanently transfer Templeton CSD a share of county property taxes to help fund fire protection in Templeton CSD. SPECIAL DISTRICTS HAVE DISCRETION ON WHICH SERVICES THEY PROVIDE Community service districts have discretion regarding which latent service authorities they enact. CSD’s may furnish one or more of the following services:1 • Fire protection • Parks and recreation • Police protection • Street lighting • Ambulance service • Mosquito abatement • Water • Street construction and maintenance • Sewage collection and treatment • Libraries • Refuse collection and disposal • Airports • Transportation services • Utility undergrounding Figure 3 CSD discretionary service authority 1 CA Government Code Sections 61000-61934 Item 10.a. - Page 42 Page 13 of 155 SPECIAL DISTRICTS THAT HAVE NOT ACTIVATED FIRE PROTECTION SERVICES There are eight (8) community service districts in the county that have not activated their latent fire protection authority, fire protection service remains the responsibility of the County in these districts:2 California Valley CSD Heritage Ranch CSD Nipomo CSD Linne CSD Ground Squirrel Hollow CSD Squire Canyon CSD San Simeon CSD Independence Ranch CSD Figure 4 CSD's that have not activated latent authority for fire protection COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS DIRECTION FOR STUDY: The Board of Supervisors accepted staff’s recommendation to conduct an analysis of countywide fire issues by amending the scope of work for the 2018 Fire Protection Master Plan to add a service expansion analysis evaluating fire protection services by special districts in the unincorporated areas. The scope of work of the special district study follows. 2 SLO County LAFCO; www.slolafco.com/maps--gis-layers--directories.html; October 21, 2018 Item 10.a. - Page 43 Page 14 of 155 SPECIAL DISTRICT STUDY SCOPE OF WORK Section 1: GENERAL BACKGROUND ON FIRE PROTECTION IN SPECIAL DISTRICTS • Identify special districts with fire protection responsibilities • Potential Study Participants o Cambria CSD o Oceano CSD o San Miguel CSD o Santa Margarita FPD o Templeton CSD • Organizational and fiscal differences between CSD and FPD • Governance Section 2: INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPATING SPECIAL DISTRICT SITUATION ANALYSIS • Special District Protection area characteristics • What is the issue and what has district done to resolve it • Special District Desired Outcome • District Fire Department Characteristics • Special District Fire Department Funding/Budget • Special District Employees • Facilities • Apparatus • Equipment SECTION 3: COUNTY FIRE RELATIONSHIP TO SPECIAL DISTRICT • Proximity of County Fire Jurisdiction and Coverage area • Location of County Fire resources • County Fire Service Level determination (Urban, Suburban, Rural, etc.) • Cost for County Fire to provide appropriate service level for district • Transition Impacts to County Fire SECTION 4: TRANSITION PROCESS AND STEPS • District Required Actions • County Required Actions • LAFCO Required Actions Item 10.a. - Page 44 Page 15 of 155 STUDY METHODOLOGY This study utilized a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods through data gathering from official sources and interviews with representatives of organizations and districts. SCOPE OF WORK The study was guided by a scope of work approved by the County Board of Supervisors to research facts and current circumstances related to each of the five (5) districts. • Cambria CSD • Oceano CSD • San Miguel CSD • Santa Margarita FPD • Templeton CSD The goal of the study was to determine the current state of fire protection delivery in the five districts, challenges, sustainability, and risk of a district either divesting (CSD) or dissolution (FPD) and affecting the delivery of fire protection. DISTRICTS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE In June 2018, invitation letters were sent to each district explaining the purpose of the study, attaching a copy of the scope of work and advising that participation in the study was voluntary. The letter asked each district to identify representatives (ideally including an elected board member, general manager, and the fire chief) for study team interviews in August. All five districts agreed to participate and provided representatives for interviews. CAL FIRE/County Fire staff were also interviewed. The study interview team consisted of Lisa Howe, County Administrative Office, and Mike McMurry and Dan Turner, consultants. Lisa Howe was unable to attend the follow -up meetings with Templeton and Cambria, nor the meeting with County Fire staff. DATA GATHERING AND INTERVIEWS McMurry and Turner prepared a guided questionnaire for purposes of gathering consistent hard data prior to the interviews and standard questions during the interviews. During July, McMurry and Turner collected hard data by obtaining official information from LAFCO, County - Auditor Controller, Tax Collector, Treasurer, Tax Assessor, County Counsel, County Clerk- Recorder, County Fire, and County Administrative Office. Data collection was followed by in- person interviews or written correspondence with the manager and/or staff of the above organizations. Item 10.a. - Page 45 Page 16 of 155 The study team was aided by the Fire Districts Association of California in conducting a simple email survey with fire districts across California. The survey asked if any districts; 1. receive any funding support from their county general fund; 2. receive any sales or TOT; 3. receive any Proposition 172 funding from their county. During August, interviews were held with Cambria CSD, San Miguel CSD, Templeton CS D, and Santa Margarita FPD. Oceano CSD was unable to schedule an interview day and time until late September. Follow-up interviews were held with Cambria CSD and Templeton CSD to clarify information and, in the case of Cambria CSD, to include an elected of ficial who was not able to attend the previous meeting. All districts had at least one meeting with the fire chief and one or more elected members of the board of directors. All CSD general managers were present for the interviews except Cambria CSD. Santa Margarita FPD’s fire chief also serves as the general manager/executive officer which is common for fire districts. San Miguel’s fire chief is also serving as the interim general manager for the district. Interview team also interviewed the CAL FIRE/County Fire Department Fire Chief and key staff members. The purpose of the interview was to hear from the districts about their circumstances, plans, requests, and potential for change in fire service delivery model. Team questions to district representatives included district governance, finance and administration, employment status of fire staff, current fire department staffing models, success and challenges in recruiting and retaining firefighters, challenges to sustaining their model, funding sources and revenue enhancement tools utilized, plans for new revenue, outstanding liabilities, district demographics and unique fire protection special hazards affecting service level, facilities, apparatus, and equipment, training, fire marshal/prevention, disaster planning, fleet maintenance, and dispatch service. During the interviews, presentations were made by the team on the purpose and scope of the study, Proposition 13, Tax Rate Areas for each district, assessed value growth, sales taxes, Transient Occupancy Taxes (TOT), incident activities and response concentration patterns. The team provided response time studies for mutual aid and other agency response times that reflect coverage for the district if the district fire station were to close. FINDINGS AND REPORT McMurry and Turner analyzed the gathered data and interview information to prepare a report that identifies facts, statements from districts, and findings. Facts are based on quantif iable or observable circumstances. Statements from district representatives are presented in the report as opinions or statements. Findings are published as either fact, statement, or opinion of district representatives. The Study team prepared findings, but no recommendations. Item 10.a. - Page 46 Page 17 of 155 SPECIAL DISTRICT ORGANIZATION INDEPENDENT SPECIAL DISTRICTS Independent special districts are autonomous government agencies with locally elected boards of directors. Special districts are often formed to deliver services the community needs or desires above and beyond current service levels. Community Service Districts (CSD) are independent, autonomous government agencies authorized by the Principal Act, California Government Code Sections 61000-619343. Special districts are governed by Principal Acts (state law) and can deliver and fund a range of services. They are fully independent in governance, the provision of services, and funding; neither governed nor financed by county government. Special districts can include both incorporated (city) and unincorporated territory within its boundaries. Special districts can be single service, such as Santa Margarita Fire Protection District, or can deliver a range of allowed services, including fire protection, such as the four community service districts in the study (Cambria CSD, Oceano CSD, San Miguel CSD, Templeton CSD). A separate Principal Act (State Law) regulates each type of District. The powers of a district are subject to activation by LAFCO when it is formed or through a separate process. DEPENDENT SPECIAL DISTRICTS Dependent special districts are also autonomous government agencies. The significant difference is they are governed by the County Board of Supervisors, or in the case of a city, the city council, as the board of directors of the dependent special district. The governing actions the Board takes must be separate from general government activities. County Service Areas (CSA) are a common dependent special district that can provide a variety of services pursuant to the Principal Act authorizing CSAs. The County currently has a number of CSA’s providing various services to unincorporated communities. COMMUNITY SERVICE DISTRICTS (CSD) This study includes four (4) Community Service Districts (CSD) that provide fire protection service. When the CSDs were formed, several single service districts were dissolved and those services, including fire, became part of the CSD. The following CSDs provide fires services: • Cambria CSD was formed and the Cambria Fire Protection District was dissolved • Oceano CSD was formed and the Oceano Fire Protection District was dissolved • San Miguel CSD was formed and the San Miguel Fire Protection District was dissolved • Templeton CSD was formed and the Templeton Fire Protection District was dissolved 3 California Government Code, Sections 61000-61934 Item 10.a. - Page 47 Page 18 of 155 • Los Osos CSD and Avila Beach CSD provide fire protection as an active CSD service; in both cases, they absorbed the local fire protection districts. Both currently retain the power for fire protection but contract for fire protection service delivery through the County Fire Department and CAL FIRE. There are eight (8) CSDs in the county that did not activate their latent power to provide fire protection; the County Fire Department and CAL FIRE provide fire protection as the jurisdictional fire agency. California Valley CSD Heritage Ranch CSD Nipomo CSD Linne CSD Ground Squirrel Hollow CSD Squire Canyon CSD San Simeon CSD Independence Ranch CSD Figure 5 CSD's that have not activated latent authority for fire protection CSDs may provide a variety of services to the public based on the authorizing statutes, including fire protection, water, wastewater, solid waste management, lighting, and other services. CSDs may provide some or all of the services that the enabling statutes authorize. In order to provide other authorized services not currently provided (known as latent powers), the district applies to LAFCO for activation of a latent power. LAFCO has the authority to approve or deny the request to activate latent powers by a district. CSDs may levy taxes and incur bonded indebtedness with voter approval and may establish service charges, borrow funds and enter into contracts with action by the Board of Directors. Most CSDs have a general manager that reports to the governing board of directors. The district fire chief and other district department heads report to the general manager. In some small CSDs, the general manager may be responsible for department functions as well. The most common formation of a CSD is a result of two or more single service independent special districts within a community consolidate in an effort to share resources, coordinate service delivery, and reduce overhead. All four CSDs in this study were formed by joining multiple single-purpose districts, including an independent fire protection district, into a CSD. Funding streams, including property tax allocations, from the previous independent special districts, became funding for the CSD. The property tax allocation formulas are transferred to the newly formed CSD. When the fire protection districts moved to a CSD, their fire property tax share moved with them to the new agency. In some instances , the fire tax retains its tax role identity (San Miguel), in the others, the tax role identity is gone and property tax funds go to the general fund of the district. Until the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, special districts in California relied heavily upon ad valorem property taxes for revenues. A district was empowered to set an individual tax rate based upon its own funding needs in order to support services. Proposition 13 instituted a system of statewide maximum tax rates ($1 per $100 of assessed value) collected and Item 10.a. - Page 48 Page 19 of 155 distributed by counties. For special districts that relied heavily on property taxes to provide public services, the Proposition 13 measure had particularly adverse consequen ces. Because the distribution formula was based on each district’s historical proportional share, those districts with a low proportionate share were faced with very lean financial prospects in the future. This is particularly true where fire protection was by a volunteer fire department. Many of those financial limits that were established forty years ago continue to bind the finances of special districts. FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICTS (FPD) Santa Margarita Fire Protection District is the single remaining fire protection district within San Luis Obispo County. There were originally ten (10) fire protection districts in San Luis Obispo County. 4 All four CSDs in this study were created by merging an existing fire protection district with one or more single-purpose districts. California Fire Protection Districts (FPD) are “single purpose” special districts that , different from CSD’s, are established under sections 13800-13970 of the California Health and Safety Code5 (Principal Act). These Districts are governed by an elected Board of Directors and have specified service areas or boundaries. The statutes identify the process for formation, governance, finance and the general powers and duties of an FPD amongst other parameters. FPD’s may be formed of incorporated or unincorporated, contiguous, or non-contiguous territory. FPD’s may levy taxes with voter approval, incur bonded indebtedness for acquisition, construction, completion or repair of district facilities, and enter into contracts. The most common administrative model for FPDs is for the fire chief to also be the chief administrator and report directly to the governing board of directors. In many areas of the State, FPDs were formed as a method of providing fire protection in areas where little other government services were available. At their inception, most were formed as primarily volunteer organizations. As population growth and demand for services has increased, many of these volunteer organizations have morphed into full-time career staff fire agencies. There are currently 346 FPDs in California6. The primary funding source for FPDs is property tax. Property tax revenues are based on post Prop 13 distributions. Since many of these FPDs were all volunteer firefighters and not funding fulltime staff at the passage of Prop 13 their property tax share was very low. As a result of this 4 SLO County LAFCO; Inventory of Special Districts in San Luis Obispo County; 1985 5 California Health and Safety Code, Sections 13800-13970 6 Little Hoover Commission Report, Special Districts: Improving Oversight & Transparency Report #239, August 2017 Item 10.a. - Page 49 Page 20 of 155 low tax rate when Prop 13 distributions were made, the FPDs were allocated a small percentage of the 1% tax allocation. Changing from all volunteer to career staff is extremely expensive (about $1.3 million per year) and without large increases in assessed value in the district, property tax revenue alone cannot fund the cost difference. The disparity of rates of growth in communities throughout the State and the formulas for allocation of property tax revenues has led to an inability to adequately fund emergency services in some communities (particularly small communities) and rural areas. LAFCO PROCESS TO CHANGE FIRE PROTECTION SERVICE DELIVERY MODEL ACTIONS BY LAFCO LAFCO has several mechanisms that can help address the fire service issues faced by local communities7. LAFCO actions are typically applied for by the District, City, County, or through a petition of the landowners or registered voters. LAFCO can also initiate an application if a special study or Municipal Service Review calls for certain action. The following is a brief summary of the tools that LAFCO can use to facilitate a change in the service model. LAFCO STUDIES MUNICIPAL SERVICE REVIEW LAFCO is required to update the Sphere of Influence and Municipal Service Review (MSR) every five years or as necessary. A MSR can be completed for each jurisdiction or focused on a particular service, like fire. Similarly, LAFCO can undertake a Municipal Service Review of the fire service as a service function by reviewing fire service delivery for the entire county across all jurisdictions or for a particular geographic part of the County. Creation of a new fire protection district that combines multiple special district territories or a countywide district is often based on a fire service special study or municipal services review similar to the study completed in San Diego County.8 However, the formation of a new fire district can also be applied for directly by a County, a City or by a community. LAFCO SPECIAL STUDIES The Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Act allows LAFCO to conduct special studies the Commission deems necessary to complete its mission. For example, a special study could be completed to analyze the fire service situation in the County. This has been done by other LAFCOs around the 7 Communication with David Church, Executive Director, San Luis Obispo County LAFCO 8 Communication with David Church, Executive Director, SLO County LAFCO Item 10.a. - Page 50 Page 21 of 155 State, most notably San Diego. There are consultants around the state that specialize in this topic and the study could be focused on the selected issues and topics. CHANGE IN FIRE SERVICE PROVIDER ACTIVATION OF A LATENT POWER OF COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT A Community Service District can choose to activate their latent powers to provide fire protection within the boundaries of their district. The application to activate the Community Service District’s latent fire authority must be considered and approved by LAFCO. A Plan for Service must be approved by the district and agency that currently provides fire protection service in the district. The plan must include financing and any tax transfers, level of service to be provided, transition plans of any personnel and assets, and timetable so no lapse of service occurs. DISSOLUTIONS Dissolution means the district dissolves and no longer exists; all services provided by the district would be assumed by another agency. For example, the Cayucos Fire Protection District board of directors applied to LAFCO for dissolution. The required Pla n for Service, approved by the county, district, and LAFCO was followed by a local protest period opportunity for voters and landowners to protest the dissolution. There were less than 25% protests filed and the dissolution was approved. The Cayucos FPD will cease to exist once the full transition is accomplished. Fire protection delivery, assets, property tax and special tax revenues of the former district will transfer to the county as the successor agency. For this study, “dissolution” would only apply to the Santa Margarita Fire Protection District (SM FPD, which is a single purpose independent special district). To dissolve the fire district, the SM FPD board of directors must agree that relinquishing fire protection is in the best interest of the district and apply to LAFCO for dissolution. A Plan for Service must be approved by the district and submitted as part of the LAFCO application. The successor agency that will assume fire protection service in the district is also identified. The plan must include financing and tax transfers, level of service to be provided, transition plans of any personnel and assets, and timetable so no lapse of service occurs. LAFCO must follow state law to consider approval or denial of a district’s dissolution process. Dissolution is also subject to the protest process. DIVESTITURE OF A CSD POWER A divestiture would result in a CSD relinquishing authority to provide a service and enable a successor agency to provide said service. The Board of Directors must agree that relinquishing Item 10.a. - Page 51 Page 22 of 155 fire protection is in the best interest of the district. The Board of Directors can apply to LAFCO to divest their fire authority by submitting a resolution to LAFCO stating the district’s intent . Divestiture of CSD fire protection authority, as a process, would apply to Cambria CSD, San Miguel CSD, Templeton CSD, and Oceano CSD. A Plan for Service must be approved by the district. The successor fire agency that will provide the service must agree to the plan for services. The plan must include financing and tax transfers, level of service to be provided, transition plans of any personnel and assets, a budget that includes revenues and costs, and timetable so no lapse of service occurs. LAFCO must follow a specific process and timeline within state law to consider approval or denial of a district’s divestiture request. The divestiture is subject to the protest process. CONSOLIDATIONS A Consolidation is the combining of two districts into one. If the directors of two Districts are in favor of a consolidation, a plan of service must be prepared and approved by both districts and LAFCO. If the application is agreed to by the two districts, LAFCO is required to approve the consolidation but can add conditions of approval. LAFCO also has the authority to initiate consolidations or other reorganizations in the best interest of providing local services. NEW GOVERNANCE MODELS FOR FIRE PROTECTION SERVICE DELIVERY FORMATION OF COUNTY SERVICE AREA A County Service Area (CSA) is a dependent special district governed by the County Board of Supervisors and delivers services to a specified area of the unincorporated area of the county. CSAs are routinely used in San Luis Obispo County for Public Works services such as roads, lighting, and water/sewer where the county is the service provider. The County Board of Supervisors can apply to LAFCO for the creation of a County Service Area (CSA) solely for the purpose of providing fire protection. The CSA boundaries can cover a portion or the entire unincorporated area. CSA 9i is currently the only CSA exclusively used for fire protection in San Luis Obispo County. Additionally, the County could activate the latent fire authority of an existing CSA to provide fire services to unincorporated areas. This model is being used for Cayucos FPD by activating the latent authority for fire protection in CSA 10. Item 10.a. - Page 52 Page 23 of 155 FORMATION OF DEPENDENT SPECIAL DISTRICT A dependent fire protection district, governed by the County Board of Supervisors, can be formed and deliver fire protection services to specified areas of the unincorporated county and/or cities. The County Board of Supervisors would apply to LAFCO for the creation of the dependent fire protection district. The district boundaries can cover a portion or the en tire county. This model is used in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties for their county fire departments. ZONES OF BENEFIT Zones of Benefit are specific areas established within a jurisdiction to fund a service or increase a service level that is different than the general services provided throughout the rest of the jurisdiction. The zone may be used to fund basic services or extra staffing, special equipment or special services such as delivery of higher level paramedic services by a fire agency in only a portion of their jurisdiction. The zone of benefit includes a funding mechanism to pay for the extra services delivered when the voters within the zone approve the extra fees or taxes (similar to Prop 218 or Mello-Roos district approval process). There may be multiple zones of benefit in a CSA or district. NEW FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT FORMATION A new Fire Protection District can be formed to provide services to a community or various communities. The new district can either be a dependent (governed by Board of Supervisors) or an independent district. Some counties have county-wide fire districts to provide fire services to a variety of incorporated and unincorporated areas. JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY (JPA) A joint powers authority is authorized by California Government Code Sections 6500 et.seq. A JPA is the joint exercise of power and authority to provide a service of common interest to the communities. Counties, cities and special districts may be parties to a joint powers agreement. JPAs have a board of directors that is made up of representatives of the member agencies as identified in the joint powers agreement. A JPA may provide whatever cooperative services the member agencies are authorized to provide. In 2010, the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA) was created to provide fire protection in the cities of Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and Oceano CSD. The JPA members are the City of Arroyo Grande, City of Grover Beach and the Oceano Community Service District. The FCFA JPA has a three-member board of directors made up of an elected official from each member agency designated as the JPA board representative. The fire chief reports directly to the JPA board of directors and manages the daily fire protection operations within all three communities. Funding for FCFA is through a cost-share formula and agreement approved by the FCFA Board of Directors. Item 10.a. - Page 53 Page 24 of 155 OVERVIEW OF CHALLENGES FACING DISTRICTS SPECIAL DISTRICTS PROVIDING FIRE PROTECTION California special districts were formed to provide services that fit the individual community’s needs. They are very proud of their history and put high importance on the autonomy of governance and can be fiercely independent. Districts in San Luis Obispo County, similar to special districts statewide that provide fire protection, face major challenges related to sustaining an effective fire protection system: • Governance and Service Future • Cost vs. Funding • Fire engine staffing costs • Volunteer recruitment and retention • District demographics • SAFER Grants • Equipment replacement • Leadership and specialist services GOVERNANCE AND SERVICE FUTURE All five (5) study districts have considered or are currently considering significant changes in the manner they deliver fire protection in the future. Funding, cost of necessary services, community willingness to approve tax or fee increases, volunteerism changes, career staffing cost, depth of resources, and leadership challenges are the root of these considerations. The ability to sustain existing service levels and respond to future demands is uncertain for all districts. All of the CSDs were formed by including the fire protection district as a core service and each community cherishes the original volunteer fire district legacy. The changes considered range from raising funds to sustain the current operation, contracting out the service, merging with another agency, or dissolution/divestiture of the district’s fire protection authority to the county. These are not easy decisions. Since all the study districts are in the unincorporated area, the county is concerned with the sustainability of fire protection, funding options, and being the successor agency if divestiture or dissolution occurs. One consideration being proposed is the County augment district fire protection funding by a permanent property tax exchange. Providing financial assistance for fire protection will require redirection of county general fund financial resources from other county services. Financial assistance from the county may change the independence of the district as well as creating funding assistance expectations from other districts. Divestiture may also Item 10.a. - Page 54 Page 25 of 155 create financial burdens on the county if the district revenue is insufficient to fund County Fire cost at the same time that the closure of Diablo Canyon Power Plant will affect the county’s single largest property tax source. COST VS. FUNDING The primary problem is significant cost increases, inadequate property tax funding, and very limited opportunities for districts to increase revenue. Costs increase dramatically when fire departments transition from primarily volunteer fire staff to career staff. Staffing one fire engine with 2 career firefighters 24/7 increases costs by about $1.3 million per year. Fire department funding is discussed in more detail in subsequent sections of this report. All five study districts reported they do not have adequate funding to provide the baseline fire protection services they believe should exist in their communities today, and see the situation getting worse over the next 5-10 years. Cost for maintenance of effort is increasing faster than tax growth. Property tax is the primary source of funding for fire protection in special districts. Raising property taxes is very difficult after Prop 13 since it requires a 2/3 voter approval. Further, allocation formulas established by the State legislature are now forty years old and have not kept up with changes in community demographics. Districts have no independent authority to raise sales tax, Transient Occupancy Tax, or other non-property taxes that cities and counties can use to increase revenue. Assessed valuation growth alone is the primary driver of additional revenue. New development often does not raise enough taxes to fund added service demand. Some districts are too small, with too few parcels to equitably spread the increased tax burden. They also have difficulty obtaining the 2/3 majority required to enact benefit assessment fees to keep up with growth in costs. VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION One of the questions often asked by policymakers is why more volunteers can’t be added to provide fire protection services? While there is no single answer, there are a series of influencing factors that affect a community’s ability to recruit and retain qualified volunteer firefighters. Volunteer firefighter programs are dynamic and require constant care and nurturing. They can erode quickly and often without much fanfare. In small communities where there are no other options, volunteer fire agencies continue to provide fire protection services. However, even those communities, where the volunteer fire station is the hub of the town, are struggling to maintain an adequate fire protection force to respond to emergencies. There is a shift regarding volunteer firefighters over the last couple of decades. Volunteer programs are based on community volunteers that participate in training, work at their regular jobs in the local community and respond to emergencies when they occur. Today, as fire Item 10.a. - Page 55 Page 26 of 155 departments respond to more than fires and the amount of emergency incident activity increases, volunteers need and are expected to spend more time with the fire department at the expense of family or work time. This leads to volunteer burnout. Competing volunteer opportunities for community-oriented people along with other demands for time contribute to a reduction of fire service volunteers. Secondarily, there is a significant shift towards people using volunteer firefighter positions as an internship for a career in the fire service and turnover in this group is high. Developing volunteer/PCF fire officers takes time and experience. When PCF turnover is high developing officers is difficult. INDEPENDENT VS. DEPENDENT VOLUNTEER OPERATIONS There are two scenarios for fire agency volunteer operations. The first is the independent fire department model. The independent model is inclusive of all fire agency responsibilities. In addition to emergency response, the agency is responsible for governance, administration, incident command, fire prevention, training and all other aspects of the operation. Santa Margarita and San Miguel are two examples of independent primarily volunteer operations. The cost of the independent model tends to be somewhat higher since, in these examples, the districts are responsible for all aspects of fire protection within their jurisdiction and associated costs, including funding a fire chief. The dependent fire department model is typically viewed as a satellite station within a larger organization where the volunteers provide emergency response service under the management of the fire chief of a larger organization. Governance, administration, incident command, fire prevention, training, and other support services are provided by the larger organization. County Fire operates two fire stations as dependent volunteer fire stations: Station 34 at Oak Shores and Station 14 at Morro Toro. County fire provides the overhead and logistical support for those stations. Item 10.a. - Page 56 Page 27 of 155 VOLUNTEER FIRE OPERATION MODEL BUDGET For illustration purposes, a model budget for an independent volunteer fire operation is included here. The illustration does not include fire chief compensation or benefits but does provide a stipend for all volunteers. The intent is to illustrate the cost of operating an independent volunteer company as a baseline. Volunteer/PCF Fire Budget No career employees salary or benefits (Fire Chief costs are separate and unique to each agency) Salaries and Benefits Salaries/Stipends 25,000 Payroll taxes 3,000 Workers Comp 15,000 Uniforms 4,000 Extra help/contract labor 5,500 Sub Total 52,500 Services and Supplies Personal protective equipment 10,000 Building and facility maintenance 8,000 Fleet Maintenance 9,500 Misc. expense 10,000 Office expense 3,000 Supplies 25,000 Professional services or admin (legal, accounting, election) 32,000 Dues, permits and fees 7,000 Communications/Dispatch 24,000 Employee travel and training 10,000 Utilities 5,000 Bank fees 1,800 Sub Total 145,300 Other Charges Contributions to Govt. Agencies 5,000 Sub Total 5,000 Equipment Replacement Fund (varies by number of apparatus/equip) 30,000 Contingency (5%) 11,640 Total Budget 244,440 Figure 6 Model Budget for Independent Volunteer/PCF Fire Station While this model budget is intended to be representative of the costs of a baseline independent volunteer operation, the specifics within each district will vary. Item 10.a. - Page 57 Page 28 of 155 FIRE ENGINE STAFFING COSTS The cost of adding full-time career staffing for fire protection is a big cost increase for the districts. Included below are the budget costs for a two-person engine company and three- person engine company staffed by Cal Fire. While the districts have varying payroll costs, the Cal Fire rates are illustrated here as a benchmark comparison and are representative of the County’s cost under the Cal Fire contract for the same staffing standard. COUNTY FIRE STAFFING COSTS Including labor, benefits, uniforms, State and County administrative fees Excluding all operational costs, except uniforms Two Person Staffing (fill two seats, 24/7) Ratio of positions to seats: 3 to 1 FY 2018/2019 costs Positions Cal Fire County Comb. Cost Seats Req. per Total FTEs Cost Overhead per Position to Fill Seat Cost Fire Apparatus Engineer $190,986 $6,685 $197,671 1 3 $593,013 3 Fire Captain $226,906 $7,942 $234,848 1 3 $704,544 3 Annual Total $1,297,557 6 Three Person Staffing (fill three seats, 24/7) Ratio of positions to seats: 3 to 1 FY 2018/2019 costs Positions Cal Fire County Comb. Cost Seats Req. per Total FTEs Cost Overhead per Position to Fill Seat Cost Fire Apparatus Engineer $190,986 $6,685 $197,671 2 3 $1,186,026 6 Fire Captain $226,906 $7,942 $234,848 1 3 $704,544 3 Annual Total $1,890,570 9 Note: 1. Labor rate calculated at top step 2. All personnel at senior level leave credits. 