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Home My WebLink AboutFIN 2019-07-08 Item 2B - Budget - Fire Department BudgetCity of Tukwila Allan Ekberg, Mayor 2 908 TO: INFOR ATIONAL E ORANDU Finance Council Committee FROM: Vicky Carlsen, Finance Director Jay Wittwer, Fire Chief CC: Mayor Ekberg DATE: May 22, 2019 Updated after June 10, 2019 Finance Committee meeting SUBJECT: Fire Budget Discussion ISSUE Review current and historical Fire Department budget, staffing, and service levels to determine a sustainable model which meets the City's financial and policy goals. BACKGROUND This section provides historical information on the Fire department as well as narrative discussing several aspects of the budget development process. The final section provides the current budget projection. Current Staffing Levels Total Fire Department Staffing The 2019-2020 Budget authorizes a total of 67.0 Full -Time Equivalents (FTE's) in the Fire Department. The table below summarizes these Budgeted FTE's. Position FTE's Notes Fire Chief Assistant Fire Chief 1 Battalion Chief — EOC & Fire Marshall 2 Captains (Inspectors) — Fire Marshall's Office 2 Captains — Training Consortium 2 Work with the South King County Fire Training Consortium as part of City's financial commitment Senior Project Coordinator — Fire Marshall's Office 1 Plans reviewer Assistant to the Chief Administrative Support Technician 2 1 supports the Fire Chief, 1 supports the Fire Marshall's office Emergency Management Specialist 1 Battalion Chiefs — Suppression 3 One per shift Captains — Suppression 12 4 per shift, 1 per Fire Station Firefighters — Suppression 39 13 per shift Total FTE's 67 9 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 2 There has not been a change in the number of Budgeted FTE's since 2013. K8ininnurn StaffinO Levels - Suppression As noted in the chart above, there are several moUVitiaa, such as Fire K8arahoU. Training, and Emergency management which have staff and budgets allocated tothese services. The majority of staffing (54 FTE`S) and budget is dedicated to suppression with 24/7 coverage for calls for service within the Tukwila community. This memo isfocused on the Suppression services within the Fire Department. Shift Coverage - 48/QO In 2009. per the newly adopted labor agreement, the Tukwila Fine Department began operating on a 48-hour. 3 shift nlude|. with 18 personnel assigned to each shift. This tnana|edeo into oohift being on for 48 houne, then off for 96 hou[s, also referred toaea '48/96' model. This was a change from what iaknown aethe Modified Detroit schedule ofa24-hourschedule. The chart below shows the shift schedule for both the 48/98 andthModified Detroit: Example of Modified Detroit and 48/96 Schedule 48/96(Coman �oh�du�} �� :Off |Qff Off � - | ' | �� | | | | Modified Detroit On !�� |0n :O� :On |O� V� \]ff / ' ' ' ' ' Then repeats Then repeats Minimum8taffiDq Per current policy, the rnininnunl staffing level is for 13.0 FTE. Each station has three firefighters (one Captain and two firefighters) who respond to calls with engines or the |adder, with the battalion chief stationed GtStation 51. When staffing level for the shift is at least 15, the aid oar can be -placed in oen/ioe, xxh|oh increases the level of service and can reduce response time by having anadditional unit inservice. The chart below summarizes daily staffing levels based on the number gfFTE'oavailable. Station Apparatus Minimum Staffing 13.0FTE Additional Staff|ng 14.0FTE Aid Car Staffing 15.0 FTE F851 Battalion Chief 1 1 1 F851 Engine 3 3 3 FG53 Engine 3 3 3 FS53 Engine 3 3 3 RS 54 Ladder 3 4 3 FS54 Aid Car O O 2 Total Staffing 13 14 15 When the City added pipeline positions in 2014 (discussed he|ovv, an additional to 5 (unbUdgeted) FTE were added. Currently, the policy isb] fill up to 3 pipeline pVsitiono, which effectively increases the staffing to1Spersonnel per shift. For each shift of 18 FTE, there are two slots set aside for vacation and two slots set aside for Kelly C»oyo (explained below). That leaves an additional two 'slots available for education leave or sick leave before Staffing falls to minimum staffing of 13. When additional sick |eayo' Kelly 10 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 3 dayo, training daya, or other activities occur that reduce staffing bekJVv 13, the current policy is that other staff are called in on overtime to maintain the minimum staffing level. Summary ofCurrent Shift Coverage: � "A.Shift '"B"Shift "C"1Shift Total Staff per Shift 19 19 18 Less: Vacation Slots -2 -2 -2 Less: Kelly Day Slots -2 -2 -2 Staffing Level Prior toUnexpected Leaves 15 15 15 Minimum Staffing 13 13 13 Slots Available for Unplanned Leave 2 3 2 Kelly Day A Kelly Day is an additional day provided to meet FLSA and contractual requirements. Due to FLBA ru|GS, each personnel are provided G certain number of"Kelly Ooya", which is a day off during anFL8Aperiod, and are scheduled ahead oftime similar to aplanned vacation day. Each FLGAcycle ie24days and only one Kelly Day may be scheduled each FLSAperiod. Kelly Days do not carry over into m new year. Starting in 2809. the total number ofKelly Days per each position is 14 days. This was an increase from 13 per the prior labor