Nevada County Grand Jury
• 2004-2005
For Emergency Only a Review of Nevada County’s Fire Protection Districts Reason for Investigation In the last few
⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 21 findings
F1
All fire agencies in Nevada County participate with and rely on the ECC for communications and dispatching. The ECC has developed a new software program system, “MapTool”, which provides key data such as location, access and water sources for firefighters responding to the emergency. This software is also utilized in the field via laptop computers mounted in the fire agencies’ apparatus.
No recommendations for this finding
F2
When a 911 call is received within Nevada County, if it is not a crime related call for the police or sheriff’s office, the call is immediately connected to the ECC, which sends a call to the appropriate FPD or City Fire Department. These calls go not only to the fire stations but to pagers worn by volunteers and paid call firefighters.
No recommendations for this finding
F3
The Nevada County FPDs provide the first emergency response to fire, accident and medical emergencies within their jurisdiction. Services provided by these FPDs include fire prevention, fire suppression, hazardous material response, medical emergencies, highway accidents, rescue and public assistance. Fire suppression accounts for approximately 20% of the total calls.
No recommendations for this finding
F4
The remaining 80% of calls are non-fire related. They include emergency medical service (EMS), and in some cases advanced life support (ALS), personal assistance, rescue and hazardous material response.
No recommendations for this finding
F5
In Nevada County, emergency response is provided by the fire departments of the cities of Grass Valley and Nevada City, the ten independent FPDs plus CDF and the US Forest Service. Table A (data from LAFCo MSR) indicates the area served and average response time of the 10 independent FPDs. Table A FPD Areas and Response times Area Average Fire Protection District Square Miles Response* Western Nevada County North San Juan FPD 70 10 Penn Valley FPD 92 9 Higgins Area FPD 90 6.5 Rough and Ready FPD 9 5 Central Nevada County Ophir Hill FPD 9 5 Peardale/Chicago Park FPD 21 8 Washington Co. Water Dist. 2.5 12 Nev. Co. Consolidated FPD 143 6 Eastern Nevada County Donner Summit PUD 100 8 Truckee FPD 66 5 *Average response in minutes
No recommendations for this finding
F6
Nevada County Consolidated FPD was created by combining five small FPDs resulting in the largest FPD in the county. This FPD is the largest in terms of number of parcels, number of fire stations and square miles of territory.
No recommendations for this finding
F7
Within each of the three areas of the county there is at least one large FPD that operates twenty-four hours per day, 7 days a week with full time career firefighters. Smaller FPDs are mostly staffed by volunteers or paid call firefighters. See Table B.
No recommendations for this finding
F8
The Insurance Service Office (ISO) rates all FPDs. The ISO is a nationwide nonprofit service organization that provides rating services to the property and casualty insurance industries. The ISO’s Fire Suppression Rating Schedule classifies fire protection into ten categories: Class 1 recognizing the highest level of fire protection and Class 10 recognizing the lowest or no level of fire protection. See Table B Table B Fire Protection Districts on April 1, 2005 Fire Full time Paid Volunteer ISO Stations Staff or Paid Rating Fire Protection Districts Call Total 24X7 Chief Firefighter Within** Outside*** Western Nevada County North San Juan FPD 3 0 no 0 24 n/a 8 Penn Valley FPD 3 1 yes 7 20 5 8/9 Higgins Area FPD 3 3 CDF* 13 23 4 8/9 Rough and Ready FPD 1 0 no 0 12 5 8 Central Nevada County Ophir Hill FPD 1 0 no 2 15 4 8 Peardale-Chicago Park FPD 2 0 yes 3 12 5 8 Washington Co. Wtr. Dist. 1 0 no 0 7 n/a 10 Nev. Co. Consolidated FPD 14 2 yes 21 31 4 8 Eastern Nevada County Donner Summit PUD 2 1 CDF* 7 13 5 9 Truckee FPD 6 5 yes 28 14 6 8/9/10 * “CDF” refers to contract with CDF for fire chief ** “Within” refers to within hydrated area and within 5 miles of fire station *** “Outside” refers to outside hydrated areas that are no further than 5 miles from fire station or / the area beyond.
