The Examiner (Navasota, Tex.), Vol. 118, No. 12, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 24, 2012 Page: 3 of 28
twenty eight pages : ill.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
^blsiinitier
October 24, 2012 ^ Page 3A
Examiner Photo by Rosemary Smith
There was standing room only as all volunteer fire departments were present
to discuss pending contract issues with the county during commissioners court
on Tuesday, and join in Pledge of Allegiance.
VFD,
continued from la
cheap about the fire serv-
ices. And one of the
biggest grant fundings that
was available to these vol-
unteer fire departments got
significantly cut - from
$25 million to $7 million.
When you’re trying to
fund 1,400 fire depart-
ments across Texas, that
money goes really quick.”
Judge Shiflett said the
fire departments’ previous
requests for $70 an hour,
per vehicle, for runs made
on calls for service and
$15 per mile for gas - as
departments currently re-
ceive $3.40 per mile for
gas and $20 per hour for
run costs - were denied be-
cause they would have re-
quired a tax increase,
which was not approved
by the commissioners
court.
While Judge Shiflett
said the $370,00 budget
for the eight volunteer fire
departments is one of the
largest in the county, she
said it might be best to cre-
ate Emergency Services
Districts to provide addi-
tional funding for fire de-
partments.
“That way they can ask
the individual districts for
whatever amount of
money they need to make
their department operate
more efficiently,” Shiflett
said.
Barron said options re-
garding ESD’s could in-
clude an increase of up to
ten cents per $100 valua-
tion, paid to departments
by the county entity itself.
He said the other option, to
create an ESD for each fire
department, also creates an
additional need for respec-
tive Boards per each ESD.
“That can be kind of a
burden sometimes, to
county commissioners,
and also to ESD’s. In
Travis County, we’re actu-
ally trying to create one
single ESD, rather than
thirteen individual ESD’s
for the sake of unity,” said
Barron.
Workshop set for
Dec. 5
Thanks to a suggestion
by Precinct 2 Commis-
sioner Randy Krueger, a
combined workshop with
volunteer fire department
chiefs will take place Dec.
5, at 7 p.m., at the commis-
sioners courtroom.
In the meantime,
Grimes County Volunteer
Fire Association Public In-
formation Officer Chris
Kehl told The Examiner
some of the departments
could struggle until an
agreement is reached.
“Some of the smaller
departments depend a
whole lot on that funding.
They’ll also be depending
on fundraisers and dona-
tions from the commu-
nity,” said Kehl.
Whitehall Community
Volunteer Fire Chief Larry
Vickers said the workshop
would be the first step in
reaching an agreement.
Anderson volunteer
firefighter George Turner
told commissioners he dis-
agreed with withholding of
county disbursements,
pending individual con-
tracts, especially since the
changes to current operat-
ing procedures are not ex-
pected to be a quick fix.
Judge Shiflett stressed,
“We have to have a con-
tract.”
Turner responded,
“This is a fundamental
change to the way the fire
association and the fire de-
partments have operated in
the county for 30 years. So
it’s not something that in a
couple of months you can
say, ‘Let’s knock this out.’
Our trucks don’t run on a
desire to help people. We
need money for operating
expenses so we can con-
tinue to respond to calls in
the interim.”
Firefighters said the
pending payment for the
$20,000 fixed rate would
negatively affect depart-
ments, which continue to
also await reimbursement
funds from the state for
services provided during
last year’s wildfires.
Krueger suggested that
fire departments be added
to future budget hearings,
prior to the adoption of the
annual budget.
During the meeting,
County Attorney Jon C.
Fultz stressed the county’s
appreciation of the volun-
teer work by firefighters,
and said the need for con-
tracts with individual vol-
unteer fire departments is
supported by Texas Gov-
ernment Code 352.001,
and he would be willing to
meet with them “any time,
any place” to help resolve
the issues with the pro-
posed, four-page contract.
Local Government
Code Sec. 352.001 states
the following: “Fire pro-
tection of county residents,
(a) The commissioners
court of a county may fur-
nish fire protection or fire-
fighting equipment to the
residents of the county or
of an adjoining county
who live outside munici-
palities.