3. Cal Fire cost includes salary, benefits, State admin. fee and uniforms Figure 7 County Fire Department Staffing Costs DISTRICT DEMOGRAPHICS There are several demographic factors that impact a special district’s revenue. - Post Proposition 13 property tax allocation - Assessed valuation - Parcel count - Potential for Growth - Population - Economy of scale Item 10.a. - Page 58 Page 29 of 155 Post-Proposition 13 Property Tax Allocation The amount of property taxes a district receives is based on two (2) factors: 1. Assessed valuation, 2: percentage of the Prop 13 tax allocation received by the district. A district with a high percentage of the Prop 13 allocation and high assessed valuation will generate the most revenue and has the best potential for sustainability. Districts having either low assessed valuation or low percentage of tax share are very susceptible to financial shortfalls. Districts that had all volunteer fire departments at the passage of Prop13 usually receive very low percentages of the tax allocation. Assessed Valuation Assessed valuation is the most important factor influencing district revenue, even districts with a high percentage of TRA allocation in a district with low AV receive little tax growth. Low-value development will generate low property taxes that may be less than the cost of services required. Likewise, a high-value development with low service demand can be a major financial assist. Districts have no land use control over the type of development in their district. Parcel Count One method for districts to raise revenue is charging voter-approved benefit assessment fees to each parcel. If there are too few parcels, the rate per parcel will be too high to reasonably spread the tax burden. Districts with more parcels to spread the cost across can achieve their revenue needs at a lower rate per parcel. Potential for Growth Vacant land inside the district is the future tax base needed to fund fire service. If a district is built out with little room for expansion or infill, the revenue future is bleak. Even districts with large growth potential do not control land use or development inside the district. However, they are required to provide services to the newly developed growth areas even if the growth does not generate enough revenue to cover costs. Population There is a difference in fire protection impact and revenue generated by resident and mobile populations. More people in a district’s service area equates to more emergencies and a higher workload. However, more people do not equate to higher revenues for the district providing the service, especially if the population increase is from non -residents (commuters, tourists, etc.) since they do not contribute to property taxes. Mobile populations primarily contribute tax revenue through sales tax and Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). Sales taxes and transient occupancy taxes are funding sources not available to special districts. Economy of scale Special districts have finite resources and flexibility. Economies of scale can be difficult in small districts where staff costs or equipment costs (which are the same costs as bigger districts) are spread over a smaller base. Districts attempt to economize by sharing with other agencies, Item 10.a. - Page 59 -- Page 30 of 155 where practical, for specialized resources they need access to but do not need to own. For example, this is common practice with very expensive ladder truck apparatus and specialty response teams, such as hazardous materials and certain specialty rescue teams. SAFER GRANTS Three of the study districts used SAFER grants (Cambria, Oceano, and Templeton). The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grants (SAFER) was created to provide federal funding directly to fire departments to help them increase or maintain the number of trained, "front line" firefighters available in their communities. The goal of SAFER is to enhance local fire departments' abilities to comply with staffing, response and operational standards established by the NFPA (NFPA 1710 and/or NFPA 1720).9 The grants are awarded by FEMA. SAFER grants typically cover costs of staffing for three years based on the fire agency’s cost. Once the grant runs out, the expectation is the local agency will continue to employ and fund the positions the grant funded. In this study, none of the three districts had a funding mechanism in place to sustain the positions when the grant expired. Cambria attempted a benefit assessment fee ballot measure for funding, but there was not enough voter support to succeed. In all three cases, the SAFER funded firefighters were cut back. EQUIPMENT REPLACEMENT SINKING OR DEPRECIATION FUND Costs of fire apparatus (fire engines, rescue vehicles, and ladder trucks), portable equipment, and safety equipment (personal protective equipment and self-contained breathing apparatus) have skyrocketed over the past decade. Costs have increased faster than CPI and property taxes. As an example, the County’s most recent purchase of a basic Type 1 fire engine for County Fire was $580,000. Inflationary increases have historically been about 3% per year. According to County Fire, the recently purchased fire engine is estimated to cost about $ 1,000,000 when it is replaced after 20 years; typically 15 years in first line and 5 years as a reserve. To fund equipment replacement districts either budget a replacement sinking fund or borrow funds and repay over extended time. To replace an average structure protection Type 1 fire engine with a twenty-year lifespan (Part in first-line service, part in reserve status), an agency should set aside $30-50,000 per year based on County Fire’s replacement schedule. Each district may have varying life spans and formulas. 9 https://www.fema.gov/staffing-adequate-fire-emergency-response-grant Item 10.a. - Page 60 Page 31 of 155 FACILITY COSTS With the exception of Santa Margarita FPD, fire station facilities were observed to generally be in good condition. Space and facilities for housing full-time staff will need further examination. The cost of constructing “essential services” facilities has become quite expensive. The added structural requirements to meet earthquake standards have driven the costs to more than triple the cost of ordinary construction. This is in addition to meeting current fire service standards for training, crew quarters for mixed genders and adequate apparatus space. Specifics about each district’s facilities can be found in their section that follows. LEADERSHIP AND SPECIALIST SERVICES Volunteer Fire Chiefs are becoming increasingly rare; even part paid fire chiefs are unique. Finding a community member to serve as a volunteer or part-time fire chief has become very difficult. Qualified volunteers, who face increased legal mandates and personal liability, are often dissuaded from taking on the workload. Additionally, the fire chief of a small fire department (paid or volunteer) needs to be the “go to” manager, supervisor, budget director, emergency incident commander, fire marshal, investigator, and trainer for members of the agency. Frequently, due to expense, there is no assistant chief or other chief officer. Essentially, the fire chief is always on duty. Therefore, it is difficult to take time off or being out of the district for professional or personal purposes. There is less incentive for shift firefighters to promote to leadership positions. They see the day to day work obligations of fire chiefs and do not aspire to take on that load. As development, technology, and new hazards become more complex, the demand for specialists increases. Applying the fire code to one of a kind development, or an industrial hazard that creates special fire department impacts, or managing computer-based “systems” requires contracting out for professional specialist services. Funding for these services is limited. Item 10.a. - Page 61 Page 32 of 155 IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF SPECIAL DISTRICTS LITTLE HOOVER COMMISSION Two separate reports have been published by California’s Little Hoover Commission related to special districts: Little Hoover Commission Report: Special Districts: Relics of the Past or Resources for the Future? in 200010Make districts more visible/transparent o LAFCOs as catalysts for district consolidations, reorganizations, and disillusions o Guidelines for consolidations o Management and designation of reserves o Illustrates issues relative to taxes to enterprise districts and reserve levels LITTLE HOOVER COMMISSION REPORT: SPECIAL DISTRICTS: IMPROVING OVERSIGHT & TRANSPARENCY IN 201711 o Recognizes the variety and different approaches regarding districts statewide o Renews concerns related to property tax allocation and financial reserves of special districts o Recommends that the legislature address several issues related to consolidation/dissolutions o Recommends grant funding for studies related to pending dissolutions/consolidations 10 http://www.lhc.ca.gov/report/special-districts-relics-past-or-resources-future 11 http://www.lhc.ca.gov/sites/lhc.ca.gov/files/Reports/239/Report239.pdf Item 10.a. - Page 62 Page 33 of 155 SPECIAL DISTRICT FUNDING Special Districts’ have few options for generating revenue to fund fire protection and are even more limited with Proposition 13’s passage 40 years ago. Districts use property taxes as the primary funding source for fire protection and non -enterprise services they provide. Property taxes have not kept up with the increased cost of delivering those services. Districts have no authority to use sales tax, transient occupancy tax, or many non-property related funding sources that have enabled cities and counties to keep up with the cost of fire protection and other services. In some cases, Special Benefit Assessment or Mello-Roos districts are being used to bolster property taxes. At the time of passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, all five (5) of the special districts in this study were volunteer fire departments with very small operational budgets. The three (3) largest districts in this study have transitioned to using only paid staff and have serious funding problems (Cambria, Oceano, and Templeton). San Miguel and Santa Margarita, the two smallest, still use Paid Call Firefighters (incentivized volunteers) but are still facing funding problems. San Miguel and Santa Margarita may need to fund full-time staff in the 5-10 year horizon. EVOLUTION OF COSTS VERSUS PROP 13 TAX RATES Special districts are living today with budget decisions their governing boards made forty years ago when voters passed Prop 13. In 1978, community demographics of the study districts only warranted a volunteer fire agency. Fire protection costs were limited to funding equipment and operating expenses while payroll costs were virtually nonexistent. The District Board passed a budget based on these minimal financial needs to support the volunteer operation. Prop 13 and subsequent legislation established those small budgets as the fire protection baseline percentage of the tax rate areas. Small budgets equal a small share of taxes. Changes in the ability to recruit and retain volunteer firefighters along with desired faster reflex time standards (time to assemble the crew and respond to an incident) have created the need to hire career staff. Staffing costs are significant and, once the transition to career staffing begins, the cost changes are abrupt and ongoing. The incremental approach of adding part- time staffing has some limited success as a phased transition from a volunteer operation to full- time staffing. Part-time staffing is not a long-term solution. Cost of full-time staffing and the revenue to fund that cost is the most significant issue facing many special districts in the state that provide fire protection. Assessed valuation increases, and resultant property taxes allowed by Prop 13 ususally cannot keep up with the cost increase from volunteer to full-time staff in small districts. As the community demographics changes and hiring career staff becomes necessary, the revenue vs. cost gap has grown exponentially. 24/7 staffing of a fire engine with two full-time firefighters costs about $1.3 million annually, significantly more than minimal cost of Item 10.a. - Page 63 Page 34 of 155 volunteers/PCFs. Hiring career staff to provide service is the biggest impact on local special district budgets. FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE A SPECIAL DISTRICT’S FINANCES • Proposition 13 • ERAF • Property tax allocation • Assessed value • Growth in Assessed Valuation • Number of Parcels • Enterprise Funds PROPERTY TAX PROPOSITION 13 APPROVED IN 1978 Since fire protection provided by special districts is funded primarily by property tax, it is important to understand California’s Proposition 13 passed as an amendment to the State constitution in 1978. Prior to Prop 13, local agencies (counties, cities, special districts, and schools) independently levied property taxes within their jurisdictions. An annual budget, based on necessary service delivery cost for the coming fiscal year, was passed and authorized by the local agency governing body. The budget was then submitted to the County Tax Collector to develop a tax rate for each property based on all the local agencies that serve that property. The controls on the tax rates were limited and concerns were raised that property owners could not afford the taxes. The average statewide property taxes were 2.67% of the property’s assessed value. Post Prop 13, the tax rate was set at 1% per year of the assessed valuation of real property (which is split between agencies providing services); down from 2.67% statewide average. The initial fiscal year used to establish the baseline assessed values of property and to determine the base property tax was 1975/1976. Growth of property tax is limited to 2% per year. For the most part, reassessment happens at the time of sale of the property. Any special tax that exceeds the 1% baseline requires 2/3 voter approval. The allocation of pro-rated property taxes to public entities is established by State law. Fundamentally, Prop 13 changed how public agencies fund services. Service levels are often determined based on the amount of revenue received as compared to the previous method of determining the cost of the service and setting the funding level. It also significantly changed the relationship between State and local policymakers regarding funding for local services. The comparison below illustrates a side by side comparison of the approaches. Item 10.a. - Page 64 Page 35 of 155 Pre-Prop 13 Post-Prop 13 TAX RATE BASED ON SERVICE COST • Local agency authority and determination of property tax • Each local government set its own rate (within statutory limits) • 6,234 revenue districts statewide • 27,566 tax-rate areas statewide • Local residents influenced the process by their votes for local officials • Expenditure-based budget based on local agency determination of resource needs SERVICE LEVEL BASED ON TAX RATE • The base of 1 % of 1975/76 assessed value (Down from average of 2.67%) • Assessed value increases limited to 2% per year if property not sold • Reassessed at time of sale: base tax is 1% of the new assessed value • Taxes to be distributed “according to state law” • Requires 2/3 voter approval of special taxes over the 1% base amount Figure 8 Pre-Prop 13 vs Post Prop 13 Budget Method EDUCATIONAL REVENUE AUGMENTATION FUND (ERAF) The State has the authority to adjust the property tax distribution formula. The Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund (ERAF) was established in each county and shifted an additional amount of property tax away from special districts, cities and the County to schools to supplant a State general fund shortfall in fiscal years 1992/1993 and 1993/1994. ERAF shifted an additional 12.90% of property tax (in the tax rate area example shown below) from local public agencies to fund schools, and thus reducing the State’s general fund obligation to fund schools. The schools did not receive any additional funding from this ERAF shift, they just received less of their funding from the state general fund and more from local property taxes. The State did not collect the ERAF property tax and send it to schools, they just ordered the local property tax funds to be taken from local agencies (county, district, and city) and distributed to schools. This reduced the state’s obligation for school funding and transferred a portion of the state school funding obligation to local government. All of the non-school recipients of property taxes revenues from the 1% property tax allocation were reduced. The ERAF shifts continue annually to this day and have an ongoing impact to local agencies, including counties, cities and special districts. In the following years, another set of tax shifts were enacted by the State to, again, bail the State out of their deficit. The Vehicle License Fee swap and the “Triple Flip” were two methods of using excess ERAF funds to offset the State’s deficit while using vehicle license fees and sales tax to offset losses by the counties and cities.12 Special districts were left out of this allocation. Property tax is the mainstay revenue source for special districts providing fire protection and, 12 California Legislative Analyst’s Office, “Understanding California’s Property Taxes”, November, 2012 Item 10.a. - Page 65 Page 36 of 155 since they are not authorized to pass a voter-approved sales tax or transient occupancy tax, the effects of the ERAF and VLF, Triple Flip solutions provide no assistance to districts . PROPERTY TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES IN DISTRICTS There are multiple Tax Rate Areas (TRA) throughout the county; each TRA reflects the percentage of the 1% property tax organizations receive. Each TRA has a unique combination of percentages of the tax dollar received by each taxing entity in the TRA. Special districts are comprised of several tax rate areas, each with its own combination of percentages; there is not one tax rate percentage that applies across the entire district. The chart below is a sample from a single tax rate area within Templeton CSD to illustrate the share of property tax received by all of the taxing agencies within that tax rate area. The agencies share each tax dollar collected from this tax rate area based on the percentages shown. Figure 9 Templeton CSD Tax Rate example In this example, Templeton CSD receives 9.96% of the property tax dollars collected within this tax rate area or $620,083 of the $6,227,797 collected. ERAF is 12.9% or $803,385. PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION PERCENTAGE OF THE 1% BASE PROPERTY TAX The property tax funding distribution formulas are set by State law and the State legislature has the authority to revise the formula. There have been several attempts to revise the property Item 10.a. - Page 66 COLLEGE 7.22% Templeton TRA 126-007 Property Tax $6,227,797 Total Taxes Collected in TRA TEMPLETON UNIFIED 37.08% ROADS 0.56% AIR POLLUTION CNTRL 0.07% 0.29% COUNTY LIBRARY 1.87% TEMPLETON CEMETERY 0.46% Page 37 of 155 tax distribution formulas to address the special district funding problem, but none have provided a successful long-term solution. Cities and counties can assess voter-approved sales taxes, transient occupancy taxes, utility taxes and other revenue measures not available to special districts. With a few exceptions, the basic allocation formulas have not changed since Prop 13 passed forty years ago. The foundation for the distribution formula is based upon each taxing entity’s tax rate just prior to the passage of Prop 13. The formula establishes a prorated share of post Prop 13 tax to be distributed to the agency based on what that agency’s percentage of the overall tax share would have been prior to Prop 13 (8% of total property tax bill before Prop 13 receives 8% of new property tax bill). Community Service Districts receive a percentage share of the tax dollar based on the pre Prop 13 share the property tax-supported services (fire, parks, lighting, etc.) to use as a general fund to support services provided by the district. The table below reflects the number of TRAs in each district and the percentage range that goes to the district, ERAF, and the general fund. District Number of TRA’s District Range ERAF Shift Range County General Fund Range Cambria CSD 3 8.9 – 10.49% 12.79 - 15.23% 20.43 – 25.53% Oceano CSD 18 2.5 – 19.15% 11.6 - 16.26% 15.3 – 26.2% San Miguel CSD 9 9.79 – 13.88% 10.9 - 15.58% 15.13 – 20.20% Santa Margarita FPD 2 7.89 - 7.89% 9.5 - 9.5% 22.97 – 22.97% Templeton CSD 11 6.88 – 9.95% 10.98 - 12.90% 19.92 – 25.04% Figure 10 Five district TRA percentage comparison Compares the five district’s Tax Rate Areas (TRA) and property tax percentage range for the district, ERAF, and the general fund. ASSESSED VALUATION Post Prop 13, properties are assessed at the time of construction, or in the case of existing properties, at the time of resale. As a result, communities with little new construction and/or slow turnover of existing property will experience little growth in assessed val uation, even in a robust economy. Property tax funded public agencies that serve communities with relatively low assessed values will generally experience low growth of tax revenue. In some cases, the assessed valuation is too low to support adequate services. PROPERTY TAX, ASSESSED VALUE (AV) AND GROWTH Since the percentage of the tax dollar is set, assessed value (AV) growth is the only way a district’s property tax revenues can increase. Prop 13 limits the increase in taxable assessed value of properties to 2% per year. Item 10.a. - Page 67 Page 38 of 155 New Construction/Development New construction is assessed at the time the project is completed. Growth in the tax base comes from the added value of the new development. Reassessment at Sale Existing properties are reassessed at the time of sale. Increases in assessed value contribute to the growth of the tax base for the district. Communities that are “built out” must rely on growth from sales turnover. The housing market will be the driving factor in the amount of growth or decline that will occur during the sale of a property. Further, if the potential for the annexation of new areas is limited or not probable, the potential for growth is limited to infill within the district’s boundaries. ASSESSED VALUE GROWTH The table below (Figure 16) illustrates the 2017/2018 assessed valuation of the County and each of the five districts in this study and the percentage growth for the last 3 fiscal years . Figure 11 County and special districts property assessed valuations and growth Percentage growth is less determinative than assessed value dollar amount in determining additional revenue for the districts as a result of AV growth; smaller initial AV results in lower tax dollar growth even with higher percentage growth (see figure 17) below. DISTRICT TAX REVENUE FROM ASSESSED VALUE GROWTH What matters most is the overall assessed valuation of the district. A special district with higher assessed value may see large tax dollar increases from a smaller increase in growth percentage. Conversely, special districts with comparatively low assessed values may not gain much property tax even with a relatively large growth percentage. The rate of growth of property tax dollars comes from changes in assessed valuation (AV) multiplied by the percentage of 1% property tax allocated to a district. Assessed valuation percentage changes are only one part of the formula for tax dollar growth; the value in new AV dollars of the growth multiplied by the percentage of the 1% property tax allocation determines new taxes for services. While all the factors work in unison, the base assessed value of a special district is the most significant influencing factor on growth in dollars. T he initial total assessed value has more Assessed Valuation Percent Growth from Prior Year Agency After HOPTR Of Total 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 San Luis Obispo County 49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67% 5.61% Cambria CSD 2,145,909,012 4.3715% 4.69% 3.91% 4.37% Oceano CSD 627,100,773 1.2775% 4.65% 5.74% 3.86% San Miguel CSD 272,887,870 0.5559% 9.15% 11.04% 4.34% Santa Margarita FPD 124,036,860 0.2527% 4.61% 4.31% 3.64% Templeton CSD 1,143,978,918 2.3304% 5.36% 4.01% 6.35% Item 10.a. - Page 68 Page 39 of 155 weight than the percentage of growth. A 2% growth of $2 Billion AV is a $40,000,000 increase in AV and generates $400,000 in new taxes. A 10% growth in a district with $200 million AV is a $20,000,000 increase in AV and generates $200,000 in new taxes. The table below illustrates a similar 5% AV growth and resultant property tax change shared by all tax agencies in the tax rate area (schools, district, county general fund, and others). Districts with low assessed valuation will always struggle. The taxes that the district receives from the tax growth is based on the district’s Prop 13 tax allocation percentage (district ranges are 2.5 19.15%) District Assessed Valuation 5% AV increase 1% tax Total Tax In TRA District's Largest TRA %* Total to District Cambria $2,145,909,012 $107,295,450 1% $1,072,955 10.49% $112,553 Oceano $627,100,773 $31,355,038 1% $313,550 14.34% $44,963 San Miguel $272,887,870 $13,644,393 1% $136,444 13.18% $17,983 Santa Margarita $124,036,860 $6,201,843 1% $62,018 7.90% $4,899 Templeton $1,143,978,918 $57,198,945 1% $571,989 9.96% $56,970 Figure 12 Tax revenue from 5% Assessed value growth Reflects an example of additional tax revenue for districts as a result of a 5% Assessed Value growth. For purposes of this example we use the district tax rate area (TRA) percentage from the district’s TRA that generates the most revenue. Other TRA resul ts will vary. Figure 13 Total property tax allocation for fire by fiscal year PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION FOR FIRE SERVICE The community service districts within the study allocate varying shares of property tax to the fire department for fire protection services. The remainder is allocated to other public services provided by the district. - 500,000 1,000,000 1,500,000 2,000,000 2,500,000 Cambria Community Services District Oceano Community Services District San Miguel Community Services District: Fire Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Templeton Community Services District Property Tax Allocation by District and Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Item 10.a. - Page 69 ■ ■ ■ ■ Page 40 of 155 The table below represents the allocation amount and percentage based on the 2017/2018 fiscal year. 2017/2018 FY Total Property Allocated to Percent of Tax Allocation Fire Total to Fire Cambria CSD 2,263,703 1,620,500 72% Oceano CSD 986,210 914,437 93% San Miguel CSD 547,511 341,497 62% Santa Margarita FPD 103,921 103,921 100% Templeton CSD 1,085,530 796,278 73% Figure 14 Total property tax allocation to each district for fire protection NUMBER OF PARCELS IN A DISTRICT The most common way that districts seek additional revenue is to use a benefit assessment fee or parcel based special tax. Similar to districts with low assessed valuation, the number of parcels in a district influences the amount of assessment required per parcel to generate the new revenue. Spreading the tax burden over a relatively small number of parcels reduces the chances for successful voter approval of a new fee or tax. The table below illustrates using a flat rate parcel-based benefit assessment in each district to raise $500,000 per year in additional revenue. Some parcels (government owned, etc.) are exempt from assessments and will not be included in the assessment. Figure 15 District Parcel count calculation to generate $500,000 ENTERPRISE FUNDS Special districts charge enterprise fees for services such as water, wastewater and sanitation to recover the cost of the service. The fees charged for such services are required to be tracked separately from general fund revenues and are not allowed to be used for anything other than Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 Cambria CSD 6205 $80.58 Oceano CSD 2441 $204.83 San Miguel CSD 1094 $457.04 Santa Margarita FPD 522 $957.85 Templeton CSD 2778 $179.99 Item 10.a. - Page 70 Page 41 of 155 the specific service. Since Prop 13, most CSDs receive little, if any, property tax for their enterprise services. District general fund revenue may be used to support enterprise services. Item 10.a. - Page 71 Page 42 of 155 OTHER FUNDING SOURCES • Benefit Assessment Districts • Community Facility Districts (Mello-Roos) • Ad Valorem Property Tax • Public Facility Fees • Sales Tax (Including Prop 172 Public Safety Sales Tax) • Transient Occupancy Tax • Grants • Annexation • Property Tax Exchange Agreement Benefit Assessment Districts (Proposition 218)13 Benefit assessment fees authorized by Proposition 218 (California Constitution Article XIII D) may be used to fund “Special Benefit” property related services. Special benefit means particular and distinct benefits for the property that is over and above the general benefits conferred on other real property located in the district or for the public at large. Benefits must have a direct nexus to the parcel. Benefit assessments are frequently used to fund water, sewer, and other infrastructure type costs that serve the parcels in the district. Structural fire protection h as been regularly recognized as a special property related service. Ambulance and paramedic services do not qualify as being property related since they are not tied to parcel/property and are general public benefit services. Benefit Assessment Fees are not taxes and are not based on the assessed valuation of the property. The fees are based on the cost of providing the specific service distributed across the affected parcels, either as a flat rate per parcel or a weighted rate per parcel model. An engineer’s assessment is required to determine the benefit and associated cost per parcel. In the two examples that follow, the goal is to raise $500,000 to support the cost of delivery of a service. Each model generates $500,000 in revenue, the cost per parcel varies by model (flat rate or weighted). Flat Rate Model: Each parcel is charged an equal share regardless of land use type. To calculate the per parcel charge; divide the amount of revenue by the number of parcels to be assessed. In the example below: to raise $500,000 in revenue divided by 2698 parcels equals $185.32 per parcel. 