agreement, which was provided iOlieu ofm196pay increase. Pipeline Positions |nMarch 2O14.the Council approved the use of3pipeline positions. The pipelinepositions were intended to oFe8t8 potential cost savings and increase operational effectiveness. When a firefighter retires, the individual in the pipeline Can step into the vacated position. When a recruit enters the academy, it can take between six and nine [n0rdhe before g recruit is fully trained. These pipeline positions were approved byCouncil atthe March 3.2O14meeting. In July 2016. in expectation of additional retirements and in on effort to reduce overtime ummga, the Council increased this toauthorize aOadditional 2uptV5pipeline positions. |neJune 2O10 memo, it was stated that through the middle of the year, the department had filled 55 24-hour overtime shifts due tVminimum staffing requirements. |fthe three pipeline positions had not been in exietenc8, the department would have filled 132 24-hour overtime shifts due to minimum staffing issues. The memo also stated that because 0fthe pipeline positions, the aid car was iD service more frequently, increasing service levels tothe communities. The additional pipeline positions would enhance the department's capability to keep up with pending retirements and is more efficient and oQSt effective than the utilization of excessive overtime. The chart below shows total authorized positions and pipeline positions. AuthorizedIF!Es and Ploeline Positions ^ � ` . '` ^�� .�,� ��m1� '� ^ �J `_� �� ~—^~ ---' --- --- ' --' --^- -- 'i -- —' ` FTEa 65 8667 0767 6767 67 67! The additional pipeline positions add to the number of firefighters available per shift. 11 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 4 Staffing level considerations There are several factors which come into play when balancing current staffing levels for suppression. Vacation leave Per contract, each personnel are guaranteed a certain level of vacation leave. The table below shows the average usage of total vacation leave per year, by hours. As you can see vacation hours use has slowly increased over the years with a slight reduction in 2018. Per the labor union agreement, personnel may accumulate up to two years of accrued vacation. For example, if a firefighter accrues two weeks per year, they can accumulate up to four weeks of accrued vacation. The exception to this rule is if an employee had scheduled as many as two work cycles or less vacation and then was unable to take such vacation due to serious illness/injury, the employee may exceed the two-year maximum by that amount with the understanding that (1) the employee will bring their vacation balance within the two-year maximum within an agreed upon period of time of return to work. The City does have a policy regarding vacation accrual, but it is specific to non -union employees. The policy states that an employee may accumulate up to a maximum of 384 hours (48 days) of accrued vacation leave. Vacation time earned in excess of said maximum limit shall be used or forfeited. The policy goes contain a statement that reads: "union employees shall accrue vacation per their labor contract in instances where it may differ from these provisions". 16,000 14,000 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 0 2010 2011 2012 Vacation Hours Taken Suppression Only 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Vacation Hours 11,345 11,834 12,802 12,914 13,215 14,069 14,514 14,580 14,191 Kelly Day Per the contract and FLSA guidelines, as described earlier, the number of Kelly Days per personnel has remained constant at 14 since 2009. The table below shows the average usage of total Kelly Days per year as expressed in hours. As you can see this has remained fairly consistent at about 16 thousand per year. Kelly Day usage increased in 2016 and 2017 along with the increase in pipeline positions. Further analysis is needed to determine why Kelly Day usage decreased in 2018. 12 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 5 25,000 20,000 15,000 10,000 5,000 0 2010 2011 2012 Kelly Hours Taken Suppression Only 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Kelly Hours 16,056 16,128 16,296 15,408 16,713 17,376 18,864 19,416 18,504 Training/Other Usage There is required training and other education which firefighters complete each year. Some of this is done during normal scheduled work hours, while others impact daily staffing levels. The number of hours for training and education outside of the normal work schedule is shown below. As the chart demonstrates, overtime training hours is not consistent from year to year with it ranging from a low of approximately 296 to a high of over 1,100 in 2017. 