(b) The commissioners
court may:
(1) purchase fire trucks
or other fire-fighting
equipment;
(2) issue time warrants
and levy and collect taxes
to pay the principal of and
interest on the time war-
rants as provided by law;
and
(3) contract with the
governing body of a mu-
nicipality located within
the county or within an ad-
joining county to use fire
trucks or other fire-fight-
ing equipment that belongs
to the municipality.
(c) The commissioners
court of a county may con-
tract with an incorporated
volunteer fire department
that is located within the
county to provide fire pro-
tection to an area of the
county that is located out-
side the municipalities in
the county. The court may
pay for that protection
from the general fund of
the county.”
Pending contract
requirements
Fultz said the issues
raised by fire departments
that he has been made
aware of regarding pend-
ing contracts include the
need for an audit.
The need for individual
contracts - rather than the
current, 1979 contract with
the fire association - was
realized as the need for an-
nual audits arose following
the arrests of former Iola
Volunteer Fire Department
Fire Chief Earl Sword, Ac-
countant Wanda Sword
and Secretary Samantha
Kimich for alleged theft by
public servant, greater than
$20,000 but less than
$100,000, second-degree
felony charges, in Febru-
ary.
The county attorney
said, “It seemed, to me, to
make sense that the county
would have the ability to
audit their records. We all
know what happened in
the north end, and it was a
product of not having au-
dits.”
Shiflett previously said
fire departments could
separate documentation
for funds disbursed by the
county and those gained
from fundraising efforts.
“Our run money is a
service. Does the county
audit all of its contrac-
tors?” questioned
Plantersville-Stoneham
Assistant Volunteer Fire
Chief Steve Paiyou.
The county attorney
told commissioners, “The
statutes specifically say
they (fire departments) are
an agent of the county.”
The county attorney
said that the first aid serv-
ices included in the origi-
nal proposed contract were
added based on a 1997
contract between the
county and Shiro Volun-
teer Fire Department.
As for the inclusion of
first aid, Kehl said EMS
services are already pro-
vided by St. Joseph EMS
and Grimes County First
Responders.
“I think the confusion
lies in where fire depart-
ments respond to major ac-
cidents or EMS has to call
for additional assistance -
whether it be CPR, lift as-
sistance or whatever. I
think there’s some verbage
there that needs to be
changed, and agreements
made that if that’s what
they want the departments
to do, then the county’s
going to have to help the
departments pay for it (ad-
ditional training and
equipment) just like they
helped the Grimes County
First Responders pay for it
- training, as well as
equipment and run costs,”
said Kehl. “And the fire
departments here are not
interested in getting into
the EMS business. That’s a
whole other ball of wax, as
far as training and certifi-
cations. We are willing to
assist EMS, as necessary.
It’s expensive enough to
put fires out.”
The county attorney
said the addition of indi-
vidual fire departments’
acquisition of insurance
that does not hold the
county responsible for the
firefighter’s actions is also
necessary.
Commissioner Krueger
told firefighters, “First, we
need to know - the money
we give you, we want a re-
ceipt and we want to know
how you’re spending it,
and that it’s being spent
SEE VFD PAGE 18A
r
There is a world
of difference!
Comparison of the National Party Platforms
Republican vs. Democrat
Against
Same Sex Marriage
For
Against
Smaller, Weaker Military
For
Against
Gun Control
For
Against
Taking God out of Platform
For
Against
Obamacare
For
For
Protection of the Unborn
Against
For
School Prayer
Against
For
Balanced Budget
Against
For
Extending Tax Cuts
Against
For
Domestic Oil Exploration
Against
The Republican Party is the
L ONLY Conservative Partv J
Political ad paid for by the Grimes County Republican Party, Marilyn Schultz, Treasurer,
P.O. Box 325, Shiro, TX 77876
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
McDonald, Scott. The Examiner (Navasota, Tex.), Vol. 118, No. 12, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 24, 2012, newspaper, October 24, 2012; Navasota, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth808421/m1/3/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Navasota Public Library.