13 California State Board of Equalization Item 10.a. - Page 72 Page 43 of 155 Figure 16 Benefit Assessment District: FLAT RATE MODEL In the flat rate model above each of the 2,698 assessed parcels (government parcels are not assessed) is charged the $185.32 per year approved by voters to raise $500,000. There is not a different charge taken for land use types that create a greater demand on the fire department (e.g. special equipment, training, or staffing needs). Weighted Model: Fire protection demand created by each land use type is factored into assessment through the use of a demand fee scale 0-10 (the scale can vary based on engineering study). (The weighted model is used in Cambria, Los Osos, and Cayucos) The weighted model measures the different relevant impact a specific land use type creates on the service delivery (i.e. industrial versus residential land uses). If a specific land use type is shown to create greater demand (and cost) on providing the service, the parcels in that land use type have a higher factor. The engineering study assigns a demand unit factor scale to each land use type based on the level of service delivery demand. Total demand units are calculated by multiplying demand units by parcel count for each land use. Demand Fee is calculated by dividing revenue need ($500,000) by total demand units. In our example below: $500,000 / 7161 total demand units = $69.82 per fee unit. A voter-approved single Benefit Assessment Fee rate (in this case $69.82 per demand fee unit) is multiplied by the demand unit factor. Charges for parcels will differ based on the land use type demand factor. The more demand units for a parcel, the higher the fee. All parcels with similar land use types are charged the same demand fee regardless of assessed value. In the 0-10 scale example below, single-family residential property parcels have a 2 point impact ($69.82 Demand Fee x 2 units= $139.64) and industrial land use parcels have a 10 point impact ($62.82 Demand Fee x 10 units = $698.20) because the industrial parcels create greater impact on fire protection delivery. Total Cost $500,000 Total Parcels in district 2778 Parcel Count Total cost / Total Parcels Assessed $185.32 Total Raised Government, Residual land segment 80 $0 $0 Single Family Resid (SFR) 2030 $185 $376,205 Multi-family residential 145 $185 $26,872 Hospital, medical 4 $185 $741 Vacant Land 301 $185 $55,782 Commercial/Industrial 218 $185 $40,400 Assessed parcels 2698 $500,000 Fee per Parcel Cost per parcel Item 10.a. - Page 73 Page 44 of 155 Figure 17 Benefit Assessment District: WEIGHTED MODEL In the model above, each Land Use Type is assigned a Demand Use Factor (0-10 scale) that represents the relative demand on the delivery of fire protection. The same 2,698 parcels assessed in the previous model are charged different rates than the FLAT RATE MODEL based on the demand unit factor. Note: The assigned demand units are for illustration of the model only and do not represent an actual engineers study. CREATING A PROP 218 SPECIAL ASSESSMENT DISTRICT REQUIRES: • Engineers study and calculations determining assessment per parcel o Revenues shall not exceed the cost of services o Revenues shall not be used for any purpose other than property related service • Agency shall send written notice of the proposed fee to all parcel owners and a hold public hearing about the proposed fee. • Vote to approve fees can take either of two forms: o 2/3 majority of registered voters residing in affected areas. o A simple majority of property owners subject to the fees. Votes are weighted based on the amount each parcel is charged. Under the weighted model, the owner of a parcel with 10 demand units vote counts 5 times more than a parcel owner with 2 demand units. If approved, benefit assessment fees will be added to annual property tax bill. • Cambria CSD has an active Benefit Assessment District originally approved in 1993 to offset the property tax loss from ERAF shift. In 2003 Cambrians re-approved the weighted assessment with a CPI increase allowance (the original had a 10-year sunset clause.) • In 2018 Cambria voters did not approve a separate $62/parcel assessment to fund 3 additional full-time firefighter positions. Total Cost $500,000 Total Parcels in district 2778 Demand Units per Land Use Type Parcel Count Total Demand Units by Land Use Type Total cost / Total Demand Units = Fee per Demand unit $69.82 Total Raised Government, Residual land segment 0 80 0 $0 $0 Single Family Resid (SFR) 2 2030 4060 $140 $283,480 Multi-family residential 4 145 580 $279 $40,497 Hospital, medical 10 4 40 $698 $2,793 Vacant Land 1 301 301 $70 $21,017 Commercial/Industrial 10 218 2180 $698 $152,213 Assessed parcels 2698 7161 Total Demand Units $500,000 Cost per parcel Fee per Demand Unit Item 10.a. - Page 74 Page 45 of 155 • The assessment approved in 2003 remains in effect which will generate $464,000 in2018-19 FY. Cambria’s 2003 approved assessment generated $455,500 in fiscal year 2017/2018. • Oceano CSD is considering a benefit assessment district ballot measure for 2019 or 2020 to provide fire department funding to meet their Five Cities Fire Authority obligation to fund 3 full-time firefighters on duty daily at the Oceano fire station. No previous attempts have been made and they do not have a Mello Roos CFD District. • San Miguel does not have a benefit assessment district • Santa Margarita does not have a benefit assessment district • Templeton CSD unsuccessfully attempted a weighted benefit assessment in 2009. In 2015 the Templeton CSD Board hired a consulting firm to survey the community to determine support for a benefit assessment fee for the fire department. The survey opinion showed insufficient community support for the assessment. The Templeton CSD Board of Directors is considering another attempt at a benefit assessment ballot measure to support fire department funding for August of 2019. • Los Osos CSD and Cayucos FPD have approved benefit assessment districts for fire protection. COMMUNITY FACILITIES DISTRICTS (MELLO-ROOS) Community Facilities Districts (Mello-Roos) are authorized by Government Code 53311 et seq. to fund several types of services. Mello-Roos Districts are most frequently used as a condition of new development to fund extra public services necessitated by the development. Mello-Roos districts can also be created in an existing community to fund either existing or new services. GC 53311 specifically authorizes the use of Mello-Roos Community Facilities Districts for funding of fire protection and suppression services, ambulance, and paramedic services.14 Mello-Roos districts use the same cost calculation and voting methods as Benefit Assessment Districts. Creating a Mello-Roos Community Facilities District Requires: - Determination of cost of services to be covered by tax - Analysis of parcels in the proposed district and pro-rated annual service cost per parcel 14 California Government Code Sections 53311 - 53313 Item 10.a. - Page 75 Page 46 of 155 - Governing body places measure to establish district and parcel costs on the ballot - General election or mail-in ballot voting by registered voters in the proposed district - Requires 2/3 majority registered voter approval to pass; or, a simple majority of weighted parcel fee vote by assessed property owners. During new development, there is usually only one owner (the developer) until lots sell so approval from the developer is all that is needed. • Cambria does not have a Mello-Roos CFD District. • Oceano does not have a Mello Roos CFD District. • San Miguel does not have a Mello-Roos CFD District. • Santa Margarita does not have a Mello-Roos CFD District. • Templeton CSD enacted a Mello-Roos Community Facilities District. The district expects to begin receiving incremental revenue contingent with development. According to CSD representatives, \expectations are to generate $300,000 in ten years and more at full buildout.28. AD VALOREM15 SPECIAL PROPERTY TAX (PROPOSITION 13) Proposition 13 amended the state constitution (Article XIII A) to restrict the increase of Ad Valorem property taxes. Assessed valuation changes are limited to a maximum of 2% increase per year and new taxes based on assessed value require voter approval. If the property tax is restricted for a special purpose, such as fire protection, 2/3 majority of voters is required. If the tax is for general purposes, then a simple majority of voters is required for approval. The new tax is applied as a percentage of the assessed valuation (Ad Valorem) of parcels in the approved tax rate area. Because of the difficulty in obtaining 2/3 majority voter approval, post-Proposition 13 Ad Valorem property tax measures are rarely used to fund fire protection in special districts. Ad Valorem Tax Increases Assessed value (AV) of the taxed area is the determinate of the new tax rate, the higher the AV the smaller the tax increase percentage required to generate a target dollar amount. The tax rate percentage increase required to raise the same amount of revenue in a high AV district is much lower than the percentage required in low AV districts. Conversely, if a district with a low assessed value chooses to seek a voter-approved ad valorem special tax, the associated tax rate percentage will often be too large to garner voter approval since the assessed values are too low to reasonably spread the tax burden. 15 Ad Valorem tax: is a tax based on assessed valuation of property; CA State Board of Equalization Item 10.a. - Page 76 Page 47 of 155 PUBLIC FACILITY FEES (PFF) Public Facility Fees (PFF) are used throughout San Luis Obispo County to mitigate the incremental agency impact of new development.16 The fees are needed to finance Public Facilities and to assure that new development projects pay their fair share for these facilities. The use of the collected fees is restricted to expenditures that increase the capacity or capability of the agency in response to the demand caused by development. "Public Facilities" includes public improvements, public services and community amenities. County PFF are used to fund impacts to County General Government and Administration, Sheriff, Parks, Library, and Fire impacts. District directors may choose to implement PFF for their districts through local ordinance or through County Planning and Building Department. SALES TAXES IN UNINCORPORATED AREA The San Luis Obispo County unincorporated area 7.25% sales tax rate17 is comprised of several components: A. 3.6875% State general fund sales tax B. 0.2500% State general fund sales tax C. 0.5000% State local health and social services revenue fund D. 1.0625% Local revenue Fund 2011 E. 0.2500% County transportation fund F. 1.0000% County general operations G. 0.5000% Proposition 172 special tax for public safety services. 18 7.2500% Total State and County Sales tax The 7.25% rate applies to the entire unincorporated area. The county’s 1% portion of the sales tax revenue is added to the county general fund for general county government services. All cities in San Luis Obispo County have a 7.75% or higher sales tax rate. Incorporated city voters set their own sales tax rate which may differ from the county rate. Special districts do not receive sales tax nor are they authorized to levy a sales tax. PROPOSITION 172 PUBLIC SAFETY SALES TAX Proposition 172 was passed by the voters on November 2, 1993, which added an additional sales tax for public safety to offset some of the ERAF property tax losses by counties and cities. Since special districts do not receive any sales tax, the shifts of property tax to ERAF became 16 Public Facilities Fees are required in accordance with Section 18.04.010 of Title 18 of the County Code. The fee amount is determined through an annual review of the program by the Board of Supervisors. 17 http: www.cdtfa.ca.gov/taxes-and-fees-/sut-rates-description.htm 18 California Government Code Section 30052 Item 10.a. - Page 77 Page 48 of 155 permanent losses of revenue for districts. “Public safety” agencies are typically identified as law enforcement and fire departments when they are funded by general funds. In rare instances, counties share some portion of Prop 172 funds with fire districts, but it is not a common practice. In an agreement struck prior to passage of Prop 172, Monterey County allocates 9% of their Prop 172 revenue to independent fire districts. Santa Cruz County allocates a portion of Prop 172 for a local fire service grant program to fund one-time purchases that have regional benefit.19 The 0.5% Proposition 172 sales tax revenue is restricted for use to fund Public Safet y services. “Public safety” services include sheriff, police, fire protection, district attorney, corrections, ocean lifeguards. “Public safety” services do not include courts20. District Attorney Sheriff- Coroner Probation County Fire County Total 2017-18 FY $3,420,972 $15,422,586 $4,018,487 $2,782,426 $22,398,247 Figure 18 Prop 172 Public Safety Sales Tax Allocation To increase sales tax requires voter approval. The Board of Supervisors can place a measure on the ballot to change the county sales tax rate; if for general fund purposes a simple majority of registered voters is required; if the tax is for a special purpose, such as fire protection, a 2/3 majority is required. The County sales tax rate applies to the entire unincorporated area and cannot be raised selectively in a special district only.21 TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX (TOT) IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREA The San Luis Obispo County unincorporated area 9% Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT), sometimes referred to as Bed Tax, is levied against daily rental properties such as hotels, motels, and vacation rentals. The 9% rate applies to the entire unincorporated area. The 9% County of San Luis Obispo TOT revenue is added to the county general fund for general county government services. FY 15/16 FY 16/17 FY17/18 1% Increase could raise $7,898,812 $8,476,563 $9,580,153 $1,063,624 Figure 19 Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenue 19 Survey of Fire Districts Association membership conducted by study team, July 2018 20 CA Constitution: Section 35, Article XIII; CA Government Code 30056 21 San Luis Obispo County Counsel communication; August 2018 Item 10.a. - Page 78 Page 49 of 155 Special TOT assessment districts can be established (such as Tourism Districts) by a vote of property owners assessed. This is used as a means to fund tourism advertisements and promotions that directly benefit the rental properties. To increase TOT requires voter approval. There are two methods of changing the rate: 1. Voter approval by a majority of property owners assessed TOT (similar to a Prop 218 vote) 2. The Board of Supervisors can place a measure on the ballot to change the county TOT tax rate; if the tax is for general fund purposes a simple majority of voters is required; if for a special purpose, such as fire protection, a 2/3 majority of voters is required. The County TOT tax rate applies to the entire unincorporated area and cannot be raised selectively in a special district only.22 Special districts do not receive TOT and are not authorized to levy TOT. GRANTS All five of the districts within the study have received grant funding from various sources. Grant funding can be an important augmentation to fund one -time expenses such as equipment and facilities. Using grant funding for long-term expenses (staffing) without a plan for sustaining the funding can create layoffs when grant funds expire. One issue related to grants impacting three of the districts (Cambria, Oceano, and Templeton) is the use of SAFER23 grants for staffing. SAFER grants are federal grants awarded to fire agencies on a competitive basis based on demonstrated need by the agency. One condition of the SAFER grants is that the agency is expected to sustain the funding for the added staffing when the 2-3 year grant expires. In all three of the cases in this study, continued funding placed unsupportable pressure on funding from the district’s budget. GRANTS RECEIVED BY THE DISTRICTS Cambria CSD Cambria CSD (CCSD) received a SAFER grant to fund three full-time firefighter positions. With the grant expiring, and desire to retain the employees, CCSD placed a benefit assessment measure to replace the grant funding on the 2018 ballot. The measure did not receive the required 2/3 majority of votes to pass. CCSD applied for another SAFER grant and wa s again selected but the CCSD board of directors turned down the second grant due to concern of a repeat of the inability to sustain funding after the grant terminated. CCSD has received grants to replace personal protective equipment and other equipment. 22 San Luis Obispo County Counsel communication; August 2018 23 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response; U.S. Fire Administration; FEMA, US Dept of Homeland Security Item 10.a. - Page 79 Page 50 of 155 Oceano CSD/Five Cities Fire Authority Oceano CSD is a member of the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA), which provides fire protection in Oceano. FCFA received a SAFER grant to augment staffing in their three stations (including Oceano fire station). The grant has expired and reductions of staff occurred since FCFA member agencies were unable to provide funding for the grant-funded full-time positions. San Miguel CSD San Miguel has received grants for portable equipment, and personal protective equipment. Santa Margarita FPD Santa Margarita FPD relies heavily on grant funding since their property tax revenue is very limited. Santa Margarita FPD has received grants for apparatus, portable equipment and personal protective equipment. Templeton CSD Templeton CSD received a SAFER grant for staffing that ran out in 2016/2 017, budget adjustments were necessary due to insufficient revenues to replace grant funds. The district directors considered a benefit assessment district ballot measure to provide sustained funding but surveys showed inadequate voter support for the measure. Templeton CSD has received grants for personal protective equipment and apparatus upgrades. ANNEXATION Annexation of new territory adds to the district’s tax base typically via a property tax rate transfer agreement with the agency previously providing services. There are no new taxes generated, but rather a transfer of the existing revenue stream to the annexing agency. Once annexed, property tax growth within the newly annexed area will mirror the rest of the district. Community Service Districts cannot annex a single service (fire protection for example). As a result, annexation as a method of growth for the district is not a practical option for CSDs unless they can provide the range of other CSD services. PROPERTY TAX EXCHANGE A property tax exchange agreement is the only option for supporting the district(s) on a permanent basis or funding county operations in event of a district opting for divestiture. Long- term expenses, such as staffing, require a sustainable funding source. Any other form of County General Fund revenue support for the district is subject to annual budget priorities, and is therefore less dependable. Districts should treat it like one -time grant funding. A property tax exchange agreement is a negotiated change in two or more local agencies tax percentage share of the 1% property tax base. The property tax exchange does not generate new revenue it merely redistributes the existing tax dollars. It is commonly utilized when one agency annexes territory previously served by another jurisdiction. The exchange results in the Item 10.a. - Page 80 Page 51 of 155 successor agency receiving property tax revenue the former agency collected for delivering the service in the annexed area. The amount of property tax transferred is negotiable and is usually based on the amount of tax necessary to provide the service. The property taxes exchanged go to the receiving agency’s general fund and may be used for any purpose based on the board of directors’ priorities. Since the property tax revenue amount is set by Prop 13, a property tax exchange to another agency means a reduction of the same amount to either one or all of the other taxing entities in each affected tax rate area. Since property tax exchanges are “zero-sum” propositions, any increase in one agency requires a corresponding decrease in another. If the County agrees to a property tax exchange to support one or more of the districts, negotiations would be necessary to establish the amount of the transfer. The transfer would result in a reduction of the County’s percentage share of property tax within the District’s tax rate areas and a corresponding increase to the District’s percentage. The District would then receive a higher share of property tax and associated growth. One nuance in the law is, for property tax exchanges, the County represents the district and the County in negotiations. If similar to the Cayucos FPD dissolution, a special district board of directors decides to dissolve or divest fire protection, a property tax exchange will be negotiated between the district and successor agency (most likely the County). District property taxes used to support fire protection will transfer to the successor agency to fund the new service provider. If the County is the successor agency, the negotiated property tax transfer will be used to fund the County Fire Department delivery of fire protection. Item 10.a. - Page 81 Page 52 of 155 FIRE AGENCY STAFFING FIRE AGENCY STAFF ISSUES The biggest challenge facing these five districts, and districts across the state, is the cost of transitioning from volunteer to full-time firefighter staffing. The transition from volunteer firefighter organizations to paid staff is a huge financial change. A single fire engine staffed wit h the minimum industry safe standard of two career firefighters is about $1.3 million per year. While two firefighters per apparatus is considered the minimum safe staffing, many fire agencies staff with three firefighters, some with four. Three of the study districts (Cambria, Oceano, Templeton) strive for minimum staffing of three firefighters. The two districts that are still volunteer/PCF based (San Miguel and Santa Margarita) anticipate the need to have at least two career engine staffing in the 5-10 year horizon. In addition to fire engine staffing, districts will ultimately face the cost for a fire chief, fire marshal, prevention and development inspections, administrative and legal support, fleet replacement, dispatch, and training costs. Full-time career staffing is the most expensive component of a fire agency budget. All of the fire departments in this study were originally all volunteer firefighter organizations. Cambria, Oceano (Five Cities Fire Authority), and Templeton no longer use volunteer s firefighters. These three districts currently utilize reserve firefighters; Oceano and Cambria want to phase reserves out completely in favor of all career staff. San Miguel CSD and Santa Margarita FPD utilize paid call firefighters exclusively and have no career firefighters. REDUCTION IN VOLUNTEERISM There is a nationwide decrease in volunteer firefighters and trend toward part-time reserve firefighters on an internship track. The three primary reasons for the decline in community volunteers is; 1. increased training hours required to operate safely and meet mandates; 2. incident activity increasing to the point the volunteer can no longer be away from home/work that much time, and; 3. perceived lack of appreciation by career staff. Training requirements have grown exponentially during the last 40 years to the point community volunteers find it hard to find time to stay current. There are fewer and fewer non - career track community member volunteers or paid call firefighters. Again, there are variations of each of these approaches by different fire agencies, but the trend is that the volunteer, paid call, or reserve firefighter programs have changed from community-based members and are now often viewed primarily as an internship opportunity to achieve a ca reer fire service position. The time commitment to family, work and other community/service volunteer opportunities limit the potential for community members to become fire service volunteers. Item 10.a. - Page 82 Page 53 of 155 FIREFIGHTER CATEGORIES AND TITLES There is an evolution in nomenclature for volunteer firefighter titles. Added training requirements and changes in how recruitment is approached along with filling the gap between volunteer and career firefighters bring revisions to the position titles for many fire agencies. Each fire agency is unique and each may have slight nuances to these definitions. VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER The traditional volunteer firefighter historically has a separate career from the fire service. They are community members who work in town or are stay at home parents and, when dispatched, take time away from their regular duties to respond to emergencies. Training usually occurs after work hours and on weekends, mostly conducted at the fire station by in- house members. Typically, there is no compensation for true volunteers; however, some agencies added a stipend to compensate for expenses for incidents and training. No fire agencies in San Luis Obispo County currently use uncompensated volunteer firefighters. PAID CALL FIREFIGHTERS As many agencies with a volunteer staffing model evolve, stipends and/or hourly rates for response or training were added as incentives. These “Paid Call” firefighters (PCF), like volunteers, usually respond from home or work and are not assigned to work shifts at the station. PCF programs are also implemented as the agency evolves from a primarily volunteer fire agency to a combination career/paid call agency. PCFs provide needed depth of resources for major emergencies. Candidates for PCF programs are a combination of community volunteers and people seeking careers in the fire service. For community volunteers, the change to PCF serves as a recruitment and retention tool. People seeking careers use the emergency response experience and training gained as a PCF as an internship to build their resume’. PCFs are required to complete approximately 200 hours of firefighter academy, emergency medical service, and hazardous materials training before being eligible to respond to emergencies. San Miguel and Santa Margarita use PCFs exclusively; County Fire uses PCFs as part of their staffing models (2 county stations are all PCF; most of the others have a PCF company to augment the career staff). Cambria, Oceano, and Templeton no longer use PCFs. RESERVE FIREFIGHTERS Reserve Firefighters are part-time employees that work shifts at the fire station in addition to being on-call like a volunteer or paid call firefighter. The reserve firefighter may be required to work as few as 1-2 shifts per month or, in some agency programs, the reserves work the same shift patterns and hours as fulltime career firefighters. Reserve programs are designed to either enhance crew cohesion between career and “call” firefighters or to augment the daily staffing levels on duty. Unlike volunteer and PCF programs, reserves are not required to live or work in the community they serve. Some reserve firefighters work for multiple fire agencies to afford to live on the central coast or to obtain experience quickly to enhance their career employment Item 10.a. - Page 83 Page 54 of 155 chances. While effective at augmenting daily staffing numbers, reserve programs are viewed as a relatively short-term solution for attaining desired career staffing. All three of the agencies that use reserves we interviewed, prefer fulltime staffing instead of reserves but cannot afford the cost difference. Agencies pursuing the use of only career firefighters will often establish a reserve firefighter program as a step toward the all career staff goal. Candidates for a reserve firefighter program can be entry level with little training or, more frequently, fully trained to meet at least the entry level requirements for a career firefighter position. Reserves are usually compensated while on duty at the station augmenting on-duty career staff. Generally, since they are considered interns, reserves are compensated at a significantly lower level than career firefighters and usually receive no health insurance or retirement benefits. Compensation is usually insufficient for the reserve to continue in the position as a career and therefore turnover is high. Further, in some instances, the 2 tiered compensation approach can cause animosity between reserves and career staff. Cambria, Templeton, and Oceano use shift assigned Reserve Firefighters to augment on-duty career staff and do not have PCFs. Cambria’s plan is to add a third career firefighter to replace their current reserve they use now for third firefighter engine staffing; the reserve will become the fourth firefighter on duty. Oceano (Five Cities Fire Authority) strategic plan calls for the elimination of the reserve program and replace with only career staff. Templeton plans to use reserves for the second firefighter on their staffed engine for the next 5 -10 years. Neither San Miguel nor Santa Margarita uses Reserves. CAREER FIREFIGHTERS Career firefighters are full-time employees with salary, health benefits, and retirement. Staffing with career firefighters assures availability for an immediate response without the added reflex time of responding from work or home that is associated with volunteer/paid call operations. Typically, districts with career firefighters utilize a 3 platoon scheduling plan to assure 24-hour coverage requiring 3+ people per position to cover the week (Cal Fire’s workweek, while slightly different, uses a variation of this shift pattern.) Additional staff and/or overtime are utilized to cover shift absences caused by sick leave, injuries, and vacation. Compensation is the primary cost driver for districts with career firefighter staffing. In addition to the base salary, other personnel cost impacts include overtime and retirement, health care, and workers’ compensation. Districts have found that the compensation packages must be competitive, or they risk higher rates of turnover as career firefighters seek better compensation packages or situations. COMBINATION OF CAREER, VOLUNTEER, PCF, AND RESERVE Most agencies transitioning from volunteer to career operations have some combination of career and volunteer/PCF/reserve staffing. The advantage of combination programs is most Item 10.a. - Page 84 Page 55 of 155 day to day routine calls can be handled by the on-duty career staff, and for significant emergencies where more personnel are needed, volunteers/PCF/Reserve firefighters augment the response force. FIREFIGHTER RETENTION A number of factors influence an agency’s ability to recruit an d retain high caliber firefighter personnel. On the volunteer/PCF/Reserve front, firefighters want to be appreciated, utilized, well prepared and get experience. A solid training program and opportunities to exercise skills along with a supportive culture will contribute toward retaining good volunteers. Work location and distance from home will also influence participation and retention. It is commonly understood that an emergency workload of 500 calls per year starts to dramatically impact the availability of volunteer and PCF responders. Since most calls occur during daytime hours, 500 calls/year equates to almost 2 calls per day which exceeds how much time an employee or business owner can leave their work to respond without negative impact. Career firefighters are motivated by many of the same factors. Compensation and benefit packages must be competitive to retain qualified staff. EMPLOYMENT RULES, COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT ISSUES Regardless of the title, issues for fire agencies that utilize volunteer/PCFs/Reserves on a shift basis are the employment rules for pay, overtime, benefits, and retirement. Salary Some reserve programs have used minimum wage or slightly higher as the base pay. In these instances, a two-tiered system develops, which can lead to morale issues if compared to career personnel pay scales. As a result, the high turnover of reserve personnel can occur. Overtime The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) delineates the threshold of hours of work fo r firefighters before they must be compensated at premium rates. Under 24-hour coverage models utilizing a three platoon system, some level of scheduled overtime is usually necessary. Based on the model for staffing coverage and hours worked, the same standard applies to volunteers/PCFs/Reserves for “scheduled overtime”24. 