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ROTTERDAM
Residents face cost to maintain 8 fire companies Proposals to improve stations shot down by voters
BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter

    Dave Monroe doesn’t understand why the Schonowe Fire Department keeps asking for a new multi-million dollar station.
    He acknowledges the small brick firehouse he can see from his back window needs work and says he is more than supportive of modest improvements. But modesty isn’t the word he uses to describe the two proposals he’s voted against over the past six years.
    A plan pitched in 2006 would have roughly doubled the size of the 9,840-square-foot building and cost $5.2 million. Another submitted to voters in August of last year asked to bond the $3.3 million cost for a new 12,200-square-foot station that would entirely replace the original, built in 1948.
    Monroe regarded them as excessive for a shrinking company with fewer than a dozen members certifi ed to attack interior fi res. And he found out he wasn’t alone as he went door to door campaigning against the fire company’s bond resolution last summer.
    “Many of them said it would be much easier and cheaper to merge with South Schenectady,” he said of the larger fire company located about two miles away but still in the town.
    But consolidating some of the eight volunteer fire companies isn’t a discussion that is occurring openly in Rotterdam, a town with about 29,000 residents and no paid fire departments. Even the New York Citizens Empowerment Act of 2009 — state legislation that allows 10 percent of registered voters in a given tax district to petition for a referendum on consolidation or dissolution — hasn’t spurred any outward effort to reduce the number of fire districts in town.
    Not that this is unusual, explained Bill Young, counsel for the Association of Fire Districts of the State of New York. Fire district consolidation hasn’t taken hold anywhere in the Capital Region and only a few select places across the state.
    Young argues this is because taxpayers ultimately want to keep their local firehouses, even if they sometimes balk at some of the costs. But that also means a district like Schonowe needs to fi nd creative ways of modernizing without drawing opposition from tax-weary residents.
    “There is no one easy solution,” he said.
    Rotterdam is served by seven volunteer fire districts, each funded through property taxes assessed in the coverage area and governed by a board of fire commissioners responsible for an annual budget. In addition, the town contracts with Plotterkill, a not-for-profi t fi re protection company.
    These departments responded to a total of 1,522 calls in 2011, according to figures submitted to the state Office of Fire Prevention Services. Only a fraction of these calls — generally less than 10 percent — were for active fires, while a far greater percentage were for medical emergencies. Fire companies also respond to home emergencies such as cellar pump-outs and overheated appliances.
COSTS ADD UP
    All eight departments are staffed almost solely by volunteers. Their operational and capital expenses, however, cost taxpayers a combined $2.88 million, according to figures included in the town’s 2013 budget.
    Capital expenses can range from minor improvements to the fire station or new turnout gear for fi refighters. Much larger purchases, such as major additions or the purchase of fi re apparatus, are subject to referendum and are paid for with borrowing.
    Carman and South Schenectady — two of the town’s busier fi re districts — both have relatively new fire stations. But the other fi ve districts and the Plotterkill company are in dated facilities, some considered impractical or even unsuitable by modern standards.
    Schonowe’s two capital projects were met with signifi cant resistance from residents. With fewer than two dozen active members — including fire police — Schonowe is among the smaller of the town’s companies.
    Yet the fire district is budgeted to collect about $327,000 to support its operations in 2013. Monroe, who has closely followed the company’s expenses over the past six years, questions whether the costs are reasonable.
    “It gets to a point where it’s excessive,” he said.
    Of course, Schonowe wasn’t the only fire company to have its capital project voted down in Rotterdam recently. Pine Grove, a 30-member department that also covers parts of Princetown and Guilderland, was hoping to renovate the station on Dunnsville Road and add 4,200 square feet.
    The $3.3 million project pitched to voters in 2011 would have represented the first substantial renovation of the station since 1984 and only the second since the building was constructed in the early 1970s.
    The renovation would have brought the building into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities act, moved electric utilities out of a designated fl ood plain and added space for modern equipment.
    But the referendum resoundingly failed. Fire Commissioner Herb LeTarte III said the company is now faced with pecking away at some of the nagging problems: They’ll spend $185,000 to replace the station’s roof this year and then try to replace an aging generator next year.
    “It’s an expensive proposition to fight a fire these days and meet all the regulations,” said LeTarte, a fi refighter with nearly four decades of experience.
ON THE HORIZON
    LeTarte also sees the other side of the argument. He understands that almost every municipal entity is being asked to pare down expenses and he can envision a time when the fi re companies of Rotterdam will eventually face consolidation.
    “I think it’s going to be considered down the road,” he said. “Rotterdam is a big town, but we have eight fi re stations.”
    That doesn’t mean consolidation will be easy or effective, even if a conversation about it does begin in the near future. Fire companies offer a community identity that is not readily abandoned.
    “It’s not easy to just dissolve a fi re department and there’s some camaraderie with the gang down there,” LeTarte said. “It would be like breaking up a team.”
    Young, who served as Schonowe’s attorney during the most recent project proposal, acknowledged the multi-million-dollar costs of new stations may seem shocking at fi rst.
    But ultimately, he said, the overall expense of operating the volunteer companies is far less than having one paid department.
    “That really is just a drop in the bucket for the cost of what a paid service would be,” he said of the capital project expenses.
    The city of Schenectady’s fi re department, for example, has a budget of more than $10 million for 2013. The department has 110 members and answers nearly 15,000 calls annually — or roughly 10 times the number fielded by all of Rotterdam’s districts combined.
    Rob Leonard, a spokesman with the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York, said the 890 volunteer companies across the state save taxpayers an estimated $3.7 billion in expenses, including $2.5 billion in labor-related costs alone.
    He said having a town with a large number of fire districts may seem duplicative, but is ultimately a more cost-effective way of delivering fire protection for many municipalities.
    “It is still an effective system,” he said. .........................>>>>.....................>>>>.......................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r00900&AppName=1