No recommendations for this finding
F9
The CDF has four fire stations in Nevada County, one of which is staffed seasonally. CDF shares facilities with two FPDs: Higgins Area FPD, and Truckee FPD.
No recommendations for this finding
F10
Donner Summit PUD fire department and Higgins Area FPD contract with CDF under the “Amador Plan.” This plan allows the fire districts to pay CDF only the differential costs to keep their stations open during the non-fire season months.
No recommendations for this finding
F11
Outside of the incorporated cities NID provides potable water for all hydrants in the Western and Central part of the county as well as installation of all hydrants. The only limit on the NID water supply to fight an urban wildfire in the hydranted areas is the capacity of storage facilities at the water treatment plants. In rural areas water is provided for fire suppression via raw water hydrants, storage tanks, and canals; otherwise the FPD water tenders are used.
No recommendations for this finding
F12
Three of the districts, Penn Valley FPD, Donner Summit PUD, and Truckee FPD, operate and staff an ambulance service for their communities. Penn Valley FPD has an ambulance/rescue assessment that supplements the operation of their ambulance service. Ambulance service for other FPDs is provided by Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital.
No recommendations for this finding
F13
All FPDs provide basic life support services training for the firefighters. FPDs that provide ambulance service are staffed with trained paramedics.
No recommendations for this finding
F14
Firefighters in Nevada County are classified as career full time, part time, paid call or non-paid volunteers.
No recommendations for this finding
F15
Depending upon the FPD’s budget constraints, the compensation for paid call varies. FPDs reimburse volunteers for their expenses at different levels.
No recommendations for this finding
F16
There is cooperation among all Nevada County FPDs exhibited primarily by the mutual aid and automatic aid agreements that insure help if one district needs outside assistance.
No recommendations for this finding
F17
Since the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, tax rates for FPDs have been frozen thus greatly limiting FPD revenues. This makes it especially difficult for FPDs in growth areas that need to make the transition from volunteer staffing to career full time firefighters.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The Grand Jury recommends that efforts be taken by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors to increase financially support for the FPDs. For example, the Board of Supervisor could consider increasing the percentage of Proposition 172 allocations to the FPDs. RESPONSE REQUIRED Board of Supervisors 90 days
F18
FPDs receive revenue from a variety of sources: property taxes, special taxes, special assessments, Proposition 172 revenues and Proposition 218 assessments, mitigation fees, ambulance fees, grants and fund raising events. See Table C. • Most FPDs receive some revenue from property taxes although the property tax percentages that are used to determine the FPD revenue vary greatly from area to area. FPDs formed after 1978 receive very little, if any, property tax revenue. • Mitigation fees from building permits can provide additional revenue for capital growth expenditures. These funds only come from new development on parcels within the district. • Proposition 172 authorized an additional half-cent sales tax to be used exclusively for public safety services provided by local government. The Nevada County Board of Supervisors has in recent years authorized 7.75% of these funds to be distributed to the FPDs. • Proposition 218 defines the difference between a “special tax” and a “special assessment.” A special tax requires a two-thirds majority vote in an election. A special assessment requires a simple majority from ballots mailed to property owners. Table C Fire Protection District Revenue Sources Parcels 2002/03 Prop. Prop. Assessment Prop. Fire Protection District in Expense Taxes Taxes Per 172 District ($K) to FPD as % of Parcel Fees ($K) Revenue ($K) Western Nevada County North San Juan FPD 1679 280 99.8 72% $27.50 20.5 Penn Valley FPD 5076 1,966 265.3 25% $11.22 64.1 Higgins Area FPD 3857 1,076 758.9 60% $25.00 47.5 Rough and Ready FPD 657 141 131.2 66% $0.00 16.9 Central Nevada County Ophir Hill FPD 1598 267 267.3 62% $0.00 31.2 Peardale/Chicago Park FPD 1952 299 131.0 35% $58.00 14.2 Washington Co. Water Dist. 170 3 0 NP* $0.00 2.8 Nev. Co. Consolidated FPD 16,342 2,480 1,919.0 70% $89.00 212.5 Eastern Nevada County Donner Summit PUD 209 714 0 11% $100.00 10.0 Truckee FPD 14,005 3,236 2,873.1 73% $0.00 0 *NP – Not provided