24 29 USC Title 29 Fair Labor Standards, Chapter 8 Section 207 K Item 10.a. - Page 85 Page 56 of 155 Retirement All the districts in this study with career staff contract with Cal PERS for retirement benefits. Cal PERS conducts an annual actuary for those districts. Funding for the retirement program is provided by contributions from the employee and the employer. The employee pays a rate based on a percentage of payroll as established in the authorizing statute for the contracted plan. The employer rates are established by a Cal PERS actuary as a percentage of payroll. Double-digit percentage increases in those employer rates have caused significant financial hardship for some districts. Agencies contracting with Cal PERS for retirement benefits must be aware of the rules regarding the threshold of number of hours worked that trigger the requirement that personnel will be treated as “employees”. Of particular importance, are those volunteer/PCF/Reserve personnel that work on a shift basis. Exceeding the hours identified in the PERS law will trigger the requirement that the special district pays for the Employer’s share of retirement and add the person to the employed roster for retirement benefits.25 Since the actuary considers the unfunded liability of the retirement plan, investment returns by Cal PERS influence the actuarial output. As a result, poor financial returns typically mean that the local agency’s employer contribution will be higher to make up for the poor portfolio performance. Poor investment returns typically occur when the economy is lagging, coincidental to the district’s declining or flat revenues. This creates a perfect storm of increased pension costs that occur simultaneously with declining ability to pay. This cycle has been repeating for many years. Cal PERS has made several attempts to “smooth” the rates, but this is still a significant problem, particularly for small districts where revenue is very limited in the first place and unexpected cost increases can deplete reserves. The growth of the unfunded liability deficit has outpaced the growth in revenue in many areas. Cal PERS provides industrial disability retirement in lieu of disability for member firefighters who are hurt on the job and cannot return to work.26 An industrial disability retirement for a young firefighter who retires after an injury is not only a huge loss for the individual and the district but could have a significant financial impact on the district for years. Actuaries have difficulty statistically accounting for such a loss on a small scale, thus there can be a huge increase in the employer rate to make up for such a loss. OTHER POST EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS (OPEB) Health care is the most common post-employment benefit. Many public agencies have agreed to provide health care after the employee retires. Agencies are now required to determine the liability of those costs by conducting an actuary. Cambria, Oceano , and Templeton have all had actuaries completed to determine the liability. They have taken individual approaches on 25 California Government Code Section 20305 26 California Government Code Section 21400 Item 10.a. - Page 86 Page 57 of 155 funding that liability. While not insignificant, the districts have recognized the liability and established plans for managing it, including changing benefit levels for new employees. San Miguel and Santa Margarita do not have the issue since they do not have career personnel or retirees. WORKERS COMPENSATION Firefighting is a high-risk occupation and, unfortunately, injuries (sometimes serious) occur. As employers, special districts providing fire protection are required to provide workers compensation coverage for firefighters. Insurance providers are often joint powers authorities, State Comp, or self-insurance. Claim costs incurred by the district will most often result in rate increases in the following years, sometimes significant. In addition to the standard worker's compensation coverage for medical expenses, career firefighters are subject to Labor Code 4850 et. seq27. This body of law requires that the firefighter is compensated at his/her full salary and benefit levels during periods of missed work due to a job-related injury. The nature of 24-hour response availability means that the missing firefighter’s shifts will need to be backfilled with either shift transfers or overtime. This equates to 2 to 2 ½ times the normal cost of filling the position, a cost not often easily absorbed into the budget. Workers compensation costs can also be impacted by presumptions of cause of illness or injury. Since firefighting is a very stressful and hazardous occupation, certain claims for illness or injury are presumed to be job-related within the Labor Code. The foundation of the requirement is that the cumulative effect of exposure to toxins and physically demanding work is presumed to be job-related. Cancer, heart trouble, hernia, and tuberculosis are some of the illnesses/injuries to be presumed to arise out of and in the course of employment.28 Such claims can have a serious negative impact on a district in terms of lost time, finance and morale. FIREFIGHTER TRAINING AND MANDATES Firefighters must train to manage extremely dangerous and complicated situations safely and effectively. Fires, vehicle accidents, medical emergencies, rescues, hazardous materials releases, structural collapses, cliff and water rescues, and a multitude of other complex emergencies. To prepare for these challenges firefighter skills and training requirements have grown exponentially. Regardless of their pay status, all firefighter candidates are required to meet the same basic skills requirements before responding to incidents. These mandates have been put in place largely to improve firefighter safety in one of the nation’s most dangerous occupations. 27 California Labor Code, Section 4850 et. seq. 28 California Labor Code, Section 3212 Item 10.a. - Page 87 Page 58 of 155 Over two hundred hours of training are required before a recruit is allowed to respond to emergencies. The training below is mandated in addition to basic firefighting and emergency medical response skills candidates must learn to be safe and effective. • Hazardous environment entry, (2 in, 2 out) CCR, Title 8, Section 5144. • Respiratory Protection (Including requirements for firefighter physicals) • Standardized Emergency Management (SEMS) (CCR Title 19, Section 2400) • Advanced First Aid and CPR (Cal. H&S Code 13969) • Hazardous Materials First Responder, Operational (CFR 1910) • Harassment (1964 Civil Rights Act) • Wildland firefighting certification (RT 130) • Blood Borne Pathogens (CCR Title 8, Section 5193) • Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (Cal. H&S Code) • DMV licensing: Class B (with physical) with air brake and tank or Firefighter Endorsement (For driving fire apparatus) DEPTH OF FORCE Sufficient numbers of staff on the roster for day to day routine incidents is neces sary to provide a basic level of service. There are suggested standards for various fire operations, but the local fire agency determines the numbers and associated levels of service. The level of staffing different fire agencies use is based on funding, demographics, assets at risk, and community tolerance of risk. Similarly, affordability of the approach to staffing (Volunteer, PCF, Reserve, Career) is a key factor to the number of people the agency can maintain on their roster. A basic level of fire protection service requires staffing available on a regular basis. For volunteer/PCF operations, the ratio of three volunteers/PCF’s to one (3:1) is utilized to plan for the number of actual responders to an emergency29. So, for every three volunteers/PCF, the general rule is that one will be available for response to an incident. This ratio takes into account absences, unavoidable family or work commitments, and other commitments. If the response requires four personnel (such as the 2 in – 2 out rule for structure fires) a roster of twelve PCF/volunteers would be in order to assure 4 responders. MUTUAL AID AND AUTOMATIC AID TO ADD DEPTH OF RESOURCES Mutual and Automatic aid with neighboring agencies are crucial parts of assuring adequate depth of resources for larger emergencies. No single agency can afford to have all the career resources on duty necessary for the range of hazards they face. So, collectively, they help each 29 Insurance Services Office Item 10.a. - Page 88 Page 59 of 155 other through mutual aid for larger emergencies. When volunteer firefighter company member numbers were larger and turnout high, the need for mutual aid was limited. Today, with smaller volunteer company strength and lower turnout, mutual aid is a common occurrence. Automatic aid is an enhanced form of mutual aid. Rather than just assi sting on large emergencies under mutual aid, automatic aid agreements call for assistance on most daily emergencies, even small ones. To some degree, automatic aid agreements constitute a boundary drop so the closest resource responds regardless of jurisdiction. Automatic aid requires a delicate balance of service exchange; there is an expectation that the aid agreement is reciprocal and not lopsided. Agencies that receive a lot more aid than they provide create strained relationships. FIRE SERVICE STANDARDS THAT DRIVE COSTS In addition to statutory and regulatory requirements, various industry standards impact districts. The National Fire Protection Association30 (NFPA) promulgates the most significant fire service standards. Of the dozens of NFPA standards, some of the major standards that impact fire agencies are: • NFPA 1582: Standard on Comprehensive Occupational Medical Program for Fire Departments (Firefighter physical requirements) • NFPA 1710: Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments (Staffing deployment of career personnel and response standards) • NFPA 1720: Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer Fire Departments (Staffing deployment of volunteer personnel and response standards) • NFPA 1901: Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus (Fire engine standards) While not legally mandated, many fire agencies strive to meet much of the standards as best practices, which contributes to rising costs. 30 https://www.nfpa.org/Codes-and-Standards/All-Codes-and-Standards/List-of-Codes-and-Standards Item 10.a. - Page 89 Page 60 of 155 COUNTY FIRE STRATEGIC PLAN The County Fire Strategic Plan is currently being updated from the last significant update in 2012. Part of the County Fire strategic planning process is to identify the appropriate fire protection service level based on community demographics, hazards at risk and growth trends. The strategic plan has a Service Level Analysis tool that considers several variables to determine the appropriate service level deployment model for a community. The five (5) service levels are Urban, Suburban, Rural, Remote, and Undeveloped. The tool is utilized to assess hazards; people and assets at risk; incident workload; response time standards for first arriving fire resource, the balance of first alarm response; and expected performance goals. Each of the districts in the study was evaluated using the Service Level Analysis tool to determine the appropriate service level County Fire should deliver if the district divested fire protection to the County. Response time is a major factor in determining the appropriate combination of staffing; PCF only, combination, or career staffing. Surrounding fire resources and deployment locations available for automatic or mutual aid are critical in meeting response time standards. Of specific importance for this study is the 2012 Strategic Plan recommendation to relocate County Engine 40 and staffing from Parkhill Fire Station to the Garden Farms/Santa Margarita area. Existing incident workload and planned development in the Santa Margarita Ranch area are the driving forces behind the recommendation to relocate the resource. A new fire station will be required to accommodate this move. Santa Margarita FPD also has a need for a new fire station in Santa Margarita. Building two new fire stations in close proximity would be very expensive and duplicative. COUNTY FIRE INTERVIEW September 6, 2018 meeting: Fire Chief Scott Jalbert, Deputy Chief Geoff Money, Division Chief Dennis Carreiro, Administrative Officer Bill Winter. - Lisa Howe, County Administrative Office was unable to attend the September 6 meeting. During the interview the study team asked County Fire staff to describe their approach if one or all of the districts chose to divest fire protection to the county. County Fire staff said each district presents unique challenges to provide service based on demographics, location, geography, and proximity of other County Fire resources. Each will require an analysis based on projected added workload and specific circumstances. Each of the options presented in this report was validated during the discussion to assure that they are operationally sound. Item 10.a. - Page 90 Page 61 of 155 Additionally, County Fire staff reports they are at their “tipping point” for certain overhead and support positions. They may need augmentation in the event one or more of the districts divests fire protection, including: 1. Battalion chief coverage (Depending on the region of the County) 2. Fire Prevention/Fire Marshal 3. Mechanic/fleet service County Fire currently has identified unmet resource needs in specific parts of the current County Fire service area (Oak Shores, Adelaide, Shandon, Garden Farms, and Nipomo). Any new service would require the necessary additional funding to support the workload. Because of their own service area needs, County Fire staff are concerned reductions of County Fire’s budget to support a divesting/dissolving district would cause reductions of services in other areas of the County. All of the districts have different needs and varying approaches to providing service in the event of divestiture/dissolution, each must be considered individually as to the impact to County Fire, the options for County Fire service delivery are detailed in the district-specific sections of this report. Item 10.a. - Page 91 Page 62 of 155 CAMBRIA COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT KEY FINDINGS 1. Cambria CSD indicated that they do not intend to divest authority to provide fire protection service. 2. The District’s goal is to provide staffing of four career firefighters on duty at all times. Their reasoning is to support the 2 in 2 out standard due to their iso lated north coast location and time it takes to get backup mutual aid support. 3. Voters in Cambria did not approve a special tax increase in June 2018 to pay for three additional firefighter positions. The positions were previously funded by a federal SAFER grant. 4. The District’s Board of Directors chose not to accept an extension of the SAFER grant since continued district funding was not viewed as sustainable. 5. Cambria reports success utilizing reserve firefighters to augment career staff and believe they can sustain it for five to ten years. They also report efforts to sustain a volunteer /PCF program have been largely unsuccessful, which they attribute to community demographics. 6. The District did not have a specific request of the County but would like to share in any revenue enhancements opportunities and/or would like to have financial support for mobile data computers and dispatch costs. DISTRICT INTERVIEW ATTENDEES August 15, 2018 meeting: Fire Chief William Hollingsworth September 20, 2018 meeting*: Director David Pierson, Fire Chief William Hollingsworth *Lisa Howe, County Administrative Office was unable to attend September 20 meeting BACKGROUND, HISTORY, AND SERVICES PROVIDED The Cambria Community Services District (CCSD) was formed in 1976 by a reorganization that combined the all-volunteer Cambria Fire Protection District, Cambria County Water District, Cambria Garbage Disposal District, and County Service Area No. 6 (Lightin g). The CCSD provides Item 10.a. - Page 92 Cambria Community Services District Page 63 of 155 property tax-supported services (fire, parks and recreation, lighting) and enterprise services (water, wastewater). The 2018-19 CCSD budget is $11,917,000; $2,439,636 is from property taxes; the balance of the budget is from water and wastewater enterprise funds. Primary funding for 2018-19 FY $2,330,660 CCSD fire protection budget is from property taxes ($1,707,910) and a voter-approved benefit assessment district ($464,610). The assessment was originally approved in 1993 to replace funding lost due to ERAF shift and reapproved in 2003 after a 10-year sunset period. Fire protection is provided from the CCSD Fire Station on Burton Drive with daily station staffing of a career Captain, career Engineer, and a part-time Reserve Firefighter. Automatic aid is provided by the Cal Fire/County Fire Station 10 on Coventry Lane in the District. Next, closest mutual aid fire stations are County Fire Station 16 and CAL FIRE station 11 in Cayucos. Both Cayucos area stations have approximately 15 minutes driving time to Cambria. The CCSD fire department consists of a Fire Chief, 3 career Captains, 3 career Engineers, and 10 active part-time Reserve Firefighters. An Assistant Chief/Fire Marshal and Administrative Assistant positions were previously eliminated. The Cambria Fire Chief has very good success recruiting Reserve Firefighters from Allan Hancock College Fire Academy, hiring 3 -6 per year with a similar turnover. CCSD’s goal is to be 100% fulltime career firefighters in 8-10 years. CCSD received a SAFER31 grant in 2015 that funded 3 additional full-time firefighters to allow for 4 firefighters to be on duty daily (1 career Captain, 1 career Engineer, 1 career Firefighter and 1 part-time Reserve Firefighter). The grant expired and a 2018 ballot measure to approve an extra $62/year/parcel flat rate fee to continue funding the 3 additional career firefighters did not receive the required 66% vote. The 2003 benefit assessment was not impacted by the vote and continues. CCSD is reviewing internal funding transfers and another benefit assessment ballot measure for 2019 to support fire protection and/or parks. CCSD did not request a property tax transfer from SLO County however, they are interested in sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost. UNIQUE RISKS AND HAZARDS As a coastal community, Cambria is a destination for tourism and retirement. Tourism brings a high volume of visitors and short-term renters, which corresponds to higher emergency call volume above those caused by residents. The District responds to coastal emergencies including ocean and high angle cliff rescue. Specialized training and equipment are required to respond to this unique hazard. The pine forest that is intermixed with the community presents an increased hazard for wildfires. The forest is currently in very dangerous condition with high tree mortality due to 31 SAFER Grant: Dept. of Homeland Security; FEMA, US Fire Administration grant program Item 10.a. - Page 93 Cambria Community Services District Page 64 of 155 drought and pests. All of Cambria CSD is classified as State Responsibility Area (SRA), therefore fire protection is shared with Cal Fire. The Fire Safe Council has worked cooperatively with the District to remove hazardous dead trees, other fire safety fuel reduction projects, and conducted public outreach programs for personal preparedness. Item 10.a. - Page 94 Cambria Community Services District Page 65 of 155 CAMBRIA CSD DATA SHEET Authorizing Code Cal. Govt. Code 61000 et. seq. Address: 1316 Tamsen Drive Cambria CA 93428 Date of Formation November 2, 1976 Telephone: 805-927-6223 FAX: 805-927-5584 Website: www.cambriacsd.org Board of Directors President Amanda Rice Vice President Jim Bahringer Director Harry Farmer Director Aaron Wharton Director David Pierson District Manager: Position Open Fire Chief: William Hollingsworth Board of Directors Meetings Fourth Thursday of the month Acreage 2,928 acres Square miles 4.58 sq. miles Number of parcels 6,205 Population 6,029 Assessed Valuation 2017/2018 $2,145,909,012 Actual Property Tax Revenue 2017/2018 $2,263,703 Property Tax Allocation for Fire 2017/2018 $1,620,500 72% Special Fire Assessment 2017/2018 $ 455,500 Number of Career/Paid personnel 7 Number of Active Reserves 10 Annual calls for service (2017 cy) 1019 Figure 20 Cambria CSD Data Sheet Item 10.a. - Page 95 Cambria Community Services District Page 66 of 155 CAMBRIA CSD MAP Figure 21 Map of Cambria CSD: LAFCO LAFCO Map of Cambria CSD service area and sphere of influence32 32 San Luis Obispo County LAFCO Cal Fire/County Fire station 10 Cambria CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 96 Cambria Community Services District Service Area & Sphere of Influence Adop~d:August2014 Paclf c C'cean Legend .._ __ _.I Service Area I Sphere of Influence Prctp,arod By SLOLAFCO Nl'fte c.mbna_SOI Bnd~ Date 2/1012OUI Cambria Community Services District Page 67 of 155 CAMBRIA FIRE DEPARTMENT INCIDENT DENSITY The following map represents the density of incidents in a given location of the District, known as a “heat map”. The District boundary is represented with an orange line. The shades of purple and blue represent incidents at that location. Light shades indicate few calls for service at that location, while the deep purple represents a high volume of calls at the same location. The purpose of the map is to evaluate historical incident data for planning deployment of emergency resources, including fire station placement. The source of the incident data for the map is from the dispatch center’s computer-aided dispatch program and represents 3 ½ years of data from January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2018. Figure 22 Heat Map of incidents in Cambria CSD Cal Fire/County Fire station 10 Cambria CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 97 lu,i,k«L O.n.tn·.C~mki., .-~{~ ~-' In ci d e n t D e n s ity:C ambria cs nl Cambria Community Services District Page 68 of 155 RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: CAMBRIA CSD Figure 23 Response time from Cambria CSD fire station This map represents the response times from only the Cambria CSD Fire Station on Burton Drive. CCSD can cover 80% of the district in 7 minute response time; and 90% of the district in less than 8 minutes, the Liemert Tract in the northernmost portion exceeds an 8-minute response. The shaded green area represents a drive time of up to four (4) minutes, the blue shaded area represents a drive time of over four (4) minutes and under five (5) minutes, while the yellow shaded area represents a drive time of five (5) to twelve (12) minutes. In all cases, 3 minutes are added for “reflex” time. Reflex time includes the time required to dispatch the call, assemble the crew, don the appropriate gear for the response and get out the door. The resulting total response times of seven, eight and fifteen minutes are based on industry standards for levels of service and fire progression. While not absolute, these tools are effective for planning purposes. Cambria CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 98 Cambria Community Services District Page 69 of 155 AUTOMATIC AND MUTUAL AID RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: STATIONS NEAR CAMBRIA CSD Figure 24 Response times from mutual aid stations This map uses the same time values as the previous one. The difference is that this map removes the Cambria CSD Fire Station from the analysis and considers automatic and mutual aid response times from nearby fire stations. The three stations nearby are Cal Fire/County Fire station 10 in Cambria, County Fire station 16 in Cayucos, and Cal Fire station 11 in Cayucos. Station 10 covers approximately 70% of the district in less than 7 minutes; the portion of Lodge Hill west of Highway 1, in the southwestern portion of the district, is an 8 minute or longer response time. Cal Fire Station 11 County Fire Station 16 Fire Station Cal Fire/County Fire Station 10 tion # 10 Item 10.a. - Page 99 s.cnt~W'l.-.-.,,...s: CM.FIRE sa.tcn TO C.-'-,._,=Doma Cambria Community Services District Page 70 of 155 CAMBRIA CSD FUNDING ASSESSED VALUATION The assessed value along with a percentage increase of growth of the district is listed in the table below. The total for San Luis Obispo County is listed as well for comparison purposes. Secured and Utility Growth from Prior Year Agency 2017-2018 Assessed Valuation (after HOPTR*) Percent of Total 2015- 2016 2016- 2017 2017- 2018 San Luis Obispo County $49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67 % 5.61 % Cambria CSD $ 2,145,909,012 4.3715% 4.69% 3.91 % 4.37 % Figure 25 Cambria Assessed Valuation *HOPTR-Homeowners Property Tax Relief DISTRICT PROPERTY TAX As stated in the section regarding special district funding, the primary source of revenue for fire protection in special districts is a property tax. The assessed value (chart above) and allocation formulas impact the amount of property tax allocated to the Cambria CSD. PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TREND Cambria CSD Property Tax33 Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation 1,995,643 2,086,064 2,168,058 2,263,703 Growth from Previous Year 99,107 90,420 81,994 95,645 Incremental Growth % 4.89% 4.53% 3.93% 4.41% Figure 26 Cambria CSD Property Tax Collections 2014 -2018 33 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 1,800,000 2,000,000 2,200,000 2,400,000 1 2 3 4 Property Tax Growth Series1 Figure 27 Cambria Property Tax growth 2014-2018 Item 10.a. - Page 100 -+- - Cambria Community Services District Page 71 of 155 CAMBIA CSD TAX RATE AREAS Cambria CSD has three tax rate areas within the district, which are listed below along with the total taxes collected in each TRA, percentage allocated to the District, and associated dollar allocation amounts. Figure 28 Map of Cambria CSD Tax Rate Areas (TRA) Tax rate Area 061-033 Tax Rate Area 061 -037 Tax Rate Area 061-038 2017/2018 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA34 TRA Percent to CSD Total Tax for TRA Tax Dollars to CSD 061-033 8.97838 $8 $1 061-037 10.49195 $22,574,494 $2,368,504 061-038 8.97838 $0 $0 34 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Coll ector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 101 -- Cambria Community Services District Page 72 of 155 Total $22,574,502 $2,368,505 Figure 29 Cambria CSD 2017-18 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION/TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES The pie chart below represents the allocation of property tax to all the agencies that receive property taxes within the 061-037 tax rate area. This tax rate area was selected as a representative example of the allocation of property tax to the District and is the tax rate a rea that generates the greatest tax revenue within the District. Figure 30 Cambria CSD Tax Rate Area 061-037 Breakdown Tax Rate Area 061-037 allocation between all agencies that collect property tax from the tax rate area.35 PERCENTAGE OF PROPERTY TAX EXPENDED ON FIRE PROTECTION IN FY 2017/2018 Total Property Tax Received by Cambria CSD: $2,263,703 Property Tax Allocated to Fire Protection: $1,620,500 Percent of Total Allocated to Fire Protection: 72%36 35 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 36 Cambria CSD Financial Documents Item 10.a. - Page 102 CO SCHOOL SERVICE 4.37 % SLO CO COMM COLLEGE 7 .37 % Cambria TRA 061-037 Property Tax $22,574,494 Total Property Tax Collected in TRA COAST UNIFIED 31.46% GENERAL FUND 25.54% CEMETERY 0.40% 0.29% ROADS I •••• AIR POLLUTION CNTRL 0.07 % COUNTY LI BRA RY 1.91% 1.99% SLOCO FLOOD CONTROL 0 .27 % Cambria Community Services District Page 73 of 155 CAMBRIA CSD NUMBER OF PARCELS The number of parcels in the District impacts the ability of the District to pass a parcel based benefit assessment fee. An analysis was conducted to determine the fee burden per parcel based on generating an arbitrary amount of $500,000 in revenue for the District. That analysis is reflected in the table below. A flat fee of $80.58 per parcel (all parcels charged the same amount) is required to generate $500,000 in the Cambria CSD. Values may vary depending on a number of exempt parcels. Fee Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 Cambria CSD 6205 $80.58 Figure 31 Cambria CSD Parcel Count CAMBRIA CSD LOCAL REVENUE ENHANCEMENT EFFORTS Benefit Assessment District Cambria CSD enacted a “weighted37” benefit assessment district in 1993 to replace funding lost to the 15% ERAF property tax shift. The fee had a ten-year sunset clause and in 2003 was reapproved, the sunset clause removed and annual CPI increase allowance added. In FY 2017- 18 the benefit assessment fee generated $455,500. CCSD FY 2018-19 budget anticipates $464,610 in fee revenue. SAFER Grants Cambria CSD (CCSD) applied for a federal FEMA SAFER grant in 2015 that funded three additional full-time firefighters for two years. The purpose of the grant was to enable CCSD to have 4 firefighters on duty daily (1 career Captain, 1 career Engineer, 1 career Firefighter, and 1 part-time reserve firefighter) for 2 years until the district could put in place permanent funding. After the grant expired, the CCSD retained the firefighters pending vote on a 2018 ballot measure for a second benefit assessment district to generate permanent funding for the positions. This benefit assessment measure was for a $62/year “flat rate” parcel f ee applied to all parcels and expected to initially raise $378,000/year with an annual CPI increase. The ballot measure received less than the required 66% approval. The 3 additional career firefighter positions were eliminated and incumbents reduced to reserve firefighter status. In 2018, the CCSD applied for another SAFER grant which they were selected for the award by FEMA. The CCSD Board of Directors subsequently declined the award due to concerns of sustainability upon grant termination. 37 Weighted benefit assessment district fees vary by parcel land use type Item 10.a. - Page 103 I I Cambria Community Services District Page 74 of 155 CAMBRIA CSD SIGNIFICANT COST FACTORS Payroll The District is utilizing Reserve Firefighters to augment career firefighters in an effort to reduce payroll costs until permanent funding for career firefighters is in place. Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) The District has taken steps to reduce its exposure for OPEB. An actuary has been completed. Two retirees receive post-retirement health care benefits while a total of four active employees qualify to receive post-retirement health care benefits. Employees hired after October 1, 2012 do not qualify to receive the benefit. Retirement The District has a contract with Cal PERS for retirement benefits. A second tier for the Safety contract has been implemented to manage future costs of retirement benefits. Workers’ Compensation No significant open workers’ compensation claims were reported by the fire chief. Equipment Replacement Fund The District utilizes lease-purchase agreements for significant equipment purchases rather than a sinking fund. They have also had success with grant funding to pay for some equipment. Liabilities The District reported that they do not have any pending lawsuits against the fire department. Facility Costs The Cambria Fire Station in relatively new and in good condition. Distr ict staff state that future remodels may be necessary to accommodate more on-duty staff. Item 10.a. - Page 104 Cambria Community Services District Page 75 of 155 CAMBRIA FIRE DEPARTMENT BUDGET Figure 32 Cambria CSD Fire Budgets 2015-2018 Cambria Community Services District Actual Revenue and Expenditures: Fire Based on District's 2018/2019 Budget Document 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Revenue Property Tax 1,308,452 1,352,522 1,620,500 Benefit Assessment: Fire 422,415 430,709 455,500 Interest Revenue 273 - 105 Public Facility Fee-Fire - - - Weed Abatement Fees 16,859 18,662 17,600 Inspection Fees 14,973 350 14,500 Reimbursement for Mutual Aid - 21,749 48,504 SAFER Grant 40,844 146,716 145,000 Grant: Personnel Protection - - - Ambulance Reimbursements - - - General Fund Reserve - - 112,082 Misc. Revenue 59,304 61,832 40,000 Total Revenue 1,863,120 2,032,540 2,453,791 Expenditures Salaries, Stipends and Benefits 1,207,569 1,523,493 1,598,779 Services and Supplies 468,333 254,797 316,082 Debt Payments 940 440 9,591 Capital Outlay - 200 173,472 Administrative Costs 174,738 213,400 321,704 Transfers Out (Veh. Rep/Equip) - - - Total Expenditures 1,851,580 1,992,330 2,419,628 Item 10.a. - Page 105 Cambria Community Services District Page 76 of 155 CAMBRIA FIRE DEPARTMENT STAFFING PLAN Current Staffing Provides for 2 career and 1 reserve on duty daily • 1 Fire Chief • 3 Fire Captains • 3 Engineer/Driver Operator • 10-14 Reserves (Part-time) Recruitment and Retention • Fulltime firefighter turnover rate is low, more than 50% spend an entire career with Cambria. • Reserve firefighters turn over on average every 2-3 years. • Cambria CSD no longer recruits PCF. • Assistant Chief/Fire Marshal and Administrative Assistant position were eliminated several years ago for cost savings. Proposed Career and Part Time Provides for 3 career and 1 reserve on duty daily plus additional chief officer and administrative support • 1 Fire Chief • 1 Assistant Fire Chief/Fire Marshal • 1 Administrative Assistant • 3 Fire Captain • 3 Engineer/Driver-Operator • 3 Firefighter • 10-14 Reserve (Part-time) Timeline for Implementation • 3 career firefighter positions desired immediately to provide 3 career and 1 reserve on duty daily; This staffing plan was the reason for funding measure on 2018 ballot • Assistant Chief and Admin Assistant positions to be added in future CAMBRIA CSD RESOURCE NEEDS The CCSD did not make a specific request for any County financial assistance; however, they are interested in sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost. CAMBRIA CSD OPTIONS CONSIDERED • Cambria CSD has considered contracting fire protection to Cal Fire multiple times over the last 20 years; deciding in every instance to retain the service. • Cambria CSD has no plans or intention to divest fire protection. • Cambria CSD is examining internal budget redirection from other CCSD tax-supported programs for fire protection. Item 10.a. - Page 106 Cambria Community Services District Page 77 of 155 • Cambria CSD is considering a new benefit assessment ballot measure to fund extra fire department staff and possibly new funding for parks in 2019 or 2020. COUNTY OPTIONS IN THE EVENT OF DIVESTITURE Cambria CSD does not intend to divest fire protection services and as such, a detailed analysis of County service options was not conducted. Item 10.a. - Page 107 Page 78 of 155 OCEANO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT KEY FINDINGS 1. Oceano CSD says they intend to remain with the Five Cities Fire Authority and are working on the following issues: 1.1. Renegotiation of the funding formula for Five Cities JPA. 1.2. Review of the Five Cities JPA strategic plan to reduce expenditures. 