1,200 1,000 800 600 400 200 0 2011 2012 2013 Training OT Hours Suppression Only 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Training Hours Oa 296 323 973 510 912 676 1,119 586 Sick Leave and Long -Term Disability Sick leave can change by day and by shift. Below are two charts depicting sick leave hours from 2010 through 2019. The first chart compares January through April in all years and the second one compares January through December from 2010 through 2018 and January through April for 2019. Both charts combine regular sick leave with long-term disability as our financial system 13 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 6 does not segregate long-term disability from sick leave. Along with long-term disability, sick leave usage appears tobetrending upward with the trend beginning iD2U15. As the table below shows, the number of hours of sick leave has increased from just over 10,000 hours iM2O1Otoapeak of14.OUOhours in2O1O. Sick leave usage can have msignificant staffing and budget impact, especially ifcovered through overtime staffing. S'Ck Hours Taken Suppression Only zmo ZOlO 2011 2012 2013 2014 3015 2016 2017 2018 Using sick leave usage through Ao[| 2018. the projection h;for a similar usage ofsick leave in 2O1Qaswas experienced in2D18. 7,000 6,000 su»» 4,000 3,000 2,000 1'onn u Sick Hours Taken Jan -April Suppression Only 2010 2011 3012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Lonq-Term0oabi|ity Whereas sick leave inintended for mshort period nftime, there iaalso the case when a firefighter ieout for alonger period oftime due tmoninjury, hma|thioeue.orctherieeue. 14 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 7 One factor contributing tothe budget situation this year iothe number of firefighters out on long- term disability, which we have defined as at least one consecutive month ofsick leave. Below ha achart 'that shows how many firefighters are out on long-term disability each month. The chart is an estimate through June and only reflects those currently out on extended leave. Names have been removed for privacy. Data mnlong-term disability for prior years will bepresented atalater date one the research has been completed. /\s the table shows, inJanuary there ioone firefighter atonlong-term disability, whereas inMarch and April there were four to seven firefighters out on long-term disability. Dates on long-term disability Employee January February March April May June Retirements/Leaves ofService and New Hires for Suppression Each year, individuals leave the department due to ret|remert, another opportunity or unfortunatdy, due to a death but the Department also makes new hires. On aVeno0e. the Department loses one tothree firefighters per year and seeks to maintain consistent staffing levels byhiring new employees. When the Department hires anew firefighter, they first have to undergo approximately four months of training before they are deemed qualified on available for service. While the new firefighter is not able to fill roster spot on o shift during these initial four nlontho, they are paid salary and benefits. The chart below compares the Department's departures and hires for the time period 2010 through 2019. n-� 1) Departures &H/res All poSince zmT 2016 2017 2018 IN 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 ums oms 201 zmu 2019 Departures o o 5 a n o a o n o Hies 2 1 4 4 3 9 6 3 6 2 15 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 8 Deployments Another factor that affects staffing levels is deployments. When a natural disaster occurs somewhere else, often we will send firefighters to assist with recovery. Some recent examples include responding to the Oso disaster in our own state and the hurricanes that occurred on the east coast last year. When firefighters are deployed to assist with recovery, they are typically gone for several days which affects staffing levels. Most often, the City is reimbursed for the costs associated with these deployments but occasionally, the City is not reimbursed for all costs. Additional information on deployments will be provided at a later date. Summary of Staffing Considerations Overtime Usage Overtime is used to ensure that minimum staffing is met due to any reason, from vacation, Kelly Days, sick leave, long-term disabilities, retirements, or other issues. For example, when a firefighter goes out on long-term disability for an extended length of time (at least one month), the usual two slots available for education and sick leave drops to one. When more than one firefighter on the same shift is on long-term disability, any firefighter calling in sick automatically results in minimum staffing overtime. The overtime usage has fluctuated over time. The table below shows the number of minimum staffing overtime hours used 2011 through 2018 (overtime hours were not tracked per project code until 2011). 9,000 8,000 7,000 6,000 5,000 4,000 3,000 2,000 1,000 0 2011 2012 Minimum Staffing OT Hours Suppression Only 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Min Staff OT hours nia 4,735 5,102 8,337 7,040 6,680 3,709 2,876 6,458 The following chart shows total overtime by category. Minimum staffing overtime can range from around 30% of total overtime to over 60% of total overtime. 