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What say does the public have in capital purchases by fire districts?
The resolution by a board of fire district commissioners which establishes a capital
reserve fund is subject to mandatory voter referendum.  In addition, expenditures for
general items from a “type” fund are subject to permissive referendum.
To issue debt fire districts must attain approval for their capital investments from district
voters through a “special election.” A recent change in the law intended to improve voter
turnout now requires that all special elections, such as those to approve bonds, be held
on a Tuesday that is not a public holiday. An example of bond vote turnout is 68 voters
who approved a $3.2 million firehouse in Greece.  Much of the area covered by the new
firehouse is within 1½ miles of other firehouses.
Newsday reported that when Coram Fire Department held a bond vote in 2000 to
finance the biggest, most expensive firehouse on Long Island only 242 people voted.  At
less than 2% of registered voters, at least 138 of those votes were cast by department
members or their relatives.  The referendum passed, and the firehouse was built at the
cost of $7.7 million. Property tax revenues collected by the Coram Fire District were the
eighth highest amount in the state in 2005 at just over $5.4 million.
Are there any concerns about spending by volunteer fire departments?

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In addition to funds raised through taxes, there are two other main sources of funding.  
The first is funds that are donated to a fire department, such as through coin drops or
other charitable fund-raising activities or paid in exchange for facility rentals or special
services.  The second source is a tax on certain fire insurance policies written by out-ofstate insurance companies.  Foreign insurance companies contribute two percent of the
fire premiums written on property located in the state to be distributed to the fire
departments and fire districts statewide. Fire insurance money - $43 million in 2007 -
must be used for the benefit of the fire department and its fire companies, as
determined by the members.  For example, fire insurance funds may be used to
purchase dress uniforms, turn out gear, and office equipment; and to pay for installation
banquets and holiday parties.  However, those funds may not be used to fund a length
of service award program, and members may not be compelled to use these monies to
defray ordinary operating expenses of the fire department. (A portion of the tax is also
used for the support and maintenance of the firemen's home at Hudson, New York.)  
Other sources of funding include federal assistance, state grants, county subsidies, and
tax-exempt bonds

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State law does not allow towns to provide their residents with fire protection as a
municipal function.  Instead, fire protection is provided either by a fire district or through
creation of a fire protection district.  

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What is a fire district?
A fire district is a separate unit of local government that is established for the purpose of
providing fire protection and response to emergencies.  A fire district need not have its
own firefighters or equipment; it can contract with a neighboring municipality or district.
Fire districts are not necessarily coterminous with towns. They may span several towns
or portions of towns, and a town may contain parts of multiple fire districts.  In addition,
the governing boards of one or more towns and one or more villages may form a joint
fire district.  If a joint district is formed, the municipal governing boards must adopt a
local law dissolving any existing fire, fire alarm or fire protection districts contained
within the joint fire district. A fire district is created, extended, or dissolved by a town
board.  However, such changes must be at the request of a majority of the fire district
commissioners or land-owning resident taxpayers of the district, and is subject to
permissive referendum. Details on how such changes may occur are in the Department
of State’s publication on fire protection consolidation.
A fire district is overseen by an elected board of commissioners composed of five
members serving five year terms.  (The fire commissioners in joint fire districts may be
elected or appointed.) The Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) reports that there are
867 fire districts, an increase of 20 districts in the past 20 years. The commissioners
appoint the members of the fire companies within the fire district, and may provide for
the removal of those members for cause.  They also organize, operate, maintain and
equip fire companies.

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The firehouse is making necessary and reasonable improvements to its facilities.  

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Volunteer firefighters may be a case of ‘you get what you pay for’

    Re Justin Mason’s Jan. 6 article, “Residents face cost to maintain 8 fi re companies”: Mr. Mason did a good job reporting on how expensive new firehouses can be, [but] a few facts need to be clarifi ed.
    The number of calls in Rotterdam is exaggerated: There are some where more than one fire department responds. So when two or three fire departments respond to one call, it’s counted as a call for each fire department — not one call for the town. Since there’s no shared information between fire departments, there are duplications of fire reports for the same incident So the reported number of 1,522 could easily be cut in half — more or less.
    Next, comparing Rotterdam to the Schenectady Fire Department: Yes, salaries are a factor in the higher cost, but the Schenectady Fire Department does offer far more [service] than Rotterdam. For example, Schenectady fi refi ghters routinely do hazardous materials response for the county, water rescue, and advance life support.
    A little-known fact about volunteers is that money is put aside in an interest-bearing retirement fund for certain fi refi ghters approved by the district. So technically, they’re not [working] for free, but are getting a stipend which isn’t collected until they’re in their 60s.
    Another thing: There is no training standard for volunteer fi refighters per state law. Professional (paid) fi refi ghters [must] achieve 229 hours for their initial training, plus an additional 100 hours a year. Volunteers just need to maintain eight hours of OSHA training each year. It’s up to each fire department to make sure that their volunteers are trained to maintain some service to their community.
Unfortunately, the average person doesn’t know just how well trained the volunteers are and whether the offi cers are elected on merit or popularity. These factors can compromise the performance of the district.
The consolidation of some districts/services would be helpful, but volunteerism is not always the answer for less expensive and better service.

TIMOTHY J. GAFFNEY JR.
Scotia
The writer is a former Rotterdam volunteer firefighter and is currently employed by the Latham Fire Department.

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“It’s not easy to just dissolve a fi re department and there’s some camaraderie with the gang down there,” LeTarte said. “It would be like breaking up a team.”