1.3. There has been discussion by one of the other member agencies withdrawing from the JPA. If one of the other members withdraws, Oceano CSD will need to consider other delivery options. 1.4. The District reports they are currently using reserve funds to fund FCFA services through FY 2019/2020 and will pursue a special tax or benefit assessment to fund service cost increases thereafter. 2. Divestiture would be an option in the event voters do not approve a special tax or benefit assessment. 3. Five Cities Fire Authority staff report difficulty utilizing reserve firefighters to augment career staff. They also report that efforts to sustain a volunteer/PCF program have been largely unsuccessful. 4. Based on the County Fire Strategic Plan service level analysis, if Oceano divested, County Fire will need to staff the Oceano fire station since there is not a reasonably proximal alternative. 5. The District did not have a specific request of the County but would like to share in any revenue enhancements opportunities and/or would like to have financial support for mobile data computers and dispatch costs DISTRICT INTERVIEW ATTENDEES September 20, 2018 meeting: Linda Austin, OCSD Director; Paavo Ogren, OCSD General Manager; Steve Lieberman, FCFA Fire Chief; Bob Neumann, OCSD consultant Item 10.a. - Page 108 Oceano Community Services District Page 79 of 155 BACKGROUND, HISTORY, AND SERVICES PROVIDED The Oceano Community Services District (OCSD) was formed in 1981 by a reorganization that combined the all-volunteer Oceano Fire Protection District, Oceano Beach Lighting District, Oceano Lighting District, Oceano Sanitary District, and County Service Area No. 13. There is a five (5) member elected board of directors. The OCSD was formed post-Proposition 13 in 1981. The OCSD provides property tax-supported services (fire, parks, and lighting) and enterprise services (water, wastewater, garbage and recycling). The 2018-19 OCSD budget is $5,451,519; $997,150 is from property taxes; the balance of the budget is from service enterprise funds and other sources. FIVE CITIES FIRE AUTHORITY Fire protection to Oceano CSD is from the fire station collocated with the OCSD off ices and is staffed daily with a career Fire Captain and a Reserve firefighter provided by Five Cities Fire Authority. Fire protection in OCSD is provided through the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA), a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) formed in 2010, which includes Oceano CSD, City of Grover Beach, and the City of Arroyo Grande. FCFA operates as a single fire agency utilizing fire stations and equipment from the three member’s agencies, each of which previously operated their own separate fire departments. FCFA has a three (3) member board of directors comprised of an elected official from each of the three member agencies. The fire chief reports to the FCFA board of directors and administers all three fire stations. Funding for the FCFA is based on a cost for mula agreed to by member agencies. In September 2017, the FCFA board adopted a five (5) year strategic plan that has a staffing plan for a complete phase-out of volunteer/PCF and reserve firefighters. All firefighter positions are planned to be full-time career positions and daily staffing at each fire station will be minimum of three (3) on duty. Oceano Fire Station’s current daily staffing is one (1) career and one (1) reserve. The FCFA strategic plan implementation will result in a significant cost increase to OCSD to fund the additional career positions need to provide 3 career firefighters on duty daily. OCSD adopted the FCFA strategic plan in April 2018 contingent on a new Memorandum of Agreement which modified the original JPA. The modification allows for amendment of the current funding formula and establishment of procedures for a member of the FCFA to withdraw from the JPA. The amendments must be agreed upon by April 1, 2019.38 The additional jurisdictional response is from FCFA stations in Grover Beach and Arroyo Grande. Automatic aid is provided to FCFA by the two City of Pismo Beach fire stations on Bello Street and Shell Beach Road and County Fire Station 22 on Highway 1. Next closest mutual aid fire stations are Cal Fire Station 20 in Nipomo and County Fire Station 62 in Avila Valley. Both Nipomo and Avila Valley area stations have approximately 15 minutes driving time to Oceano. 38 2018 Fire Service Analysis for Oceano Community Services District; Category Five Professional Consultants Item 10.a. - Page 109 Oceano Community Services District Page 80 of 155 FCFA reported having poor success recruiting Reserve Firefighters from Allan Hancock College Fire Academy. The FCFA strategic plan goal is to be 100% fulltime career firefighters in 5 years. OCSD’s primary funding source for their 2018-19 portion of the FCFA budget comes from property taxes in the amount of $997,150. The budgeted amount for 2018/2019 fiscal year for fire protection is $1,030,790. Reserve funding will be utilized to balance the budget. FCFA received a SAFER39 grant that concluded in 2015 that funded additional full-time firefighters. The grant expired and no sustainable funding source was identified to continue funding and the positions were eliminated. OCSD believes they have adequate budgetary reserve funding to carry them through 2019-20 fiscal year and to cover cost increases with the FCFA strategic plan. OCSD is considering a benefit assessment ballot measure to fund their future cost increases beyond 2019 -20. OCSD states their preferred action is to remain with the FCFA, renegotiate the JPA cost formula, determine possible cost reductions, service level changes, or new revenue options. They do not have a desire to divest fire protection to the county. However, their caution is if the new JPA cost formula is not approved, which results in another FCFA member agency withdrawing, the JPA may not be sustainable. OCSD may not be able to afford to operate a standalone fire department. If the JPA dissolves, a new fire protection delivery plan will be required, which could include divestiture as one option. OCEANO CSD UNIQUE RISKS AND HAZARDS As a coastal community, Oceano is a destination for tourism, particularly as people pass through on their way to the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. Tourism brings a high volume of visitors and short-term renters, which corresponds to higher emergency call volume above those caused by residents. Due to proximity the district may respond to coastal emergencies including beach accidents and surf rescue. Specialized training and equipment are required to respond to this unique hazard. There are vegetable packing plants in Oceano that present a special hazard of use of ammonia as a coolant for fresh vegetables. Ammonia emergencies require very specialized training. The Union Pacific railroad runs through Oceano which presents specialized training and equipment needs to manage railroad emergencies involving freight and passenger accidents. 39 SAFER Grant: Dept. of Homeland Security; FEMA, US Fire Administration grant program Item 10.a. - Page 110 Oceano Community Services District Page 81 of 155 OCEANO CSD DATA SHEET Authorizing Code Cal. Govt. Code 61000 et. seq. Address: P.O. Box 599 1655 Front Street Oceano CA 93475-0599 Telephone: 805-481-6730 FAX: 805-481-6836 Website: www.oceanocsd.org District Manager: Paavo Ogren Fire Chief: Steve Lieberman (Five Cities Fire Authority) Board Representative Linda Austin Board of Directors Meetings Second and fourth Wednesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. in the OCSD Board Room Board Members Karen White Linda Austin Shirley Gibson Cynthia Replogle Vacant Position Acreage 1163 Square miles 1.8 Population 7508 Number of parcels 2441 Assessed Valuation $627,100,773 2017/2018 Fire Actual Tot. Exp. $963,592 2017/2018 Property Tax: District $979,424 2017/2018 Property Tax: Fire $940,004 (96% of Property Tax) Special Tax or Assessment 0 Number of Career/Paid personnel 19.5 (Total for Five Cities Fire Authority) Number of Reserves 18 (Total for Five Cities Fire Authority) Annual calls for service (2017 cy) 583 in Oceano CSD for Five Cities FA Date of Formation January 1, 1981 Figure 33 Oceano CSD Data Sheet Item 10.a. - Page 111 Oceano Community Services District Page 82 of 155 OCEANO CSD MAP Figure 34 Map of Oceano CSD: LAFCO LAFCO Map of Oceano CSD service area and sphere of influence40 40 San Luis Obispo County LAFCO FCFA Oceano CSD Fire Station FCFA Grover Beach fire station Item 10.a. - Page 112 Oceano Community Services District Service Area & Sphere of Influence Adopted November 2012 1 --7 .:::::. Legend D Serv ice Area D Sphere of Influence (Same as Service Area) : ! Prei:.i,rf!Cl 8yS..OLA=co N-Oot-_SOI Bl!dy 0-0I 2t10Q016 Oceano Community Services District Page 83 of 155 OCEANO CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT INCIDENT DENSITY The following map represents the density of incidents in a given location of the District, known as a “heat map”. The District boundary is represented with an orange line. The shades of purple and blue represent incidents at that location. Light shades indicate few calls for service at that location, while the deep purple represents a high volume of calls at the same location. The purpose of the map is to evaluate historical incident data for planning deployment of emergency resources, including fire station placement. Figure 35 Heat Map of Incident locations in Oceano FCFA Grover Beach fire station FCFA Oceano CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 113 Oceano Community Services District Page 84 of 155 RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: OCEANO CSD Response Time Dispatch and Get Away Time Driving Time to Incident Urban Standard == mins 3 minutes 4 minutes Suburban Standard== 8 mins 3 minutes 5 minutes Figure 36 Service Level Analysis: Oceano Using the County Fire service level analysis standards, Oceano CSD warrants an urban response time standard (7 minute response time). The shaded green area represents a seven-minute response, the blue shaded area represents a drive time of over four (4) minutes and under five (5) minutes, while the yellow shaded area represents a drive time of five (5) to twelve (12) minutes. In all cases, 3 minutes are added for “reflex” time. Reflex time includes the time required to dispatch the call, assemble the crew, don the appropriate gear for the response and get out the door. The resulting total response times of seven, eight and fifteen minutes are based on industry standards for urban and suburban levels of service and fire progression. While not absolute, these tools are effective for planning purposes. Figure 37 Response Time Analysis from Oceano Fire Station This map represents the response times from only the FCFA Oceano Fire Station on Highway 1. The station can cover 99% of the district in 7 minute response time. FCFA Oceano Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 114 C::,D19'.1Kts • S,ecial~F"'PDlec:ton c::JCo,,MiyOetM9r,· • :,t,,lFIRU:ci.,11yFi-.St•10 ... A,n~:u~ ""-'fl~ 1-t ~ 1-IOMnff• ~~"'IWil'/Wo fw.C:.,Fn~•1's..:ion3 (O..r,c) Oceano Community Services District Page 85 of 155 Automatic and Mutual Aid Response Time Analysis: Stations Near Oceano CSD The map below represents response coverage times from adjoining fire stations as if the FCFA Oceano Fire Station were closed. The stations, primarily Grover Beach Fire Station, can cover 30% of the district in 7 minute response time, and 95% of the district in 8 minute response time. Figure 38 Response Times from adjoining fire stations This map represents the response times from fire stations surrounding the FCFA Oceano Fire Station on Highway 1. FCFA Oceano is not represented here. Pismo Beach Fire Station Grover Beach Fire Station Arroyo Grande Fire Station County Fire Station 22 Item 10.a. - Page 115 (> ON!FhPIOle(;CIQn • Spto,10.IICfFhPl'OllellOII ~r::.ll'ldliy • CH..FIRE.Cou-!ttfittShtons 0.7MnJN .-.....Roadt 7-1~ a,.15111,.. Response Times: Oc eano Surrounding Station Response 5uborilh:tldtdi11AH~ CAI.FIRESHl,or,22,CAI..FIRE StlliOll&IFMiCC.fwtlulvtysmcn2(GflMl).F>.oe C..fllfA.CtlolitrSW.icn I (h10,0Gnw1derttt ...... l Oceano Community Services District Page 86 of 155 County Fire West Mesa Station 22 Response Time to Oceano The map below reflects the response time from the closest County Fire Station (# 22 on Highway 1, West Mesa). Response time edge of Oceano CSD is 8 minutes. County Fire Station 22 is too far away to provide an appropriate level of response to the community if Oceano Fire Station were closed. Figure 39 Response Time to Oceano from County Fire Station 22 Oceano CSD County Fire Station 22 Item 10.a. - Page 116 ... .'.'.:!;;.: ...... Suttoundinir ( Sutioo K~•r<,._ ' R esponse Times : Oceano Surrounding Station Response Oceano Community Services District Page 87 of 155 Pismo Beach Bello Street Fire Station Response Time to Oceano The map below reflects response time from Pismo Beach Fire Station on Bello Street. The response time edge of Oceano CSD is 8 minutes. The Pismo Beach Fire Station is too far away to provide an appropriate level of response to the community if the Oceano Fire Station were closed. Figure 40 Response time to Oceano from Pismo Beach Fire Station on Bello Street Pismo Beach Fire Station Station Oceano CSD Item 10.a. - Page 117 ll,e11x •m1it- l in,..,,, Ott:~nn Surrmm d{~ -&a1lnn Rc,,p,.,,. .. C' _)i.~t(, ~- Q et-,a,Fn Pco:Ktion C'.)Cffiric:-; 0 Si:,.e,•1 O,..trict r.-. Pf!ll~cfa>n D CCU"!t 9 m.indajl • CAL rlRC/Coo~ty Fire Sta1oos Ros~::::!:m. ~ Roads 7•6 ~ rue:. fl.1~Mnit,n Response Times: Oceano Surrounding Station Response Oceano Community Services District Page 88 of 155 OCEANO CSD FUNDING ASSESSED VALUATION41 The assessed value along with a percentage increase of growth of the district is listed in the table below. The total for San Luis Obispo County is listed as well for comparison purposes. Secured and Utility Growth from Prior Year Agency Assessed Valuation (after HOPTR) Percent of Total 2015- 2016 2016- 2017 2017- 2018 San Luis Obispo County $49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67% 5.61% Oceano CSD $627,100,773 1.2775% 4.65% 5.74% 3.86% Figure 41 Oceano CSD Assessed Valuation *HOPTR-Homeowners Property Tax Relief DISTRICT PROPERTY TAX As stated in the section regarding special district funding, the primary source of revenue for fire protection in special districts is property tax. The assessed value (chart above) and allocation formulas impact the amount of property tax allocated to the Oceano CSD. OCEANO CSD PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TREND Oceano CSD Property Tax42 Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation $830,780 $871,478 $918,883 $953,998 Growth from Previous Year $47,633 $40,697 $47,406 $35,115 Incremental Growth % 6.08% 4.90% 5.44% 3.82% Figure 42 Oceano CSD Property Tax 2014-2018 Figure 43 Oceano CSD Property Tax allocation 2014-2018 41 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collectors Office 42 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collectors Office $700,000 $800,000 $900,000 $1,000,000 Property Tax Allocation Property Tax Allocation Item 10.a. - Page 118 • ... .... • -+- ~v· <,\··· <o\··· ~,-·· ~"-; ~,..,, ~"-; ~,..,, '); '); '); '); Oceano Community Services District Page 89 of 155 OCEANO CSD TAX RATE AREAS43 Oceano CSD has eighteen tax rate areas within the district, which are listed below along with the total taxes collected in each TRA, percentage allocated to the District, and associated dollar allocation amounts. Figure 44 Map of Oceano CSD Tax Rate Areas Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend 052-004 052-053 052-065 052-008 052-054 052-066 052-009 052-056 052-069 052-018 052-058 052-089 43 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collectors, Office Item 10.a. - Page 119 {1 0ttierFirePrctee!ion TnRllleA ... a -052008 0 S9ec;.,1 ~strict FR Protection =~:: ""-.,Roeti, -005020 -052033 -052062 -05212' -05200. -052052 -05206•-052129 Oceano Community Services District Page 90 of 155 052-033 052-062 052-124 052-052 052-064 052-129 Oceano CSD 2017/2018 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA44 TRA Percent to CSD Total Tax for TRA Tax Dollars to OCSD 052-004 8.33261 $17,206 $1,434 052-008 14.34306 $432,791 $62,075 052-009 9.03435 $174,292 $15,746 052-018 19.15994 $214,420 $41,083 052-033 17.52493 -$209 -$37 052-052 8.26971 $2,437 $202 052-053 15.81544 $1,727,637 $273,233 052-054 15.61324 $675,359 $105,445 052-056 7.27873 $5,547 $404 052-058 14.34411 $2,141,020 $307,110 052-062 14.86340 $964,198 $143,313 052-064 13.64429 $39,044 $5,327 052-065 15.05579 $260,179 $39,172 052-066 2.50356 $7,439 $186 052-069 6.52668 $70,999 $4,634 052-089 8.43659 $16,742 $1,412 052-124 14.78972 $87 $13 052-129 11.05948 $31,400 $3,473 TRA Count = 18 Total $6,780,588 $1,004,225 Figure 45 Oceano CSD Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA OCEANO CSD PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION/TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES The pie chart below represents the allocation of property tax to all the agencies that receive property taxes within the 052-058 tax rate area. This tax rate area was selected as a representative example of the allocation of property tax to the District and is the tax rate area that generates the greatest tax revenue within the District. 44 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 120 Oceano Community Services District Page 91 of 155 Figure 46 Oceano CSD TRA 052-058 Breakdown Tax Rate Area 052-058 allocation between all agencies that collect property tax from the tax rate area.45 Percentage of Property Tax Expended on Fire Protection in FY 2017/2018 Total Property Tax Received by Oceano CSD: $979,424 Property Tax Allocated to Fire Protection: $940,004 Percent of Total Allocated to Fire Protection: 96%46 OCEANO CSD NUMBER OF PARCELS The number of parcels in the District impacts the ability of the District to pass a parcel based benefit assessment fee. An analysis was conducted to determine the fee burden per parcel based on generating an arbitrary amount of $500,000 in revenue for th e District. A flat fee of $204.83 per parcel (all parcels charged the same amount) is required to generate $500,000 in the Oceano CSD annually. Values may vary depending on number of exempt parcels. Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 Oceano CSD 2441 $204.83 45 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 46 Oceano CSD Financial Documents Item 10.a. - Page 121 Oceano TRA 052-058 Property Taxes $2,141,020 Total Property Tax Collected in TRA CO SCHOOL SERVICE 3.66% ERAF 14.97% AIR POLLUTION CNTRL COUNTY LIBRARY 1.60% COLLEGE 6 .18% 1.15 % LUCIA MAR UNIFIED 35.17% I ARRO YOGRNDE CEMETRY 0.11 % I SLO CO FLOOD CONTROL 0 .23 % SLOCO FCZ WCD(NACI) 0 .25 % FLOOD CONTROL ZONE 3 0 .35% Oceano Community Services District Page 92 of 155 Figure 47 Oceano CSD Parcel Count OCEANO CSD LOCAL REVENUE ENHANCEMENT EFFORTS Benefit Assessment District Oceano is considering a benefit assessment district ballot measure to fund their portion of the FCFA cost. District reserves can carry them through 2020 and expectations are for the ballot measure to be voted on in 2020. If the FCFA strategic plan is implemented, OCSD estimates their annual deficit will rise from $75,800 in year one to $223,500 in year five.47 Preliminary estimates show a required parcel fee of $87.66 to generate enough revenue to meet the projected cost at year five. SAFER Grants Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA) applied for a federal FEMA SAFER grant that funded additional full-time firefighters for two years. The purpose of the grant was to enable FCFA to have additional full-time firefighters on duty daily. There was no source of funding to continue funding the firefighters after the grant expired. OCEANO CSD SIGNIFICANT COST FACTORS Payroll FCFA is utilizing Reserve Firefighters to augment career firefighters in an effort to reduce payroll costs until permanent funding for career firefighters is in place. The FCFA strategic plan calls for the conversion of the Reserve Firefighter program to a fully staffed career operation. Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) FCFA employees are employees of the City of Arroyo Grande and the FCFA member agencies cost-sharing formula includes payment to Arroyo Grande for employment costs. An actuary has been completed regarding the OPEB liability for the FCFA. Four retirees currently receive benefits. Payment for retiree health care is funded out of the current year budget.48 Workers’ Compensation No significant open workers’ compensation claims were reported by the District, which would be managed by the City of Arroyo Grande as the employer of the FCFA firefighters. Retirement The City of Arroyo Grande has a contract with Cal PERS for retirement benefits for FCFA members. The unfunded liability for the retirement plan for both safety and miscellaneous employees is estimated at $2.2 million.49 47 2018 Fire Service Analysis for the Oceano Community Services District; page 5 48 Correspondence from Chief Lieberman, FCFA, Sept. 24, 2018 49 Correspondence from Chief Lieberman, FCFA, Sept. 24, 2018 Item 10.a. - Page 122 Oceano Community Services District Page 93 of 155 Liabilities The District reported that there are not any pending lawsuits involving fire protection. Equipment Replacement Fund The FCFA utilizes both lease-purchase agreements and a sinking fund for significant equipment purchases. The current fund balance is $558,000 with no contributions budgeted for 2018-19 FY; FCFA will restart sinking fund contributions in 2019-20 fiscal year50. They have also had success with grant funding to pay for some equipment. Facility Costs Oceano Fire Station is part of the Oceano CSD administrative complex. Fire apparatus garage is physically in the same building as the administrative staff. On duty, crew quarters are a separate mobile home building at the rear of the property. 50 Five Cities Fire Authority 2018-19 FY budget Item 10.a. - Page 123 Oceano Community Services District Page 94 of 155 OCEANO CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT BUDGET Figure 48 Oceano CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 Oceano Community Services District Actual Revenue and Expenditures: Fire Based on District's Financial Documents 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Revenue Property Tax 854,256 895,820 958,154 979,425 Benefit Assessment: Fire - - - - Interest Revenue 4,053 1,600 2,609 3,400 Public Facility Fee-Fire 17,691 6,258 25,358 27,280 Weed Abatement Fees - - - - Reimbursement for Mutual Aid - - - - SAFER Grant - - - - Grant: Personnel Protection - - - - Ambulance Reimbursements - - - - General Fund Reserve - - - - Misc. Revenue 9,739 8,441 5,948 4,998 Total Revenue 885,739 912,119 992,069 1,015,103 Less: Lighting Fund:37,630 41,729 45,904 39,421 Net Revenue: Fire Budget 848,109 870,390 946,165 975,682 Expenditures Salaries, Stipends and Benefits 6,600 6,780 7,131 7,077 Serv and Supp (Inc. FCFA contract) 758,934 789,567 814,865 841,068 Debt Payments - - - - Capital Outlay - - - - Administrative Costs 24,788 28,188 31,325 34,093 Reserve Designation 15,030 - - 81,354 Total Expenditures 805,352 824,535 853,321 963,592 Five Cities Fire Authority receives the following revenues directly on behalf of all three member agencies: SAFER Grant: Expired in 2015 Equipment grants First Responder Reimbursement: Ambulance Reimbursement Reimbursement for Mutual Aid/Strike Teams Expense recovery These revenues are used to reimburse expenses and reduce costs on behalf of the three member agencies: Oceano CSD, City of Arroyo Grande, City of Grover Beach. Item 10.a. - Page 124 Oceano Community Services District Page 95 of 155 OCEANO CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT STAFFING PLAN Current Staffing Provides for 1 career and 1 reserve on duty daily at Oceano Fire Station • 1 Fire Chief -FCFA • 3 Fire Captains • 3 Reserves (Part-time) Recruitment and Retention • Fulltime firefighter turnover rate is low. FCFA has existed for only 8 years • Reserve firefighters turn over on average every 2-3 years. • FCFA no longer recruits PCF. Proposed FCFA Staffing Plan Provides for 3 career on duty daily plus additional chief officer and administrative support • 1 Fire Chief-FCFA • 3 Battalion Chiefs-FCFA • 1 Fire Marshal- FCFA • 1 Administrative Assistant-FCFA For Oceano Fire Station staffing: • 3 Fire Captain • 3 Engineer/Driver-Operator • 3 Firefighter Timeline for Implementation 3 career engineers and 3 firefighter positions desired within 5 years to provide 3 career on duty daily at each fire station; OCEANO CSD RESOURCE NEEDS The OCSD did not make a specific request for any County financial assistance; however, they are interested in sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost. In the event of an FCFA member agency withdrawing from the JPA, OCSD will need to develop a new fire protection delivery system that may include divestiture as one option. OCEANO CSD OPTIONS CONSIDERED • Oceano CSD has no plans or intention to divest fire protection. However, their caution is if the new JPA cost formula is not approved, which results in another Five Cities Fire Authority member agency withdrawing, the JPA may not be sustainable. If the JPA dissolves, a new fire protection delivery plan will be required, which could include divestiture as one option. Item 10.a. - Page 125 Oceano Community Services District Page 96 of 155 • Oceano CSD is considering a new benefit assessment ballot measure for 2020 to fund extra FCFA staff; OCSD reserves can fund extra costs until 2020. COUNTY OPTIONS IN THE EVENT OF DIVESTITURE Level of Service Analysis County Fire Strategic Plan Level of Service Analysis recommends an “Urban Service Level” for Oceano which equates to a 7 minute response time for 90% of the District. Response Time Dispatch and Get Away Time Driving Time to Incident Urban Standard == 7 Minutes 3 minutes 4 minutes Suburban Standard== 8 minutes 3 minutes 5 minutes Figure 49 Oceano CSD Service Level Analysis Closest Existing County Station Station 22 (West Mesa) on Highway 1 is the closest county fire station. Station 22 driving time to Oceano CSD southern boundary is 5 minutes which equates to an 8 minute response time to the southern edge of the district and greater than 8 minutes to the balance. 8 minute response time exceeds the County Fire standard for urban response time warranted for Oceano’s demographic. The impact on the County If Oceano CSD divests fire protection to the county, County Fire will need to staff the Oceano Fire Station to meet the response time standard. Oceano CSD’s 2018/2019 property tax revenue funding of $957,654 (96% of total property tax of $997,150) is not sufficient to absorb the financial impact to the County. COUNTY FIRE OPTIONS 1. 2 Full-time firefighters on duty daily in Oceano: County Fire can staff the Oceano CSD Fire Station with 2 full-time firefighters on duty daily with support by reserves or PCF’s for $ 1.3 million plus station operating expense. If current 2018-19 FY OCSD funding allocation for fire ($957,654) is transferred to County through a property tax exchange, there will still be insufficient funding for the fire station staffing and operation. The County will need to additionally fund approximately $600,000 annually. Item 10.a. - Page 126 Page 97 of 155 SAN MIGUEL COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT KEY FINDINGS 1. San Miguel CSD believes they can sustain their current fire protection service model for five years, but the future of the service is unclear after that. 2. San Miguel has success sustaining a paid call firefighter (PCF) program to provide emergency response. 3. Sustainability of the current staffing model for the next five years is predicated on the ability to recruit and retain paid call firefighters and develop experienced PCF staff into fire officers. 4. San Miguel CSD requests the following support from the County: 4.1. Increase auto aid support from County Fire. 4.2. County Fire assign a County water tender that San Miguel can staff and respond to calls inside and outside of the district. 4.3. Fiscal support for mobile data computers and dispatch costs. 5. Based on the County Fire Strategic Plan service level analysis, if San Miguel CSD divested fire protection, the County will need to staff the San Miguel fire station since there is not a reasonably proximal alternative. The added cost for staffing is $1.3 million. DISTRICT INTERVIEW ATTENDEES August 15, 2018 meeting: Interim General Manager/Fire Chief Rob Roberson; Board V. Pres. Joseph Parent; Board Clerk Tamara Parent BACKGROUND, HISTORY, AND SERVICES PROVIDED The San Miguel Community Service District (SM CSD) was formed after Proposition 13 in 2000 by a reorganization that combined the volunteer San Miguel Fire Protection District, San Miguel Sanitary District, County Waterworks District #1, San Miguel Lighting District. The SMCSD provides property tax-supported services (fire and lighting) and enterprise services (water, sewer, solid waste). The 2018-19 SM CSD budget is $2,228,376; $566,535 is from property taxes; the balance of the budget is primarily from water, sewer and solid waste enterprise funds. Item 10.a. - Page 127 San Miguel Community Services District Page 98 of 155 Fire protection is provided from the SM CSD fire station on Mission Street. There are no firefighters on duty at the fire station; response staffing is from on-call Paid Call Firefighters (PCF). The SM CSD fire department consists of a part paid Fire Chief, 1 part paid Assistant Fire Chief, 2 PCF-Captains, 2 PCF-Engineer/Driver Operator, and 11 Paid Call Firefighters. Administrative support is provided by SM CSD staff. Automatic aid is provided by Camp Roberts-CA National Guard Fire Department, 5 miles north with a response time of 13 minutes. Next closest mutual aid fire stations are City of Paso Robles, 10 miles south; and Cal Fire/County Fire Station 30, 12 miles south, in south Paso Robles, and County Fire Station 52 on Branch Road and Hwy 46 east, 14 miles away. City of Paso Robles apparatus have 15 minute response time; Station 30 has a response time of 16 minutes, and Station 52’s response time is 19 minutes. SAN MIGUEL FIRE PROTECTION CONCERNS San Miguel is an isolated community with no close fire agency neighbors; the closest are 5-9 miles away. San Miguel Fire Department responds to approximately 380 emergencies per year, 38% of which are mutual aid outside of the district. SM CSD is occasionally experiencing long response delays or no response from PCFs. The closest ambulance is 15 min utes away also responding from Paso Robles. SM CSD Fire Department is totally dependent on community members volunteering for Paid Call Firefighter and Fire Officer positions. To date, they have been effective at recruiting community members. Chief Roberson believes this model is sustainable for the next five (5) years. However, Chief Roberson is concerned that increased response demand and training requirements will significantly impact the ability to sustain the PCF model long term. His belief is exceeding 500 incidents a year will create a serious deterioration of volunteer or PCF response because of the time demand and absence from work or home. Chief Roberson is also concerned about continued automatic aid from Camp Roberts Fire may be at risk. Primary funding for 2018-19 FY $517,456 SM CSD fire protection budget is from property taxes in the amount of $390,856. Anticipated grants and response reimbursement make up the remainder. SAN MIGUEL UNIQUE RISKS AND HAZARDS The Union Pacific railroad runs through San Miguel and presents unique training requirements for rail and passenger emergencies. Highway 101 also passes through the community and results in frequent vehicle accidents, inside and outside of the district that San Miguel responds to. Specialized training and equipment are required to respond to these unique hazards. Item 10.a. - Page 128 San Miguel Community Services District Page 99 of 155 SAN MIGUEL CSD DATA SHEET Authorizing Code Cal. Govt. Code 61000 et. seq. Address: P.O. Box 180 1150 Mission Street San Miguel CA 93451 Telephone: 805-467-3388 FAX: 805-467-9212 Website: www.sanmiguelcsd.org District Manager: Rob Roberson (Interim) Fire Chief: Rob Roberson Board of Directors Meetings Fourth Tuesday of the Month at 7 p.m. at the fire station. Board of Directors John Green Joseph Parent Gilbert Buckman Anthony Kalvans Ashley Sangster Acreage 1932 Square miles 3.02 Number of parcels 1094 Population 2413 Assessed Valuation $272,887,870 2017/2018 Fire Actual Tot. Rev. 436,590 2017/2018 Property Tax: District 547,511 2017/2018 Property Tax: Fire 384,831 Special Tax or Assessment 0 Number of Career/Paid personnel 1 Number of Reserve Firefighters 0 Number of Active Volunteers 20 Annual calls for service (2017 cy) 239 Date of Formation February 1, 2000 Figure 50 San Miguel CSD Data Sheet Item 10.a. - Page 129 San Miguel Community Services District Page 100 of 155 SAN MIGUEL CSD MAP Figure 51 Map of San Miguel CSD: LAFCO LAFCO Map of San Miguel CSD service area and sphere of influence51 51 San Luis Obispo County LAFCO San Miguel CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 130 San Miguel Community Services District Service Area & Sphere of Influence Adopted: November 2013 C,oss M " d a lon;, Or rstrefln Rd Legend ~--~I Service Area I Sphere of Influence .