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The Grand Jury recommends that efforts be taken by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors to increase financially support for the FPDs. For example, the Board of Supervisor could consider increasing the percentage of Proposition 172 allocations to the FPDs. RESPONSE REQUIRED Board of Supervisors 90 days
F19
Special tax ballot measures can limit the number of years they will be in effect. Some of those tax measures are now expiring. Nevada County Consolidated FPD, Rough and Ready FPD, Higgins Area FPD and Penn Valley FPD have in recent election years had ballot measures asking for a special tax. None of these tax ballot measures received the required two-thirds majority required to pass.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The Grand Jury recommends that efforts be taken by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors to increase financially support for the FPDs. For example, the Board of Supervisor could consider increasing the percentage of Proposition 172 allocations to the FPDs. RESPONSE REQUIRED Board of Supervisors 90 days
F20
In the LAFCo MSR it was reported that several FPDs were operating with deficit spending. This has forced them to expend dollars from equipment/apparatus reserves for operational expenses.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The Grand Jury recommends that efforts be taken by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors to increase financially support for the FPDs. For example, the Board of Supervisor could consider increasing the percentage of Proposition 172 allocations to the FPDs. RESPONSE REQUIRED Board of Supervisors 90 days
F21
In 2004, Nevada County Consolidated FPD mailed a ballot to all parcel owners for a special assessment under Proposition 218. It passed with a 72% majority. This assessment of $89 per improved parcel will go into effect in July 2005. Other FPDs are considering this approach since only a simple majority of parcel owners is required. CONCLUSIONS
No recommendations for this finding
Additional Recommendations 1
These recommendations are not explicitly linked to specific findings.
-
R1The Grand Jury recommends that each member of the Nevada County Board of Supervisors visit each of the FPDs in their district to better understand the challenges that these dedicated firefighters face every day.
Conclusions 6
-
CL1 Page 5The job title of “firefighter” may be misleading to the public since 80% of their calls are non-fire related. These firefighters provide full emergency services to Nevada County. 3. The smaller volunteer FPDs have an obvious professional pride. These firefighters have the same mandated training, equipment and commitment as the larger FPDs with a career staff.
-
CL2 Page 6It appears that consolidation is not a popular topic. Communities with smaller FPDs do not want the loss of local control that is perceived to come with consolidation. At the same time these communities do not want to support their FPDs with additional funding. If consolidation can improve services, avoid duplication, and reduce costs, it may be the only answer for FPDs with inadequate funding.
-
CL3 Page 5The citizens of Nevada County appear to be well served by the cooperative emergency response made by dedicated career and volunteer firefighters of the FPDs and the city fire departments.
-
CL4 Page 6The smaller volunteer FPDs have an obvious professional pride. These firefighters have the same mandated training, equipment and commitment as the larger FPDs with a career staff.
-
CL5 Page 6Many of the FPDs transitioning to a career firefighting staff are struggling financially primarily due to labor related costs, i.e. salaries, medical insurance, workers compensation, training and pensions. The costs of emergency services are increasing faster than the property tax, special tax and assessment revenues for the FPDs.
-
CL6 Page 6It is now more difficult to recruit and retain paid call and volunteer firefighters especially for the all-volunteer fire departments. The inequities of pay and reimbursement for paid call and volunteers between FPDs does not make it easier.
No Responses Found 1
Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.
Nevada County Board of Supervisors
Elected County Office