__ __ _. (Same as Ser v ice Area) Rd San Miguel Community Services District Page 101 of 155 SAN MIGUEL CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT INCIDENT DENSITY The following map represents the density of incidents in a given location of the District, known as a “heat map”. The District boundary is represented with an orange line. The shades of purple and blue represent incidents at that location. Light shades indicate few calls for service at that location, while the deep purple represents a high volume of calls at the same location. The purpose of the map is to evaluate historical incident data for planning deployment of emergency resources, including fire station placement. The source of the incident data for the map is from the dispatch center’s computer-aided dispatch program and represents 3 ½ years of data from January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2018. Figure 52 Heat Map of Incident Locations in San Miguel The map above depicts County Fire responses in and around San Miguel, most of the responses are from Station 30 south of Paso Robles or Station 52 east of Paso Robles. San Miguel CSD fire station Item 10.a. - Page 131 !.':::···"" '' •:·:· Incident Density:Sa n Miguel cs oli San Miguel Community Services District Page 102 of 155 RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: SAN MIGUEL CSD Figure 53 Response Times from San Miguel Fire Station This map represents the response times from only the San Miguel CSD Fire Station on Mission Street. SM CSD can cover 95% of the district in 7 minute response time, and 100% of the district in less than 8 minutes. The shaded green area represents a drive time of up to four (4) minutes, the blue shaded area represents a drive time of over four (4) minutes and under five (5) minutes, while the yellow shaded area represents a drive time of five (5) to twelve (12) minutes. In all cases, 3 minutes are added for “reflex” time. Reflex time includes the time required to dispatch the call, assemble the crew, don the appropriate gear for the response and get out the door. The resulting total response times of seven, eight and fifteen minutes are based on industry standards for levels of service and fire progression. While not absolute, these tools are effective for planning purposes. San Miguel CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 132 "'"""~ Tinin,S.~11 Mii:i,1cl(:'::iJJ :,;,,ui<m l{"'fl<ll'"" Q Ott-Fntf'ri::Ktic,, t::)C.~riets SpeellJ UISIOC!hr e...-«:e:ion O co..icyBounclMy • CAL FIRE,'(:ounty F ir■ $1:atiOna RH p:~::.:H 74'.!Milllllil ¥ tl-':,"10,ul.C:1 R espo nse Times: San Migue l CSD Station Response San Miguel Community Services District Page 103 of 155 AUTOMATIC AND MUTUAL AID RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: STATIONS NEAR SAN MIGUEL CSD Figure 54 Response times from adjoining fire stations This map uses the same time values as the previous one. The difference is that this map removes the San Miguel CSD Fire Station from the analysis and considers automatic and mutual aid response times from nearby fire stations. The four stations nearby ar e Camp Roberts, City of Paso Robles fire station, Cal Fire station 30, and County Fire station 52. Cal Fire Station 30 30 Camp Roberts Fire Station 16 Fire Station County Fire Station 52 Paso Robles Fire Station 30 30 Item 10.a. - Page 133 R~IJ:'IOLU~ r,,...._.,1,&n M.i~1d Sur~ound in~ ~••.>on fL.:,r,,,n.,, .-~i.~~E ~ > -g OI....,, n ,. r,c, .. ~...., C:)DstrlCls O s~t.:fflr..::1-.-e l''Olect,:xi D eovntv Boundar)' FIH pMHTifflH • C,1,1. FIFIE/Coonty Firo $tlti0ns r,.7 Mir .JIM Response Times: San Miguel Surrounding Station Response Slit!Of"Jl ~~d ■1 Ai'"'~:ll.t C~~l)H(lt«IS ~,-.:, l}~p ~-()(11. CAL FIRE S:ator 30. CAL FIRE S:aicn52, Pno RcbiuUy Staton1 San Miguel Community Services District Page 104 of 155 SAN MIGUEL CSD FUNDING ASSESSED VALUATION 52 The assessed value along with a percentage increase of growth of the district is listed in the table below. The total for San Luis Obispo County is listed as well for comparison purposes. Secured and Utility Growth from Prior Year Agency 2017-2018 Assessed Valuation (after HOPTR*) Percent of Total 2015- 2016 2016- 2017 2017- 2018 San Luis Obispo County $49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67% 5.61 % San Miguel CSD $272,887,870 0.5559% 9.15% 11.04 % 4.34 % Figure 55 San Miguel CSD Assessed Valuation *HOPTR-Homeowners Property Tax Relief SAN MIGUEL CSD PROPERTY TAX The primary source of revenue for fire protection in special districts is property tax. The assessed value (chart above) and allocation formulas impact the amount of property tax allocated to the San Miguel CSD. PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TREND San Miguel CSD Fire Property Tax Allocation53 Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation $260,218 $ 285,334 $319,028 $334,418 Growth from Previous Year $13,479 $25,116 $33,694 $15,390 Incremental Growth % 5.46% 9.65% 11.81 4.82% Figure 56 San Miguel Property Tax allocation for Fire Protection 2014-2018 52 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 53 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 134 San Miguel Community Services District Page 105 of 155 Figure 57 Property Tax allocation patterns SAN MIGUEL CSD TAX RATE AREAS54 San Miguel CSD has nine tax rate areas within the district, which are listed below along with the total taxes collected in each TRA, percentage allocated to the District, and associated dollar allocation amounts. 54 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer Tax, Collectors Office - 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 Property Tax Allocation Property Tax Allocation Item 10.a. - Page 135 • • .. • --+- ~ t-,,<o ~ ty'b ~(:) ~(:) ~(:) 'v'(:) ~ ~ t-,,<o ~ '\,(:) '\,(:) '\,(:) '\,(:) San Miguel Community Services District Page 106 of 155 Figure 58 San Miguel CSD Map of Tax Rate Areas (TRA) Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend 114-022 114-033 114-037 114-023 114-034 114-038 114-029 114-036 114-039 Item 10.a. - Page 136 s!::::.~;~ *" (J otherFlreP,cceetion W E 114022 '"'-'::::IC.strictFi'eP!-otedion -114023 =::,: ... s San Miguel Community Services District Page 107 of 155 San Miguel CSD 2017/2018 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA TRA Percent to CSD Total Tax for TRA Tax Dollars to CSD (All Depts.) 114-022 19.76570 $283,614 $56,058 114-023 22.19123 $1,620,747 $359,664 114-029 9.79412 $129,082 $12,642 114-033 9.79418 $123,529 $12,099 114-034 9.79198 $11,529 $1,129 114-036 12.28879 $0 $0 114-037 12.28879 $75,599 $9,290 114-038 12.28879 $781,673 $96,058 114-039 12.28879 $4,642 $570 TRA Count = 9 Total $3,030,415 $547,511 Figure 59 San Miguel CSD Tax revenue % and $ by TRA PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION/TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES The pie chart below represents the allocation of property tax to all the agencies that receive property taxes within the 114-023 tax rate area. This tax rate area was selected as a representative example of the allocation of property tax to the District and is the tax rate area that generates the greatest tax revenue within the District. Figure 60 San Miguel CSD TRA 114-023 Breakdown55 55 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 137 San Miguel TRA 114-023 Property Tax $1,620,747 Total Property Tax Collected in TRA CO SCHOOL SERVICE.......___ 3.27% "- SLO CO COMM _/ COLLEGE 5.53% 15 .59% CEMETERY 0.62% ROADS 0.43% AIR POLLUTION CNTRL 0.05% 1.43% SLOCO FLOOD CONTROL 0.20% LIGHT 5.59% SAN MIGUEL CSD-SANITARY 3.41% San Miguel Community Services District Page 108 of 155 PERCENTAGE OF PROPERTY TAX EXPENDED ON FIRE PROTECTION IN FY 2017/201856 Total Property Tax Received by San Miguel CSD: $547,511 Property Tax Allocated to Fire Protection: $384,831 Percent of Total Allocated to Fire Protection: 70% Number of Parcels The number of parcels in the District impacts the ability of the District to pass a parcel based benefit assessment fee. An analysis was conducted to determine the fee burden per parcel based on generating an arbitrary amount of $500,000 in revenue for the District. That analysis is reflected in the table below. A flat fee of $457.00 per parcel (all parcels charged the same amount) is required to generate $500,000 in the San Miguel CSD. Values may vary depending on number of exempt parcels. Fee Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 San Miguel CSD 1094 $457 Figure 61 San Miguel CSD Parcel Count SAN MIGUEL CSD LOCAL REVENUE ENHANCEMENT EFFORTS Grants San Miguel CSD (SM CSD) applied for Volunteer Fire Assistance and federal Homeland Security grants for equipment with some success. SAN MIGUEL CSD SIGNIFICANT COST FACTORS Payroll The District is successfully utilizing a part-time Fire Chief and Paid Call Firefighters in an effort to reduce payroll costs. Retirement and Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) The District has taken steps to reduce its exposure for OPEB. The Fire Chief and Assistant Fire Chief have other primary jobs and do not receive retirement benefits, including post-retirement health care, from their San Miguel CSD Fire Department role. Equipment Replacement Fund The District utilizes a sinking fund for significant equipment purchases when funds allow. They have also had success with grant funding to pay for some equipment. 56 San Miguel CSD Financial Documents Item 10.a. - Page 138 I I San Miguel Community Services District Page 109 of 155 Workers’ Compensation The District reported having no significant open workers’ compensation claims. Liability The District reported not have any pending lawsuits involving the fire department. Facility Costs San Miguel Fire Station is part of the administrative offices for the San Miguel CSD and appears to be in good condition. San Miguel staff stated they are considering adding additional square footage to either this building or a separate facility. Further examination is required to determine if there are adequate spaces for on-duty crew. SAN MIGUEL CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT BUDGET Figure 62 San Miguel CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 San Miguel Community Services District Actual Revenue and Expenditures: Fire As of 6/25/2018 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Revenue Property Tax 45,034 289,090 327,678 341,497 Benefit Assessment/Special Tax - - - - Interest Revenue 425 - 304 249 Public Facility Fee-Fire 4,016 55,217 72,090 25,467 Weed Abatement Fees 1,788 1,646 1,097 - Inspection Fees - - - - Reimbursement for Mutual Aid 220,130 61,224 9,983 60,457 CDBG Grant - - 105,000 - VFA Assistance Grant - 10,000 8,424 - Ambulance Reimbursements 4,364 4,431 4,486 4,584 Other Revenue 5,983 2,897 37,538 4,336 Total Revenue 281,740 424,505 566,600 436,590 Expenditures Salaries, Stipends and Benefits 46,996 119,000 143,852 218,584 Services and Supplies 93,990 232,563 83,185 154,347 Debt Payments - - - - Capital Outlay 2,272 6,055 30,289 227,265 Other Expenses 30,789 - - - Transfers Out (Veh. Rep/Equip) 71,395 - 88,150 - Total Expenditures 245,442 357,618 345,476 600,196 Item 10.a. - Page 139 San Miguel Community Services District Page 110 of 155 SAN MIGUEL CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT STAFFING CURRENT STAFFING: • 1 Fire Chief-Part Time • 1 Assistant Chief-Part Time • 2 PCF-Fire Captains • 3 PCF- Engineer/Driver Operator • 11 PCF RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION • San Miguel actively recruits Paid Call Firefighters (PCF) with moderate success . • There is a turnover of 2-3 PCFs per year (15-20% of 11 member PCF force). • Some PCFs are deployed to summer seasonal firefighter jobs and are not available to the CSD. • Developing PCF fire officers (Asst. Chief and Captains) is difficult due to time and experience requirements. If the fire department loses an experienced fire officer due to work commitment or relocating from the area, it can take years to replace them. • Out of district assignments (major fire mutual aid) can serve as a retention tool for (PCFs) if they can be committed away from town for two weeks. • Chief Roberson is a native of San Miguel and has a fulltime job outside of the district. He is the Fire Chief for SM CSD, and also the Interim General Manager of SM CSD, which is a significant commitment. • Chief Roberson will retire in 5 years and does not have a community member identified yet as his successor; hiring a career fire chief may exceed the available budget. PROPOSED STAFFING Chief Roberson believes the current PCF model can operate for up to another 5 years. The major concerns are: • Incident activity exceeding 500 calls per year will cause a negative impact on volunteer/PCF response. • Community demographics being able to support recruitment of new PCFs due to training and time commitments. SAN MIGUEL CSD RESOURCE NEEDS SM CSD did not request a property tax transfer from SLO County. SM CSD is interested in: • Receiving additional automatic aid from County Fire Item 10.a. - Page 140 San Miguel Community Services District Page 111 of 155 • Sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost including mobile data computers. • San Miguel is in need of a water tender for portions of their district with no fire hydrants and offered to cooperate with County Fire by providing staffing and response outside of the district if a county water tender is assigned to San Miguel fire station. SAN MIGUEL CSD OPTIONS CONSIDERED • San Miguel CSD has no current plans or intention to divest fire protection. • If PCF recruitment is unsustainable in the future, and there is a need to provide fulltime career staff, SM CSD will need to seek additional revenue (most likely a benefit assessment) or divest fire protection. COUNTY OPTIONS IN THE EVENT OF DIVESTITURE BY SAN MIGUEL CSD Level of Service Analysis The County Fire Strategic Plan Level of Service Analysis recommends a minimum of an “Urban Service Level” for San Miguel which equates to a 7 minute response time for 90% of the district. All of the district can be reached within 7 minutes response from the San Miguel fire station. Response Time Dispatch and Get Away Time Driving Time to Incident Urban Standard == 7 Minutes 3 minutes 4 minutes Suburban Standard== 8 minutes 3 minutes 5 minutes Figure 63 San Miguel CSD Service Level Analysis Closest Existing County Station Station 30 (Paso Robles) on Ramona Drive in south Paso Robles is the closest Cal Fire/County Fire station and exceeds a 15 minute response time to San Miguel. Impact on the County San Miguel CSD’s current budget funding of $517,456 is sufficient to fund station operational costs and PCF company costs. If the SM CSD divests fire protection the primary reason will be the inability to sustain adequate PCF company strength creating a requirement for full-time staffing. If SM CSD cannot recruit and retain PCF’s, County Fire is unlikely to be more successful. Because no other fire stations are nearby, fulltime career fire staff will be required to staff San Miguel fire station. If SM CSD divests and County is required to provide full-time staff it will cost $1.3 million more than San Miguel Fire’s current budget. Item 10.a. - Page 141 San Miguel Community Services District Page 112 of 155 COUNTY FIRE OPTIONS 2 Full-time firefighters on duty daily at San Miguel fire station: County Fire can staff the San Miguel CSD Fire Station with 2 full-time firefighters on duty daily with support by PCF’s for $ 1.3 million plus station operating expense. If current 2018-19 FY SM CSD property tax funding allocation for fire ($347,000) is transferred to the County through property tax exchange, there will still be insufficient funding for the fire station staffing and operation. The County will need to fund an additional annual $1.3 million for full-time staffing in addition to the current $347,000 district property tax allocation. Item 10.a. - Page 142 Page 113 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT KEY FINDINGS 1. Santa Margarita FPD believes they can sustain their current fire protection service model for five years, but the future of the service is unclear after that. 2. The District reports success with recruiting and retaining paid call firefighters (PCF) with a current roster of eight active and goal of ten active PCF. 3. Sustainability of the current staffing model for the next five years is predicated on the ability to recruit and retain PCF and develop experienced PCF staff into fire officers. 4. As a result of low revenue amounts, the District’s budget falls short of revenue necessary to fund equipment replacement and replacement facility costs 5. The District has utilized grants and donations extensively for support equipment procurement and operations. 6. The District has a low comparative assessed value and a small number of parcels, resulting in slow growth of revenue and limited revenue generation through benefit assessment. 7. The District’s sphere of influence is the same as the existing boundary and the District is surrounded by a single property owner (Santa Margarita Ranch), which is outside of the sphere of influence. 8. Santa Margarita’s fire station has flooded in the past and they report that it is inadequate to support District operations. 9. Santa Margarita FPD is planning on building a new fire station on a lot owned by the District. 10. The District has approximately $100,000 set aside, but the funding gap is substantial for the multi-million dollar cost to build a fire station that meets essential services standards. 11. County Fire Strategic Plan identifies the need to relocate County Engine 40 to Garden Farms or Santa Margarita. 12. One option for the County is a joint fire station between the District and County Fire. Best government practices would suggest that a cooperative approach in a joint fire station is more efficient than duplicating expensive construction projects. 13. If Santa Margarita FPD dissolves, priority should be given to expediting the relocation of Engine 40 to a new facility in Santa Margarita or Garden Farms. Item 10.a. - Page 143 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 114 of 155 14. The District did not have a specific request of the County but would like to share in any revenue enhancements opportunities and/or would like to have the County cover some costs, such as dispatch service costs. DISTRICT INTERVIEW ATTENDEES August 23, 2018 meeting: District President John Wilkins; Fire Chief Bob Murach BACKGROUND, HISTORY, AND SERVICES PROVIDED The Santa Margarita Fire Protection District (SM FPD) was formed in 1921. The fire district’s purpose is to provide fire protection services to the community of Santa Margarita. There is no community services district in Santa Margarita, all other community services are provided by other single-purpose districts or the County. SM FPD is the sole remaining fire protection district in San Luis Obispo County. The SM FPD is primarily funded through property taxes. The 2018-19 SM FPD budget is $ 113,200; $ 105,230 is from property taxes; the balance of the budget is from fees and reimbursements. Fire protection is provided from the SM FPD fire station at 22375 G Street (Highway 58/El Camino Real). There are no firefighters on duty at the fire station, so response staffing is strictly from on-call Paid Call Firefighters (PCF). The SM FPD fire department consists of a part paid Fire Chief, 1 PCF Deputy Chief, 1 PCF-Captain, 1 PCF Lieutenant, and 4 Paid Call Firefighters. Administrative support is provided by the SM FPD fire chief. The fire chief of a fire protection district routinely serves as the district executive officer as well as the fire chief. Automatic aid is provided by Cal Fire/County Fire Station 40 (Parkhill Road), 5 miles east on Highway 58 with a response time of 11 minutes. The next closest mutual aid fire stations are City of Atascadero, 7 miles north with a response time of 13 minutes, and Atascadero State Hospital, 7 miles north with a response time of 12 minutes. FIRE PROTECTION CONCERNS Santa Margarita is an isolated community with no close fire agency neighbors. The closest are 5-7 miles away. In 2017, Santa Margarita Fire Protection District responded to approximately 150 emergencies for the year, 78 of which are in the district. SM FPD i s occasionally experiencing long response delays or no response from PCFs. The closest ambulance responds from Atascadero 14 minutes away. SM FPD Fire Department is totally dependent on community members volunteering for Paid Call Firefighter (PCF) and Fire Officer positions. Chief Murach has been with the SM FPD for 29 years, less than 1 year as fire chief. To date, they have had success recruiting community members. Chief Murach believes this model is sustainable for the next five (5) years. He reports that they have 8 PCFs currently and his goal is to have 10. Item 10.a. - Page 144 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 115 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT STATION REPLACEMENT The SM FPD fire station has flooded more than once in the past and is in serious need of replacement. The District has purchased a vacant lot on G Street to build a fire station and have set aside $101,000 for construction. State law requires that fire stations are built to an “Essential Services“57 standard. Fire station buildings must be earthquake resistant and are very expensive, costing millions of dollars to design and build. SM FPD’s 2018-19 budget is approximately $113,200. Under State law, a fire protection district can only borrow three (3) times their annual budget, ($339,600) well short of the funding necessary to build the station when added to the reserved amount. The County Fire Department strategic plan calls for relocating Engine 40 from the Parkhill Road fire station to the Garden Farms area, which will also necessitate building a fire station. Combining the fire station needs into a single project would save millions of tax dollars and avoid building two fire stations close to each other. Chief Murach has some concerns that two agencies sharing space in a single fire station may create tensions between fire agencies. FUNDING Primary funding for 2018-19 FY $ 113,200 SM FPD fire protection budget is from property taxes. Santa Margarita FPD is seriously underfunded with annual property tax revenues of $105,200. There is little room for property tax growth, the district is nearly built out and the Sphere of Influence is the same as the district boundary. Response reimbursement and fees make up the remainder. Chief Murach does not believe the community will support a benefit assessment ballot measure to raise funds for the district. Fire Apparatus Replacement Funding SM FPD has been successful in obtaining grants for new equipment and donations of used fire apparatus. The district has two fire engines, 2 patrol vehicles, and a command vehicle. A new fire engine costs $580,000; new patrols can range between $70,000-150,000 depending on equipment carried. SM FPD does not have the adequate annual revenue to set aside funds in a sinking fund account for replacement of fire apparatus and equipment. The entire annual fire district budget is $113,200 of which $30,000-50,000 would need to be set aside for apparatus and major equipment replacement. This is based on each engine being in front-line service for 20 years and reserve status for 20 years. The SM FPD first line fire engine is a 2005 Seagrave. The 57 Essential Services; CA Health and Safety Code, Section 16000-16002; & CAC Title 24, Part 1 Item 10.a. - Page 145 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 116 of 155 reserve engine is a 31-year-old 1987 model. The standard fire apparatus replacement age for first line fire engines is 15-20 years depending on use and severity of service. REQUEST FROM COUNTY SM FPD did not request a property tax transfer from SLO County; however, they are interested in continuing to receive automatic aid from County Fire. They are also interested in sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost. SANTA MARGARITA UNIQUE RISKS AND HAZARDS The Union Pacific railroad runs through Santa Margarita and presents unique training requirements for rail and passenger emergencies. Highway 58 is the main street of Santa Margarita. Highway 101 also passes adjacent to the community and results in frequent vehicle accidents that SM FPD responds to under automatic aid with County Fire. Specialized training and equipment are required to respond to these hazards. Item 10.a. - Page 146 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 117 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FPD DATA SHEET Authorizing Code: Cal. H&S 13800 et. seq. Address: P.O. Box 67 22375 El Camino Real Santa Margarita, CA 93453-0067 Telephone: 805-438-3185 FAX: 805-438-3185 Website: www.santamargaritafiredept.org Fire Chief: Robert Murach Board of Directors Meetings Second Wednesday of the month at 5:00 p.m. at the fire station on El Camino Real Board Members John Wilkins Beth Gorrill Joel Switzer Acreage 307 Square miles 0.5 Number of parcels 522 Population 1259 Assessed Valuation $124,036,860 2017/2018 Fire Actual Tot. Rev. $123,486 2017/2018 Property Tax: District $108,623 2017/2018 Property Tax: Fire $108,623 Special Tax or Assessment 0 Number of Career/Paid personnel 0 Number of Reserve Firefighters 0 Number of Active Volunteers 8 Annual calls for service (2017 cy) 78 Date of Formation August 2, 1921 Figure 64 Santa Margarita FPD Data Sheet Item 10.a. - Page 147 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 118 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FPD MAP Figure 65 Map of Santa Margarita FPD: LAFCO LAFCO Map of Santa Margarita FPD service area and sphere of influence58 58 San Luis Obispo County LAFCO Santa Margarita Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 148 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Service Area & Sphere of Influence Adopted: November 2014 Legend Major Roads Service Area Sphere of Influence (Same as Service A rea) Prepa1Qd av Sl.Ot..AI-CO Nilltrot S..nlil Matll-"'11111 Fi·ot SOI Fl~dy Dile 211or2010 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 119 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT INCIDENT DENSITY The following map represents the density of incidents in a given location of the District, known as a “heat map”. The District boundary is represented with an orange line. The shades of purple and blue represent incidents at that location. Light shades indicate few calls for service at that location, while the deep purple represents a high volume of calls at the same location. The purpose of the map is to evaluate historical incident data for planning deployment of emergency resources, including fire station placement. The source of the incident data for the map is from the dispatch center’s computer-aided dispatch program and represents 3 ½ years of data from January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2018. Figure 66 Heat Map of incident locations in Santa Margarita FPD The map above depicts County Fire responses in and around Santa Margarita, the responses are from Station 40 on Parkhill Road and Highway 58 east of Santa Margarita. Santa Margarita Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 149 ' ... • .. • .. • ti • ... . .. . • 1 .. ,., ....... , rNn,;,_,~nu u. ...... , .. n·v ~ •• -~ • • •' • • !, ::_: ......... ■·:: t,f J ,. •·· • " • • • Inc i dent D e n s i ty:Santa M a rg arita FPD'1 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 120 of 155 RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: SANTA MARGARITA FPD Figure 67 Response times from Santa Margarita FPD fire station This map represents the response times from only the Santa Margarita FPD Fire Station on G Street. With prompt turnout from on-call PCF firefighters, the SM FPD can cover 100% of the district in a 7 minute response time. The shaded green area represents a drive time of up to four (4) minutes, the blu e shaded area represents a drive time of over four (4) minutes and under five (5) minutes, while the yellow shaded area represents a drive time of five (5) to twelve (12) minutes. In all cases, 3 minutes are added for “reflex” time. Reflex time includes t he time required to dispatch the call, assemble the crew, don the appropriate gear for the response and get out the door. Reflex times for an all PCF operation can vary widely depending on availability and location of the firefighter when the response is initiated. The resulting total response times of seven, eight and fifteen minutes are based on industry standards for levels of service and fire progression. While not absolute, these tools are effective for planning purposes. Santa Margarita Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 150 Reo po.aoe Tm>O'f,Sa.ata MargaritaFPD Statioa R espoaoe ·*· s () 01/w Fre Pn,teclil'm Specii,IOislnctFi'ePl'otecbon .CALFIRE/CountyFlreS1ations "-"Roads O countyBoondary Response Times 7-SM,rutes 8-15Mln<ie1a Sletionslrw:lucledlnAnelysis:SantaWarpltaF~eOepartment Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 121 of 155 AUTOMATIC AND MUTUAL AID RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: STATIONS NEAR SANTA MARGARITA FPD Figure 68 Santa Margarita: Response times from adjoining fire stations This map uses the same time values as the previous one. The difference is that this map removes the Santa Margarita FPD Fire Station from the analysis and considers automatic and mutual aid response times from nearby fire stations. The four stations nearby are Cal Fire/County Fire Station 40, City of Atascadero Fire Station # 2, Atascadero State Hospital Fire Station. None of the automatic or mutual aid stations can provide a response to the district in a reasonable response time. Atascadero St Hosp Fire Cal Fire/County Station 40 Atascadero City Fire Santa Margarita FPD Item 10.a. - Page 151 Rupon .. Time1:Santa Mai;arila Smmw,_ding Station Reo """ ·•· s {) O!her fteP,,;,tection () Speci<,IDislrict Fi'eProte,:~oo • CAL FIRE/County Fire S!ations D County Bwnd~ry Response Times IPlO,t.te, 7•8 lllf'l,_.u Response Times, Santa Margarita Surrounding Station Response Slslion$lnclu,;led lnA Mly$i$: CALF IRE Stslion 40, Al&&:&dero St sle HoSf,il:"1,A!a=<Wo Cify Stslion 2 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 122 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT FUNDING ASSESSED VALUATION 59 The assessed value along with a percentage increase of growth of the district is listed in the table below. The total for San Luis Obispo County is listed as well for comparison purposes. Secured and Utility Growth from Prior Year Agency 2017-2018 Assessed Valuation (after HOPTR*) Percent of Total 2015- 2016 2016- 2017 2017- 2018 San Luis Obispo County $49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67% 5.61% Santa Margarita FPD $124,036,860 0.2527% 4.61% 4.31% 3.64% Figure 69 Santa Margarita FPD Assessed Valuation *HOPTR-Homeowners Property Tax Relief DISTRICT PROPERTY TAX The primary source of revenue for fire protection in special districts is property tax. The assessed value (chart above) and allocation formulas impact the amount of property tax allocated to the Santa Margarita FPD. PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TREND Santa Margarita FPD Property Tax Allocation60 Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation $90,931 $95,399 $100,080 $103,921 Growth from Previous Year $4,503 $4,468 $4,681 $3,841 Incremental Growth % 5.21% 4.91% 4.91% 3.84% Figure 70 Santa Margarita FPD Property Taxes 2014-2018 59 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer Tax Collector’s Office 60 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 152 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 123 of 155 Figure 71 Santa Margarita FPD: Property tax trends $80,000 $90,000 $100,000 $110,000 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation Property Tax Allocation Item 10.a. - Page 153 ... --+- Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 124 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT TAX RATE AREAS61 Santa Margarita FPD has two tax rate areas within the district, which are listed below along with the total taxes collected in each TRA, percentage allocated to the District, and associated dollar allocation amounts. Figure 72 Map of Santa Margarita FPD Tax Rate Area Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend Tax Rate Area Legend 054-002 054-050 61 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collectors Office Santa Margarita FPD 2017/2018 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA TRA Percent to FPD Total Tax for TRA Tax Dollars to FPD 054-002 7.89636 $43,464 $3,432 054-050 7.89636 $1,366,965 $107,940 TRA Count = 2 Total $1,410,429 $111,373 Figure 73 Santa Margarita FPD: Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA Item 10.a. - Page 154 • .. • • • Tax Rate Area 1 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 125 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FPD PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION/TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES The pie chart below represents the allocation of property tax to all the agencies that receive property taxes within the 054-050 tax rate area. This tax rate area was selected as a representative example of the allocation of property tax to the District and is the tax rate area that generates the greatest tax revenue within the District. Figure 74 Santa Margarita FPD: TRA 054-050 Breakdown Tax Rate Area 054-050 allocation between all agencies that collect property tax from the tax rate area.62 PERCENTAGE OF PROPERTY TAX EXPENDED ON FIRE PROTECTION IN FY 2017/201863 Total Property Tax Received by Santa Margarita FPD: $108,623 Property Tax Allocated to Fire Protection: $108,623 Percent of Total Allocated to Fire Protection: 100% 62 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 63 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 155 Santa Margarita TRA 054-050 Property Tax $1,366,965 Total Taxes Collected in TRA AIR POLLUTION CNTRL 0.06 % CO SCH~~~~ERVICE ~ SLO CO COMM COLLEGE 6.57 % ATASCADERO UNIF 43.75% GENERAL FUND 22.97% ROADS LIBRARY 1.70 % . . .. ' . ~ .. 1.83 % 0.26 % SANTA MARGARITA FIRE 7.90 % CEMETERY 0.77 % Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 126 of 155 Number of Parcels The number of parcels in the District impacts the ability of the District to pass a parcel based benefit assessment fee. An analysis was conducted to determine the fee burden per parcel based on generating an arbitrary amount of $500,000 in revenue for the District. That analysis is reflected in the table below. A flat fee of $961 per parcel (all parcels charged the same amount) is required to generate $500,000 in the Santa Margarita FPD. Values may vary depending on number of exempt parcels. Fee Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 Santa Margarita FPD 522 $961 Figure 75 Santa Margarita FPD Parcel Count SANTA MARGARITA FPD LOCAL REVENUE ENHANCEMENT EFFORTS Grants Santa Margarita FPD (SM FPD) applied for Volunteer Fire Assistance and federal Homeland Security grants for equipment with some success. SIGNIFICANT COST FACTORS Payroll The District is utilizing a part-time Fire Chief and Paid Call Firefighters in an effort to reduce payroll costs. Retirement and Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) The District has taken steps to reduce its exposure for OPEB. The Fire Chief and Assistant Fire Chief have other primary jobs and do not receive retirement benefits, including post-retirement health care, from their Santa Margarita FPD role. Equipment Replacement Fund The District has no sinking fund for significant equipment purchases. They have had success with grant funding to pay for some equipment and donations of used equipment. The district has insufficient annual property tax revenue to fund an apparatus sinking fund. Fire Station Replacement Santa Margarita FPD is in need of a new fire station. The existing station does not meet the needs of the District and has flooded in the past. The District has purchased a vacant piece of property and is working toward funding for a new fire station. While the District is making efforts toward reserving funds for a new facility, the gap between the available funding and the cost of constructing an essential service building is substantial. Item 10.a. - Page 156 I I Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 127 of 155 The County Fire strategic plan recommends constructing a new County Fire Department station in the Garden Farms/Santa Margarita area as well. Building two new fire stations in close proximity is redundant. Workers’ Compensation The District reported having no significant open workers’ compensation claims. Liability The District reports they do not have any pending lawsuits. SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT BUDGET Figure 76 Santa Margarita FPD Fire Budgets 2014-2018 SANTA MARGARITA FPD STAFFING CURRENT STAFFING: • 1 Fire Chief-Part Time • 1 Deputy Chief-Part Time Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Actual Revenue and Expenditures Based on SLO County Auditor/Controller Budget Reports 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Revenue Property Tax 95,836 99,807 105,336 108,623 Benefit Assessment/Special Tax - - - - Interest Revenue 463 769 1,139 2,263 Public Facility Fee-Fire 1,091 1,644 - 2,284 Weed Abatement Fees - - - - Inspection Fees - - - - Reimbursement for Mutual Aid - - - - Ambulance Reimbursements 4,967 4,028 3,056 10,316 Grant Revenue - - - - Other Revenue - - - - Total Revenue 102,357 106,248 109,531 123,486 Expenditures Salaries, Stipends and Benefits 30,863 34,384 37,437 37,465 Services and Supplies 59,868 60,141 63,527 64,052 Debt Payments - - - - Other Expenses - - - - Total Expenditures 90,731 94,525 100,964 101,517 Item 10.a. - Page 157 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 128 of 155 • 1 PCF-Fire Captains • 1 PCF Lieutenant • 4 Paid Call Firefighters RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION • Santa Margarita actively recruits Paid Call Firefighters (PCF) with moderate success . • There is a turnover of 2-3 PCFs per year (30-40% of 8 member PCF force). • Some PCFs are deployed to summer seasonal firefighter jobs and are not available to the FPD. • Developing PCF fire officers (Asst. Chief and Captains) is difficult due to time and experience requirements. If the fire department loses an experienced fire offi cer due to work commitment or relocating from the area, it can take years to replace them. • Out of district assignments (major fire mutual aid) can serve as a retention tool for (PCFs) if they can be committed away from town for two weeks. • Chief Murach has been with Santa Margarita FPD for 29 years, he has a fulltime job outside of the district. This level of community member commitment is becoming scarce. • Chief Murach has plans to retire in 5 years and is working on identifying a community member as his successor; hiring a career fire chief may exceed the available budget. PROPOSED STAFFING Chief Murach believes the current PCF model can operate for up to another 5 years. The major concerns are: • Incident activity and training requirements causing a negative impact on volunteer/PCF response. • Community demographics being able to support recruitment of new PCFs due to training and time commitments. SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT RESOURCE NEEDS SM FPD did not request a property tax transfer from SLO County. SM FPD is interested in: • Continuing to receive automatic aid from County Fire • Sharing any new revenue source or cost reductions for fire protection services such as dispatch cost including mobile data computers. • Santa Margarita is in serious need of a replacement fire station and knowing County Fire is also interested in building a fire station in the immediate area. There may be some opportunities for sharing the station. There are also concerns about friction between two agencies in one fire station. Item 10.a. - Page 158 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 129 of 155 SANTA MARGARITA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT OPTIONS CONSIDERED • Santa Margarita FPD has no current plans or intention to divest fire protection or dissolve the District. • If PCF recruitment is unsustainable in the future, and there is a need to provide fulltime career staff, SM FPD will need to seek additional revenue (most likely a benefit assessment) or dissolve the District. • Funding for fire station replacement and major apparatus is a serious deficit. COUNTY OPTIONS IN THE EVENT OF DISSOLUTION Level of Service Analysis The County Fire Strategic Plan Level of Service Analysis recommends a minimum of a “Suburban Service Level” for Santa Margarita which equates to an 8 minute response time for 90% of the district. All of the districts can be reached within 5 minutes driving time from the Santa Margarita Fire Station. The unknown factor is the response time for PCFs to get to the fire station to respond the equipment. 3-minute dispatch and getaway time is considered a standard for staffed fire stations, however, PCF staffed stations will exceed 3 minutes since the response is initiated from home, work or other location to the fire station first. Response Time Dispatch and Get Away Time Driving Time to Incident Urban Standard == 7 Minutes 3 minutes 4 minutes Suburban Standard== 8 minutes 3 minutes 5 minutes Figure 77 Santa Margarita FPD: Service Level Analysis Closest Existing County Station Station 40 (Parkhill) off Highway 58 on Parkhill Road is the closest Cal Fire/County Fire Station and has an 11 minute response time to Santa Margarita. Impact on the County Santa Margarita FPD’s current budget funding of $113,200 is not sufficient to fund a staffed fire station including operational costs, PCF company costs, and apparatus and equipment replacement. If the SM FPD dissolves, the primary reason will be the inability to sustain adequate PCF company strength, thus creating a requirement for full-time staffing. If SM FPD cannot recruit and retain PCF’s, County Fire is unlikely to be more successful. The second reason will be the inability of the FPD to fund necessary services with their very limited tax base. County Fire’s strategic plan calls for building a fire station in Garden Farms or Santa Margarita. County Engine 40 is currently stationed at the Park Hill Fire Station and is planned to be relocated to the Garden Farms area (1 mile north of Santa Margarita). The most cost effective solution for both agencies is to build a joint fire station. Item 10.a. - Page 159 Santa Margarita Fire Protection District Page 130 of 155 If SM FPD divests fire protection as a result of dissolution, and County Fire is required to provide fire protection, there will be the onetime expense of a fire station. Other staff and operational costs are already budgeted for Engine 40. COUNTY FIRE OPTIONS 2 Full-time firefighters on duty daily at a new Santa Margarita or Garden Farms fire station: County Fire could staff a new fire station in Santa Margarita or Garden Farms area and provide fire protection within the service level analysis “Suburban” service level (8 minute response time). If current 2018-19 FY SM FPD property tax funding allocation for fire ($113,200) is transferred to the County through a property tax exchange, there will still be insufficient funding for the f ire station staffing and operation on its own. However, the County’s long-term plan to relocate Engine 40 would not require additional staffing. The revenue transferred from the District could be utilized toward partial payment for fire station construct ion and/or equipment replacement. The County’s current allocation for Engine 40 staff and operational support should be sufficient to fund the ongoing cost of fire protection service. Item 10.a. - Page 160 Page 131 of 155 TEMPLETON COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT KEY FINDINGS 1. Templeton CSD indicated that they are in imminent fiscal peril of divestiture without financial augmentation 2. Templeton CSD has success augmenting their two career personnel with reserve firefighters but report high turnover of reserve firefighters. 3. In 2009 the voters in Templeton did not approve a weighted benefit assessment which would result in a $161.21 charge for single family residence. 4. A subsequent 2015 survey by SCI Consulting indicated that the District would not be successful passing a special tax or benefit assessment measure. 5. The District formed a Mello Roos Community Facilities District for new development. Those funds will start to accrue in three to ten years and go to the district’s general fund. 6. The district is considering a new benefit assessment district ballot measure for 2019. 7. The District is specifically requesting: 7.1. A property tax transfer of $485,000 on an ongoing basis to support fire operations . since they receive less than 10% of the property taxes in the District’s tax rate areas. 7.2. The funds will be used to fund a full-time fire chief and add two additional career staff to allow for one career and one reserve firefighter on duty 24/7. Templeton CSD Options include possible divestiture: 8. Templeton CSD reports they intend to go to the voters requesting passage of a special tax or benefit assessment district in August 2019. 9. If unsuccessful in obtaining additional funding, the District states they will have no choice, but to divest fire protection service. County options for Templeton include: 10. Agree to property tax transfer: Item 10.a. - Page 161 Templeton Community Services District Page 132 of 155 10.1. Execute a property tax transfer agreement to support the District’s request for net $485,000 transfer or some variation. 11. DO NOT agree to property tax transfer: 11.1. The County can decide to not transfer property taxes. Based on the County Fire Strategic Plan service level analysis, if Templeton CSD divested, the County will have three options: 12. Options assume TEM CSD transfers $ 833,400 property tax currently used for fire protection to County, maintain and share PCF company 30, and adding a Deputy Fire Marshal position: Option A: Relocate County Engine 30 to Templeton Fire Station with 3 career firefighters 24/7 (augmented staffing). No additional funding required Option B: County adds funding, Templeton engine staffed with at least two career firefighters 24/7; Engine 30 remains at Cal Fire Station 30 staffed with at least two career firefighters 24/7. $485,000 additional annual funding required in addition to $833,000 current district property tax allocation. Option C: County adds funding, relocate Engine 30 to Templeton and augment staffing for a second staffed fire company at Templeton Fire Station. 4 career firefighters on duty daily $350,000 additional annual funding required in addition to $833,000 current district property tax allocation. DISTRICT INTERVIEW ATTENDEES August 16, 2018 meeting: Board Directors Gwen Pelfry and Pamela Jardini, General Manager Jeff Briltz, Fire Chief Bill White, Dan Turner, Mike McMurry, and Lisa Howe September 19, 2018 meeting*: Board Directors Gwen Pelfry and Pamela Jardini, General Manager Jeff Briltz, Fire Chief Bill White, Finance Officer Natalie Klock, Dan Turner, and Mike McMurry. September 21, 2018 meeting with General Manager Jeff Briltz, Fire Chief Bill White, Finance Officer Natalie Klock and Mike McMurry to attain clarifying budget information. BACKGROUND, HISTORY, AND SERVICES PROVIDED The Templeton Community Services District (Templeton CSD) was formed in 1976 by a reorganization that combined the volunteer Templeton Fire Protection District, Templeton Item 10.a. - Page 162 Templeton Community Services District Page 133 of 155 Sanitary District, Templeton Lighting District, and County Waterworks # 5. The Templeton CSD provides property tax-supported services (fire, lighting, parks, and recreation) and enterprise services (water, sewer, solid waste). The 2018-19 Templeton CSD budget is $6,024,73464; $1,149,630 is from property taxes; the balance of the budget is primarily from water, sewer and solid waste enterprise funds. Templeton CSD has an elected five (5) member board of directors with a General Manager for the CSD and serves a population of 7,700 people. TEMPLETON CSD FUNDING Primary funding for 2018-19 FY $947,628 Templeton CSD fire protection budget is from property taxes in the amount of $833,482. The fire budget is allocated 72.5% of the total property tax allocation. Fees and reimbursements make up the remainder in addition to reserve transfers. Templeton CSD has enacted a Mello-Roos Community Facility District for new developments which the district will realize revenue in 3-10 years. Fire protection is provided from the Templeton CSD fire station on 5th and Crocker Streets. The fire station is staffed 8 AM -5 PM during the day with at least one career firefighter and/or a Reserve Firefighter. From 5 PM to 8 AM- station is covered by 2Reserve Firefighters or responses from off duty firefighters. Additional response staffing is from on-call Reserve and Paid Call Firefighters (PCF). The Templeton CSD fire department consists of a part paid Fire Chief, 2 career-Captains, and at the time of the meetings, 9 PCF/Reserves, the number of which can fluctuate up to 30 authorized. Administrative support is provided by Templeton CSD staff. Automatic aid is provided by Cal Fire Station 30 located at the northern boundary of the district. The next closest mutual aid fire stations are City of Paso Robles, 6 miles north; and City of Atascadero, 6 miles south. Cal Fire Station 30 has a response time of 3 -8 minutes. The City of Paso Robles apparatus has a 13 minute response time. The City of Atascadero apparatus has an 11 minute response time. TEMPLETON CSD FIRE PROTECTION CONCERNS Templeton CSD staff state their primary need is $485,000 in annual funding to increase the number of career firefighters to provide a minimum of one career firefighter on duty for 24/7 coverage. Templeton CSD is occasionally experiencing an inability to schedule Reserve Firefighters for nighttime coverage or receiving no response from PCFs during nighttime coverage periods. Templeton Fire Department responded to 83165 emergencies in 2017 within the District boundary. The closest ambulance is located on Main Street in Templeton. Templeton CSD Fire Department recruits Reserve Firefighters from community college fire academies at Allan Hancock College and Monterey Peninsula College. To date, they have not had much success in recruiting community members for Paid Call Firefighter positions, with 3 64 Templeton CSD budget document 65SLO County Fire/ Cal Fire Computer Aided Dispatch Item 10.a. - Page 163 Templeton Community Services District Page 134 of 155 living in Templeton. Many of the paid call firefighters are full-time or part time firefighters for other agencies. Chief White reported using reserves is sustainable for the next five (5) years but is currently having difficulty scheduling for 24 hours per day coverage, especially when one of the 2 career firefighters is on vacation or ill. At monthly Templeton CSD board meetings, reports are filed that detail the number of night shifts with no Reserve Firefighter coverage and the number of incidents that occurred during those shifts where response was delayed while off duty and paid call responded from home. Concern was expressed that if one or both of the career staff were to be unavailable for an extended period of time, the department will not be able to support response. One of the career Fire Captains announced his retirement effective the end of December 2018. TEMPLETON CSD REQUEST FROM COUNTY Templeton CSD requests a permanent property tax exchange that increases the percentage of 1% property tax that goes to the CSD. The first year goal is to increase the net revenue to Templeton CSD by $485,000 and accrue growth in assessed valuation based on the new percentage allocation share in the future. The request will correspondingly reduce the County’s property tax share within the affected tax rate areas. The basis for the request is the district’s belief the low percentage of property tax allocation to the District based on the post Prop 13 formula for property tax distribution is inappropriate. Templeton CSD receives less than 10% of the property taxes in each of its tax rate areas. TEMPLETON CSD UNIQUE RISKS AND HAZARDS Twin Cities Hospital and associated medical facilities are located in TEM CSD which require special skills and inspections. The Union Pacific railroad runs through Templeton and presents unique training requirements for rail and passenger emergencies. Highway 101 also passes through the community and results in frequent vehicle accidents, inside and outside of the district. Specialized training and equipment are required to respond to these unique hazards. Templeton CSD Fire department operates one of four specialized mobile breathing support units (BSU) in the County. BSU’s are dispatched to support any fire or other hazardous incident where self-contained breathing apparatus are used by firefighters. The BSU is designed to fill the breathing apparatus air bottles at the incident. Item 10.a. - Page 164 Templeton Community Services District Page 135 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD DATA SHEET Authorizing Code Cal. Govt. Code 61000 et. seq. Address: P.O. Box 780 420 Crocker Street Templeton CA 92465 Telephone: 805-434-4900 FAX: 805-434-4820 Website: www.templetoncsd.org District Manager: Jeff Briltz Fire Chief: Bill White Board of Directors Meetings First and third Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. at the District offices Board Members Debra Logan Gwen Pelfrey Wayne Petersen Navid Fardanesh Pamela Jardini Acreage 3271 Square miles 5.1 Number of parcels 2778 Population 7700 Assessed Valuation $1,143,978,918 2017/2018 Fire Actual Tot. Rev. $992,403 2017/2018 Property Tax: District $1,085,530 2017/2018 Property Tax: Fire $796,278 Special Tax or Assessment $0 Number of Career/Paid personnel 3 Number of Reserves/PCFirefighters 9 Number of Active Volunteers 0 Annual calls for service (2017 cy) 831 Date of Formation December 29, 1976 Figure 78 Templeton CSD Data Sheet Item 10.a. - Page 165 Templeton Community Services District Page 136 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD MAP Figure 79 Map of Templeton CSD: LAFCO LAFCO Map of Templeton CSD service area and sphere of influence66 66 San Luis Obispo County LAFCO Templeton CSD Fire Station Cal Fire Station 30 Item 10.a. - Page 166 Templeton Community Services District Service Area & Sphere of Influence Adopted: November 2013 Legend .,__ _ ___.I Service Area .__ _ __,I Sphere of Influence Pt-•ld BJ'6La.AfCO /\omo Te'f!PIC10ri_S01aodr Otlle 2/10/2'01fS Templeton Community Services District Page 137 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT INCIDENT DENSITY The following map represents the density of inciden ts in a given location of the District, known as a “heat map”. The District boundary is represented with an orange line. The shades of purple and blue represent incidents at that location. Light shades indicate few calls for service at that location, while the deep purple represents a high volume of calls at the same location. The purpose of the map is to evaluate historical incident data for planning deployment of emergency resources, including fire station placement. The source of the incident data f or the map is from the dispatch center’s computer-aided dispatch program and represents 3 ½ years of data from January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2018. Figure 80 Templeton CSD: Heat Map of incident locations The map above depicts County Fire responses in and around Templeton, the responses are from Station 30 on Ramada Drive at the northern boundary of Templeton. Templeton CSD Fire Station Cal Fire Station 30 Item 10.a. - Page 167 , ... ,~... ~-. TJ.-nMt,·,T,mrl.>t,., ·. ~. l'.H) w > ~~ ~· f . . _:I. s 1 cso%i Incid e nt D e n s ity :T e m p e ton Templeton Community Services District Page 138 of 155 RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: TEMPLETON CSD Figure 81 Templeton CSD: Response times from Templeton CSD fire station This map represents the response times from only the Templeton CSD Fire Station on 5th Street. 75% of the district can be reached within 4 minutes driving time and 95% of the district within 5 minutes driving time from the Templeton fire station. The unknown factor is the response time for PCF to get to the fire station to respond the equipment when no career or reserve staff are on duty. 3 minutes is considered normal for staffed fire stations, PCF staffed stations will exceed 3 minutes since they must respond from home/work to the fire station first. The shaded green area represents a drive time of up to four (4) minutes, the blue shaded area represents a drive time of over four (4) minutes and under five (5) minutes, while the yellow shaded area represents a drive time of five (5) to twelve (12) minutes. In all cases, 3 minutes are added for “reflex” time. Reflex time includes the time required to dispatch the call, assemble the crew, don the appropriate gear for the response and get out the door. The resulting total response times of seven, eight and fifteen minutes are based on indu stry standards for levels of service and fire progression. While not absolute, these tools are effective for planning purposes. Templeton CSD Fire Station Item 10.a. - Page 168 itJ! OIK1·F1NP ·otix:11<1·1 C'.')Oi\l'rid:, Sp,,,..,..lnisrr,::IF•"f'>mr"""" ;;:::,lyT1~ • CALFIREICourtyFireSlatials 0-"!1,1-..ffi .......,_Roao:h 7.,31,1 -.,~ <!15l<Wl'J:es Templeton Community Services District Page 139 of 155 AUTOMATIC AND MUTUAL AID RESPONSE TIME ANALYSIS: STATIONS NEAR TEMPLETON CSD Figure 82 Templeton: Response Times from adjoining fire stations This map uses the same time values as the previous one. The difference is that this map removes the Templeton CSD Fire Station from the analysis and considers automatic and mutual aid response times from nearby fire stations. The four stations nearby are Cal Fire Station 30, City of Paso Robles Fire Station 1, and Atascadero Fire Station 1. Station 30 can cover approximately 50% 0f the district in a 7 minute response time and 75% within an 8 minute response time. Paso Robles and Atascadero approach the distr ict boundary at 8 minutes. Cal Fire Station 30 Atascadero Fire Paso Robles Fire Station 30 30 Templeton CSD Item 10.a. - Page 169 Temple1ou S\,rt(ll.1nd ;ni' Srnt,On ""'l"'n"'" tj,:l):-.errr-e Prc:eJ1K10 c:Jo;sl',ctt O Soo::iciewt,.::N";i P ·OIOcti:::n O countyBOIIM<HY • C,1.L FIAEl(:oonty Fil'Q Stlti01u Rts.~:.:.:~11'$ ,,.._,Aoaas 1..aMin.1-1 T e mpl eton S urrounding Station R es ponse Sli,!<)('1$ ~~d ■1 Al'~J$o$ CAL HIU. $.;ti(>;) ~'Q. N ~U;.;)OOl0 C:~)' SIH on Z, Pn o Robla-s C: 11 :'.lalic--, 1 Templeton Community Services District Page 140 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD FUNDING ASSESSED VALUATION 67 The assessed value along with a percentage increase of growth of the district is listed in the table below. The total for San Luis Obispo County is listed as well for comparison purposes. Secured and Utility Growth from Prior Year Agency 2017-2018 Assessed Valuation (after HOPTR*) Percent of Total 2015- 2016 2016- 2017 2017- 2018 San Luis Obispo County $49,089,032,946 100.0000% 6.22% 5.67 % 5.61 % Templeton CSD $1,143,978,918 2.3304% 5.36% 4.01 % 6.35 % Figure 83 Templeton CSD Assessed Valuation *HOPTR-Homeowners Property Tax Relief TEMPLETON CSD PROPERTY TAX The primary source of revenue for fire protection in special districts is property tax. The assessed value (chart above) and allocation formulas impact the amount of property tax allocated to the Templeton CSD. PROPERTY TAX GROWTH TREND Templeton CSD Property Tax Allocation68 Fiscal Year 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Property Tax Allocation $925,004 $973,684 $1,018,531 $1,085,530 Growth from Previous Year $44,505 $48,680 $44,847 $66,998 Incremental Growth % 5.05% 5.26% 4.61% 6.58% Figure 84 Templeton CSD Property Tax Allocation 2014-2018 67 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 68 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office Item 10.a. - Page 170 Templeton Community Services District Page 141 of 155 Figure 85 Templeton CSD Property Tax growth 2014-18 TEMPLETON CSD TAX RATE AREAS69 Templeton CSD has 11 tax rate areas within the district, which are listed below along with the total taxes collected in each TRA, percentage allocated to the District, and associated dollar allocation amounts. 69 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office $800,000 $900,000 $1,000,000 $1,100,000 14/15 15/16 16/17 17/18 Property Tax Growth Property Tax Allocation Item 10.a. - Page 171 -+- Templeton Community Services District Page 142 of 155 Figure 86 Map of Templeton CSD Tax Rate Area TRA Legend TRA Legend TRA Legend 126-006 126-014 126-026 126-007 126-019 126-027 126-008 126-024 126-028 126-012 126-025 Templeton CSD 2017/2018 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA TRA Percent to CSD Total Tax for TRA Tax Dollars to CSD 126-006 8.55835 $970,216 $82,988 126-007 9.95670 $6,227,797 $620,083 126-008 8.55251 $337,845 $28,894 126-012 6.88568 $350,883 $24,161 Item 10.a. - Page 172 Templeton Community Services District Page 143 of 155 126-014 8.55351 $2,243,984 $191,939 126-019 6.88508 $371,929 $25,608 126-024 9.95670 $60,146 $5,989 126-025 8.47741 $357,520 $30,308 126-026 9.24903 $25,593 $2,367 126-027 9.19422 $819,116 $75,311 126-028 8.47741 $770,232 $65,296 TRA Count =11 Total $12,535,261 $1,152,944 Figure 87 Templeton CSD Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA TEMPLETON CSD PROPERTY TAX ALLOCATION/TAX RATE AREA PERCENTAGES The pie chart below represents the allocation of property tax to all the agencies that receive property taxes within the 126-007 tax rate area. This tax rate area was selected as a representative example of the allocation of property tax to the District and is the tax rate area that generates the greatest tax revenue within the District. Figure 88 Templeton CSD TRA 126-007 Breakdown70 TEMPLETON CSD PERCENTAGE OF PROPERTY TAX EXPENDED ON FIRE PROTECTION IN FY 2017/201871 Total Property Tax Received by Templeton CSD: $1,098,314 Property Tax Allocated to Fire Protection: $796,278 70 San Luis Obispo County Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector’s Office 71 Templeton CSD Financial Documents Item 10.a. - Page 173 COLLEGE 7 .22 % Templeton TRA 126-007 Property Tax $6,227,797 Total Taxes Collected in TRA TEMPLETON UNIFIED 37.08% 0 .29% CNTRL 0.07 % COUNTY LIBRARY 1.87% TEMPLETON CEMETERY 0.46% Templeton Community Services District Page 144 of 155 Percent of Total Allocated to Fire Protection: 72.5% Templeton CSD Number of Parcels The number of parcels in the District impacts the ability of the District to pass a parcel based benefit assessment fee. An analysis was conducted to determine the f ee burden per parcel based on generating an arbitrary amount of $500,000 in revenue for the District. That analysis is reflected in the table below. A flat fee of $179.98 per parcel (all parcels charged the same amount) is required to generate $500,000 in the Templeton CSD. Values may vary depending on number of exempt parcels. Fee Per Parcel Total Number to Generate District Of Parcels $500,000.00 Templeton CSD 2778 $180 Figure 89 Templeton CSD Parcel Count TEMPLETON CSD LOCAL REVENUE ENHANCEMENT EFFORTS Benefit Assessment District • Templeton CSD placed a weighted benefit assessment district ballot measure in 2009; the measure received 38% support. • Templeton CSD hired a consultant to survey support for a similar benefit assessment measure in 2015, the survey showed insufficient support. Mello-Roos-Community Facilities District • Templeton CSD enacted a Mello-Roos Community Facilities District (CFD) for areas of new development. Each new parcel, when developed, will contribute $957 annually toward the Templeton CSD for support of fire, lighting, parks and recreation services. District staff expects CFD fees will begin to accrue in 3-10 years as parcels develop. SAFER Grant Templeton CSD applied for a federal FEMA SAFER grant in 2012 that funded additional full-time firefighter for four (4) years. The purpose of the grant was to enable Templeton CSD to have additional full-time firefighters on duty daily. There was no source of funding to continue funding the firefighters after the grant expired in 2016 and staffing was reduced. TEMPLETON CSD SIGNIFICANT COST FACTORS Payroll The District is successfully utilizing Part-time Fire Chief and Paid Call Firefighters in an effort to reduce payroll costs until permanent funding for career firefighters is secured . Item 10.a. - Page 174 I I Templeton Community Services District Page 145 of 155 Retirement and Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) The District has taken steps to reduce its exposure for OPEB. An actuary has been conducted and the District is fully funding the liability. The District reported having legacy costs for retired fire department employees. Equipment Replacement Fund The District utilizes a sinking fund for significant equipment purchases when funds allow. They have also had success with grant funding to pay for some equipment. Workers’ Compensation The District reported having two open significant workers’ compensation claims for fire department personnel. Liabilities The District staff stated they do not have any pending litigation regarding the fire department. Facilities Templeton CSD Fire Station is part of the administrative office complex. The facilities appear to be in good condition. Further examination of facilities for housing crews is required. Item 10.a. - Page 175 Templeton Community Services District Page 146 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT BUDGET Figure 90 Templeton CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 2014/2015 2015/2016 2016/2017 2017/2018 Revenue Property Tax 681,862 717,509 756,370 796,278 Benefit Assessment: Fire - - - - Rental Income 3,073 - - - Interest Revenue 898 259 226 2,250 Public Facility Fee-Fire - - - - Weed Abatement Fees 4,885 2,034 3,311 3,500 Inspection Fees - - - - Plan Review 12,281 11,151 29,175 15,265 Reimbursement for Mutual Aid 1,177 35,303 5,320 109,508 SAFER Grant (Staffing)125,814 125,618 115,779 - SCBA Grant 114,464 - - - Grant Revenue: Other - - 6,430 - Ambulance Reimbursements 8,925 9,063 9,177 9,375 Donations - 5,103 5,526 9,735 Transfers In 15,707 273,492 4,000 25,000 Misc. Revenue 5,125 10,148 14,574 21,492 Sale of Property - - 386,093 - Total Revenue 974,211 1,189,680 1,335,981 992,403 Expenditures Salaries, Stipends and Benefits 527,676 513,559 - 571,007 Services and Supplies 165,023 189,091 - 131,675 Debt Payments - - - - Capital Outlay/One Time Exp. 182,001 286,735 39,287 41,647 Administrative Costs 87,500 91,000 109,507 116,550 Equipment Replacement - 14,851 54,109 60,306 Other Post Employment Benefits - - 331,384 69,712 Total Expenditures 962,200 1,095,236 534,287 990,897 Templeton Community Services District Actual Revenue and Expenditures: Fire Based on District's Financial Documents Item 10.a. - Page 176 Templeton Community Services District Page 147 of 155 TEMPLETON CSD FIRE DEPARTMENT STAFFING CURRENT STAFFING: • 1 Fire Chief-Half time • 2 career-Fire Captains (one announced retirement effective end of December 2018) • 5 Paid Call Firefighters • 15 Reserve Firefighters (Part-time) RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION • Templeton CSD actively recruits Paid Call Firefighters (PCF) with limited success. • There is a turnover of 1-2 PCFs per year (40-50% of 5 member PCF force). Chief White would like to recruit and maintain 15 PCFs • Some PCFs are employees of other fire agencies or have seasonal firefighter jobs and are not always available to the CSD. • Developing fire officers (Captains) is difficult due to time and experience requirements. If the fire department loses an experienced PCF fire officer due to work commitment or relocating from the area, it can take years to replace them. • Out of district assignments (major fire mutual aid) can serve as a retention tool for (PCFs) if they can be committed away from town for two weeks. • Templeton CSD has had several full and part-time fire chiefs during the last ten years. • Chief White is a full-time Fire Captain for Atascadero Fire Department and halftime Fire Chief with Templeton CSD. Should he leave, replacement will be difficult; hiring a career fire chief will exceed the available budget. PROPOSED STAFFING Templeton CSD’s staffing plan (funded with $485,000 property tax exchange) will allow for: • Full-time Fire Chief— change from half time to full time • 3 career Captains on 24-hour shifts – 1 new position • 1 career Engineer on M-F 0800-1700 shift --1 new position • 5-15 Paid Call Firefighters (PCF) — no change • 10-15 Reserve Firefighters (part-time) on 1700-0800 & Sat & Sun 0800-1700 shifts— no change The additional Captain will provide for a career Captain and one part-time firefighter on duty 24/7. The new career Engineer position will work M-F 8 AM to 5 PM for a 3rd person on duty. On weekends there will be one Captain and Reserve Firefighter 24 hours per day. There will not be two career firefighters on duty 24 hours daily. District staff believes this model will work until Mello-Roos CFD fees start to accrue and allow the transition to 2 career staff on duty 24/7. Item 10.a. - Page 177 Templeton Community Services District Page 148 of 155 Note: Oceano CSD (FCFA) and Cambria CSD have both determined that use of Reserve Firefighters to fill 24/7 positions is not a reliable long-term solution to staffing. Both agencies have plans to abandon this model and pursue career staffing for 24/7 positions. TEMPLETON CSD RESOURCE NEEDS • Templeton CSD requested a property tax transfer from SLO County. • The goal of a property tax exchange is to net $485,000 to the District in the first year and added property tax growth in following years. TEMPLETON CSD OPTIONS CONSIDERED • Templeton CSD does not wish to divest fire protection but is concerned that without a property tax exchange or new benefit assessment fees they will be unable to sustain fire protection and will need to divest fire services to the County. • Templeton CSD also believes a loss of current career employee(s) could trigger the inability to assure emergency response. One of two career Fire Captains announced his retirement effective end of December 2018. • Templeton CSD is considering a $180/parcel annual Benefit Assessment District ballot measure in 2019 to serve as a funding source or match for county property tax exchange. Item 10.a. - Page 178 Templeton Community Services District Page 149 of 155 COUNTY OPTIONS COUNTY AGREES TO DISTRICT’S REQUESTED PROPERTY TAX EXCHANGE • County can agree to fund Templeton CSD’s request by transferring property tax received by the County to the District utilizing a property tax exchange agreement. • Negotiate property tax exchange that will net Templeton CSD $485,000 in year one and growth in successive years. COUNTY DOES NOT AGREE WITH DISTRICT’S PROPERTY TAX TRANSFER REQUEST • Templeton CSD initiates Benefit Assessment District ballot measure in 2019. Templeton CSD Initiates Divestiture of Fire Protection to County • In the event Templeton CSD is unable to sustain fire protection services financially, the Board of Directors may initiate divestiture through LAFCO • County and Templeton CSD must agree to Fire Protection Service Plan • County and Templeton CSD must agree to property tax exchange from the District to the County • There are various options for consideration by the County to provide fire protection service in the event of divestiture by the District (Outlined below). STUDY ASSUMPTIONS FOR DIVESTITURE • Templeton warrants an Urban Response using Cou nty Fire Service level analysis • This study assumes a property tax exchange where the County receives the current Templeton CSD $833,490 property tax allocation for fire protection and future growth associated with the percentage of the property tax rate areas. • Templeton CSD fulltime fire protection employees will be offered fulltime Cal Fire employment consistent with state law and protocols. • Templeton CSD PCFs will be retained and combined with County Fire Company 30 PCFs. • All assets dedicated to fire protection delivery in Templeton will be transferred to the County for purposes of delivering fire protection in Templeton. Use of Templeton fire station facilities, which are part of CSD administrative building complex, will require a use agreement between Templeton CSD and County. • Cal Fire budgets all employees at the top step and senior levels for leave credits; actual cost are commonly less because employees are rarely all at top step. • County Fire resources are available for immediate response throughout their jurisdiction. • Engine 30’s primary response area is large and there are chances that simultaneous incidents may occur (26 simultaneous calls occurred in calendar year 2017 based on analysis of dispatch records from CAD system). Operational policies address Item 10.a. - Page 179 Templeton Community Services District Page 150 of 155 simultaneous calls through use of automatic aid, move up and cover, mutual aid, and other operational methodologies. • 2 Cal Fire engines at Station 30 will remain staffed during fire season with a minimum of 3 firefighters each. • Cal Fire staffs one of the state funded wildland engines at Station 30 with a Captain and 2 firefighters year-round. • Station 30 will remain a must cover station for Cal Fire. Must cover means the station is backfilled as soon as possible (the timing of which is dependent on travel time from the location of available cover resources.) Level of Service Analysis The County Fire Strategic Plan Level of Service Analysis recommends a minimum of an “Urban Service Level” for Templeton which equates to a 7 minute response time for 90% of the district. 75% of the district can be reached within 7 minute response time from the Templeton fire station. Response Time Dispatch and Get Away Time Driving Time to Incident Urban Standard == 7 Minutes 3 minutes 4 minutes Suburban Standard== 8 minutes 3 minutes 5 minutes Figure 91 Templeton CSD Service Level Analysis Closest Existing County Station Station 30 (Paso Robles) on Ramona Drive in the north end of Templeton CSD is the closest Cal Fire/County Fire station and has a 3-9 minute response time to 75% of Templeton. 50% of the district can be covered in 7 minute response time from Station 30 on Ramada Drive (primarily the Main Street area and the north end of the district where station 30 is located) FIRE PROTECTION FUNDING UNDER DIVESTITURE • Templeton CSD’s current budget allocation for fire protection of $833,482 is sufficient to fund additional County Fire staff, station operational costs, and PCF company costs that can meet the identified response time standards an d level of service under the Urban service level standard when coupled with existing County Fire resources. • If Templeton CSD divests, and County provides fire protection, there are various delivery options combining current County Fire funds and Templeton CSD property taxes previously allocated for fire services. Item 10.a. - Page 180 Templeton Community Services District Page 151 of 155 COUNTY FIRE OPTIONS- FIRE PROTECTION SERVICE DELIVERY POSSIBLE USING EXISTING FUNDING A. Relocate County Engine 30 to Templeton Fire Station –1 Captain and 2 Engineers on duty daily (3 career + PCF company) A. County Fire will relocate County Engine 30 to the Templeton Fire Station and increase career staffing to 3 on duty daily. B. Assumes use of current funding for Engine 30 and property tax transferred from Templeton CSD to the County. C. Daily staffing at the Templeton Fire Station will be a minimum of Fire Captain, two (2) Engineers, and PCF company. Based on Cal Fire shift schedule, budgeted staffing of 3 Captains and 6 Engineers allows for 4th person on duty 1/3 of the year depending on employee leave. D. Second engine will be staffed by 3rd and/or 4th Engineer, and/or PCF company. E. Breathing Support Unit and Rescue will be retained and supported. F. Add a fulltime Deputy Fire Marshal position for public occupancy inspections and fire prevention in Templeton and north county. G. Engine 30’s response area is large, and the engine will continue to serve an area outside of Templeton in addition to Templeton CSD. H. Station 30 would continue to be staffed by two Cal Fire State engines during fire season and continue to be a must cover station. I. Moving Engine 30 to Templeton is a better strategic location for response into County Fire’s jurisdiction in El Pomar area because of a bridge across the Salinas River. COUNTY FIRE OPTIONS- $485,000 REQUESTED BY TEMPLETON CSD ALLOCATED TO COUNTY FIRE FOR FIRE PROTECTION B. Staff Templeton Fire Station–1 Captain and 1 Engineer on duty daily (2 career + PCF company) and staff Engine 30 at Station 30; 1 Captain and 1 Engineer on duty daily (2 career + PCF company) A. Daily staffing at the Templeton Fire Station will be a minimum of Fire Captain and one (1) Engineer and PCF company. Based on Cal Fire shift schedule, budgeted staffing of 3 Captains and 3 Engineers allows for 3rd person on duty 1/3 of the year or more, depending on employee leave. B. Engine 30 will remain at Station 30 staffed with minimum of Fire Captain and (1) Engineer, plus PCF company C. Assumes utilization of current funding for Engine 30, Templeton property tax transfer to County and added $485,000 by the County. D. Second engine at Templeton station will be staffed by PCF company. E. Breathing Support Unit and Rescue will be retained and supported. F. Add a fulltime Deputy Fire Marshal position for public occupancy inspections and fire prevention in Templeton and north county. Item 10.a. - Page 181 Templeton Community Services District Page 152 of 155 G. Station 30 will continue to be staffed by two Cal Fire State engines during fire season and continue to be a must cover station. C. Relocate County Engine 30 to Templeton Fire Station – 1 Captain and 3 Engineers on duty daily; staffing 2 engines (4 career + PCF company) A. County Fire will relocate County Engine 30 to Templeton fire station. B. Assumes utilization of current funding for Engine 30, Templeton property tax transfer to County and added $350,000 by the County. C. Daily staffing will be one (1) Fire Captain, three (3) Engineers, and PCF company. D. Engine 30 will be staffed with minimum Fire Captain and Engineer E. Second fire engine will be staffed with two Engineers F. Based on Cal Fire shift schedule, budgeted staffing of 3 Captains and 8 Engineers allows for 5th person on duty several days of the year depending on employee leave. G. PCF company will be maintained. H. Breathing Support Unit and Rescue will be retained and supported. I. Add a fulltime Deputy Fire Marshal position for public occupancy inspections and fire prevention in Templeton and north county. J. This option gives the greatest depth of coverage for Templeton and surrounding area. K. Station 30 would continue to be staffed by two Cal Fire State engines during fire season and continue to be a must cover station. L. Moving Engine 30 to Templeton is a better strategic location for response into County Fire’s jurisdiction in El Pomar area because of a bridge across the Salinas River. SUMMARY OF COUNTY OPTIONS IF TEMPLETON DIVESTS FIRE PROTECTION County Options At Templeton At Station 30 Added Cost Improves County Fire Deployment Meets Urban Standard in TEM Adds Dep. Fire Marshal Cal Fire State Engines at Station 30 A E30/3 staff; PCF Company PCF Company 0 Yes Yes Yes 2 eng./6 staff B TEM eng./2 staff; PCF Company E30/2 staff; PCF Company $485,000 Yes Yes Yes 2 eng./6 staff C E30/2 staff; TEM eng. /2 staff; PCF Company PCF Company $350,000 Yes Yes Yes 2 eng./6 staff Figure 92 County Fire Options for Templeton Fire Protection Note: 2 staff = Captain and Engineer; 3 staff = Captain and 2 Engineers Item 10.a. - Page 182 Page 153 of 155 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: The five special districts in the study that provide fire protection in San Luis Obispo County are shown in orange. .......................................................................................................... 5 Figure 2: Fire station locations throughout San luis Obsipo County ............................................ 11 Figure 3 CSD discretionary service authority ................................................................................ 12 Figure 4 CSD's that have not activated latent authority for fire protection ................................ 13 Figure 5 CSD's that have not activated latent authority for fire protection ................................ 18 Figure 6 Model Budget for Independent Volunteer/PCF Fire Station .......................................... 27 Figure 7 County Fire Department Staffing Costs .......................................................................... 28 Figure 8 Pre-Prop 13 vs Post Prop 13 Budget Method ................................................................. 35 Figure 9 Templeton CSD Tax Rate example .................................................................................. 36 Figure 10 Five district TRA percentage comparison ..................................................................... 37 Figure 11 County and special districts property assessed valuations and growth ....................... 38 Figure 12 Tax revenue from 5% Assessed value growth .............................................................. 39 Figure 13 Total property tax allocation for fire by fiscal year ...................................................... 39 Figure 14 Total property tax allocation to each district for fire protection ................................. 40 Figure 15 District Parcel count calculation to generate $500,000 ............................................... 40 Figure 16 Benefit Assessment District: FLAT RATE MODEL .......................................................... 43 Figure 17 Benefit Assessment District: WEIGHTED MODEL ......................................................... 44 Figure 18 Prop 172 Public Safety Sales Tax Allocation ................................................................. 48 Figure 19 Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenue ...................................................................... 48 Figure 20 Cambria CSD Data Sheet ............................................................................................... 65 Figure 21 Map of Cambria CSD: LAFCO ........................................................................................ 66 Figure 22 Heat Map of incidents in Cambria CSD ........................................................................ 67 Figure 23 Response time from Cambria CSD fire station ............................................................. 68 Figure 24 Response times from mutual aid stations .................................................................... 69 Figure 25 Cambria Assessed Valuation ......................................................................................... 70 Figure 26 Cambria CSD Property Tax Collections 2014 -2018 ...................................................... 70 Figure 27 Cambria Property Tax growth 2014-2018 .................................................................... 70 Figure 28 Map of Cambria CSD Tax Rate Areas (TRA) .................................................................. 71 Figure 29 Cambria CSD 2017-18 Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA .................................................... 72 Figure 30 Cambria CSD Tax Rate Area 061-037 Breakdown ......................................................... 72 Figure 31 Cambria CSD Parcel Count ............................................................................................ 73 Figure 32 Cambria CSD Fire Budgets 2015-2018 .......................................................................... 75 Figure 33 Oceano CSD Data Sheet ................................................................................................ 81 Figure 34 Map of Oceano CSD: LAFCO .......................................................................................... 82 Figure 35 Heat Map of Incident locations in Oceano ................................................................... 83 Figure 36 Service Level Analysis: Oceano ..................................................................................... 84 Figure 37 Response Time Analysis from Oceano Fire Station ...................................................... 84 Figure 38 Response Times from adjoining fire stations ............................................................... 85 Item 10.a. - Page 183 Page 154 of 155 Figure 39 Response Time to Oceano from County Fire Station 22 .............................................. 86 Figure 40 Response time to Oceano from Pismo Beach Fire Station on Bello Street .................. 87 Figure 41 Oceano CSD Assessed Valuation ................................................................................... 88 Figure 42 Oceano CSD Property Tax 2014-2018 ........................................................................... 88 Figure 43 Oceano CSD Property Tax allocation 2014-2018 .......................................................... 88 Figure 44 Map of Oceano CSD Tax Rate Areas ............................................................................. 89 Figure 45 Oceano CSD Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA ................................................................... 90 Figure 46 Oceano CSD TRA 052-058 Breakdown ......................................................................... 91 Figure 47 Oceano CSD Parcel Count ............................................................................................. 92 Figure 48 Oceano CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 ............................................................................. 94 Figure 49 Oceano CSD Service Level Analysis ............................................................................... 96 Figure 50 San Miguel CSD Data Sheet........................................................................................... 99 Figure 51 Map of San Miguel CSD: LAFCO .................................................................................. 100 Figure 52 Heat Map of Incident Locations in San Miguel .......................................................... 101 Figure 53 Response Times from San Miguel Fire Station ........................................................... 102 Figure 54 Response times from adjoining fire stations ............................................................. 103 Figure 55 San Miguel CSD Assessed Valuation ........................................................................... 104 Figure 56 San Miguel Property Tax allocation for Fire Protection 2014-2018 ........................... 104 Figure 57 Property Tax allocation patterns ............................................................................... 105 Figure 58 San Miguel CSD Map of Tax Rate Areas (TRA) ........................................................... 106 Figure 59 San Miguel CSD Tax revenue % and $ by TRA ............................................................. 107 Figure 60 San Miguel CSD TRA 114-023 Breakdown ................................................................. 107 Figure 61 San Miguel CSD Parcel Count ...................................................................................... 108 Figure 62 San Miguel CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 ..................................................................... 109 Figure 63 San Miguel CSD Service Level Analysis ....................................................................... 111 Figure 64 Santa Margarita FPD Data Sheet................................................................................ 117 Figure 65 Map of Santa Margarita FPD: LAFCO .......................................................................... 118 Figure 66 Heat Map of incident locations in Santa Margarita FPD ............................................ 119 Figure 67 Response times from Santa Margarita FPD fire station ............................................. 120 Figure 68 Santa Margarita: Response times from adjoining fire stations .................................. 121 Figure 69 Santa Margarita FPD Assessed Valuation ................................................................... 122 Figure 70 Santa Margarita FPD Property Taxes 2014-2018 ........................................................ 122 Figure 71 Santa Margarita FPD: Property tax trends .................................................................. 123 Figure 72 Map of Santa Margarita FPD Tax Rate Area .............................................................. 124 Figure 73 Santa Margarita FPD: Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA ................................................... 124 Figure 74 Santa Margarita FPD: TRA 054-050 Breakdown ......................................................... 125 Figure 75 Santa Margarita FPD Parcel Count ............................................................................. 126 Figure 76 Santa Margarita FPD Fire Budgets 2014-2018 ............................................................ 127 Figure 77 Santa Margarita FPD: Service Level Analysis .............................................................. 129 Figure 78 Templeton CSD Data Sheet ......................................................................................... 135 Figure 79 Map of Templeton CSD: LAFCO .................................................................................. 136 Item 10.a. - Page 184 Page 155 of 155 Figure 80 Templeton CSD: Heat Map of incident locations ........................................................ 137 Figure 81 Templeton CSD: Response times from Templeton CSD fire station ........................... 138 Figure 82 Templeton: Response Times from adjoining fire stations .......................................... 139 Figure 83 Templeton CSD Assessed Valuation ........................................................................... 140 Figure 84 Templeton CSD Property Tax Allocation 2014-2018 .................................................. 140 Figure 85 Templeton CSD Property Tax growth 2014-18 ........................................................... 141 Figure 86 Map of Templeton CSD Tax Rate Area ........................................................................ 142 Figure 87 Templeton CSD Tax Revenue % and $ by TRA ............................................................ 143 Figure 88 Templeton CSD TRA 126-007 Breakdown .................................................................. 143 Figure 89 Templeton CSD Parcel Count ...................................................................................... 144 Figure 90 Templeton CSD Fire Budget 2014-2018 ...................................................................... 146 Figure 91 Templeton CSD Service Level Analysis ........................................................................ 150 Figure 92 County Fire Options for Templeton Fire Protection ................................................... 152 Item 10.a. - Page 185 Minutes: City Council/Successor Agency Meeting Page 6 Tuesday, March 13, 2018 Grande Municipal Code to Create an Expedited Permitting Process for Electric Vehicle Charging Stations (Staff Project No. 18-002). Community Development Director McClish provided introductory comments. Associate Planner Heffernon presented the staff report and recommended the Council introduce an Ordinance adding Section 15.04.032 to Title 15 of the Arroyo Grande Municipal Code (Buildings and Construction) to create an expedited and streamlined permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations as required by Government Code Section 65850.7. Mayor Hill invited public comment. Speaking from the public were: Jim Guthrie, regarding the City’s permitting processes; Patty Welsh, stated that she doesn’t see a big rush of applications coming in that would impact staff; John Keen, spoke about the placement of electric vehicle charging stations, the use for charging stations versus parking spots, and expressed concern that Arroyo Grande Hospital removed four ADA spaces and replaced them with charging stations and requested that staff guidance be included in permit process; and Coleen Kubel, commented on the permit process, stated she has been waiting 90 days for an accessory dwelling unit permit, and spoke about the need for a more streamlined and user friendly permitting process. Council Member Harmon expressed concern about the State mandate and giving this permit application process priority over other permits. Council Member Brown stated he did not support placing electric vehicle stations close to building entrances as an incentive. Further Council comments ensued regarding the electric vehicle infrastructure permitting checklist, clarification that the checklist is not part of the proposed ordinance and is subject to approval by the Building Official, and direction to staff to ensure that priority is provided for required ADA parking spaces over parking spaces for electric vehicle charging stations, and that the checklist is modified accordingly. Action: Mayor Pro Tem Ray moved to introduce an Ordinance entitled: “AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ARROYO ADDING SECTION 15.04.032 TO TITLE 15 OF THE ARROYO GRANDE MUNICIPAL CODE (BUILDINGS AND CONSTRUCTION) TO CREATE AN EXPEDITED AND STREAMLINED PERMITTING PROCESS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING STATIONS AS REQUIRED BY GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 65850.7”, and further, to direct the Building Official to modify the checklist with regard to preserving the City’s ADA/handicapped parking spaces. Council Member Barneich seconded, and the motion passed on the following roll-call vote: AYES: Ray, Barneich, Hill NOES: Brown, Harmon ABSENT: None 12.c. Provide Policy and Early Budget Direction Regarding Fire and Emergency Services Due to Anticipated Cost Increases. City Manager Bergman presented the staff report and recommended the City Council: 1) Continue under the adopted policy to “Maintain and improve the Fire Department’s ability to respond to emergency calls and suppress fires throughout the City within a maximum response time of six (6) minutes… More concentrated urban uses should be within four (4) minutes response time”; 2) Continue to support the transition to full-time firefighters and three (3) person staffing; (Captain, ATTACHMENT 7 Item 10.a. - Page 186 Minutes: City Council/Successor Agency Meeting Page 7 Tuesday, March 13, 2018 Engineer, and Firefighter on each shift); and 3) Provide direction to the City Manager, as part of the current budget process regarding the Council’s expectations for service levels and thoughts on the most cost effective way to provide those services. Staff responded to questions from Council. Mayor Hill invited public comment. Speaking from the public were: Jim Guthrie, stated that fire services have improved and no complaints have been received about fire service in Arroyo Grande, suggested two stations and two crews, acknowledged that there are capacity issues, and expressed concern as it relates to maintaining the Mutual Aid Agreements; Patty Welsh, expressed concerns regarding response time as it relates to calls being dispatched, and costs for the City and its partner agencies; Pamela Storton, asked questions related to cost distribution and data, how many calls come from tourists, and if the statistics are considered when calculating the costs; Craig VanderZwaag, commented he would like to see a regional approach for providing modern fire and emergency services; Patricia Price, supported providing the best service possible while keeping the cost affordable, and suggested an option for maintaining two stations; Patrick Ferguson, President of the International Association of Firefighters Local 4403, spoke regarding current staffing issues, requests for service and the variety of calls received, that there is an issue of staff and capacity to provide an acceptable level of service, that the cost for service has grown, the area has developed and must move toward a full staffing model, and responded briefly to questions from Council; Terry Fibich, retired Fire Chief, stated that the top priority is the safety of the community, acknowledged the diminishing sustainability of volunteers, the need for full-time paid staff and that the situation with PERS has made it difficult; and Corki Clark Henderson, representing Friends of the Five Cities Fire Authority, provided background of its formation to assist and raise funds for the Five Cities Fire Authority and encouraged members of the public to learn more by visiting www.friendsof5citiesfire.org. Hearing no further public comments, Mayor Hill closed the public comment period. Council comments ensued regarding the current cost allocation formula and the need to reevaluate the funding allocation; acknowledgement that the current reserve firefighter model is unsustainable; the need for maintaining response times as set forth in the City’s General Plan; acknowledgement that services provided by CalFire are more expensive; that accurate and solid data is needed for further evaluation of new formulas or cost allocations in order to make sound budget decisions; support for a three person staffing model for Arroyo Grande and that there would need to be more parity in the funding allocation contained in the Joint Powers Agreement; Council expressed support for maintaining the City’s General Plan policies as it relates to emergency response times; support for transitioning to full-time firefighters and a three (3) person staffing model (Captain, Engineer, and Firefighter on each shift) in Arroyo Grande, however, not under the current funding allocation; and that the existing JPA Agreement needs to be reevaluated and additional data and options must be presented for revising the funding allocations. No formal action was taken on this item. 13. COUNCIL COMMUNICATIONS Council Member Brown referred to earlier public comment regarding a request to write a letter to the Sanitation District regarding the audit(s), expressed concern about delays and funding impacts for the Redundancy and Recycling Projects until the audits are done, and requested the Council consider directing the City Manager to send a letter. Council Member Harmon concurred. Mayor Pro Tem Ray also noted that the Council had previously discussed inviting Sanitation Item 10.a. - Page 187 THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK Item 10.a. - Page 188