16 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 9 dmm • MinimvmStaffiws • Mez • Equipment � w Overtime Categories 96ofWhole, byHours 2013 2014 znzs Training Rxxeebno 2016 I Disaster Response wop4Code 0othe, 0ncimb"oabm City Events E Fire Investigation E Shift Extension so Overtime 2011 2012 2013 20I4 2015 2016 2017 2010 Grand Total Minimum Staffing 5,167 5i648 9,325 7,359 6,968 3,972 3,024 6,678 48,140 Training 599 595 1,333 926 1'855 955 1'453 1,066 8'781 Meetings 1,210 1,205 1,372 803 695 793 907 600 7,584 Disaster Response 239 30 4,031 89 26 1'439 416 6,368 K4isc 503 235 777 1,469 I'024 1,165 711 318 6'201 NoPACode 398 188 778 21 432 639 211 80 2'746 Other 198 ]Z 45 127 283 406 940 2'03I Reimbursable 161 142 163 197 22I 250 214 488 1,835 Equipment 87 123 284 573 lOO 131 147 112 1,635 City Events 174 232 260 226 175 I25 209 55 I'455 Fire Investigation 164 126 73 307 175 206 237 161 1,447 Shift Extension 247 67 155 218 126 174 OI 132 1'201 The cost of overtime has increased due to the change in usage and also the increase in average compensation over the past few years. As the table ahows, the cost per hour has consistently 17 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 1 0 $1,000,000 $900,000 $800,000 $700,000 $600,000 $500,000 $400,000 $ 300,000 $200,000 $100,000 $0 Total Overtime $ Paid 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Overtime $ $60.00 $58.00 $56.00 $54.00 $52.00 $50.00 $48.00 $46.00 $44.00 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Overtime $ $407,964 $446,557 $440,553 $754,079 $857,927 $658,738 $495,855 $514,312 $647,876 Overtime Hours 8,221 8,907 8,831 14,592 16,127 12,065 8,717 9,038 11,046 $/Hr $ 49.63 $ 50.13 $ 49.89 $ 51.68 $ 53.20 $ 54.60 $ 56.89 $ 56.90 $ 58.65 A key administrative and policy question is what can be done to reduce the overtime usage and costs going forward. Budget Process The Finance staff budgets for personnel costs as well as liability insurance and fleet costs. Fire staff budget supplies and services. All departments develop their budgets within the parameters set by Administration and Council. When Finance drafts the budget for personnel, all approved positions are fully funded at the existing labor agreement rate schedules plus an estimate for COLA increases. Benefits are adjusted based on known or estimated rate increases. Positions that are not at the top step include an increase in both salary and benefits to account for any step increases due during the biennium. Any vacant position is budgeted at the lowest step plus benefits and medical at the full family rate. Overtime is typically budgeted at previous year levels unless a department can prove the need for additional budget. One change in how overtime was budgeted occurred with the 2017-2018 biennium. Prior to 2017, the overtime budget line item included both overtime and associated benefits. Beginning with the 2017 budget, the overtime line item is strictly overtime pay. Benefits associated with overtime are budgeted in the correct benefit line. There are a few items that are not budgeted and which the City departments are expected to absorb the difference within their original adopted budget. • Pipeline positions are not budgeted. It is expected that these costs will be offset by a reduction in overtime costs and usage. • As a policy, the City also does not budget for pending or possible retirements, specifically the vacation and sick leave payouts. 18 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 11 • The budget does not include funds for possible deployments. Typically, the budget will be amended once costs and reimbursement information can be estimated. Often, reimbursement funds are not received until the following year. • The City does not usually amend the adopted budget to account for any labor agreements that settle wages higher than what is included in the adopted budget. Departments are expected to absorb the difference. Budget Amendments The fire department budget has been amended every year since 2012. The amendments range in amounts from a low of $85 thousand in 2010 to a high of $1 million in 2014. The average budget amendment for the department is about $500 thousand. The chart below shows the total original adopted budget followed by a breakdown of amendments by year. One item to note on budget amendments is that in the first year of the biennial budget, the budget amendment will often be carried forward into the second year of the budget cycle. This can be seen in 2015 and 2016 when overtime was increased both years and again in 2017 and 2018 when budget was provided for pipeline positions. Fire Budget Amendment Details New Contract Revenue Deployments Deployments Final Adopted (Signing Increase Other Backed - PiPeline (Not Revenue (Revenue Total of Amended Budget . Bonus) Overtime Adjustments Other Positions , Backed) Backed) ; Amendments Budget 2010_ 10,212,773-----_-_---_-----_-_ 85,000--_-----------_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- 85,000—10,297,773 2011— 9,948,846-- -9,948,846 -------------------------------------------------------------------- 2012_ 10,226,000----234,768----_--_-_ 21,693— 60,500______ -_-_-_-_._-_-_-_-_-_-_-_316,961—10,542,961 2013— 10,247,976-----__----200,000--_—__---____--_-_-_-_-___-_---_-_-_-_-___-__-200,000 _10,447,976 2014_ 10,472,254 _ _ _ - — — ___ _ 390,000_ 355,000 _ _ _ _ — _89,600 — — 170,000 — 1,004,600 —11,476,854 2015— 11,056,925 — — — - _ 300,000 — 440,000— — - _ _ _ - —__-_-----___-_-_-_ ___740,000 _11,796,925 2016_ 10,959,499-------____310,000--_ 403,000— 37,805------__-_-_-_-___-_-_-_____-_750,805—11,710,304 2017_ 11,862,568---------_-------_-_-_-_-_ 35,000—240,000------_:_-_-_ 125,000----400,000—12,262,568 2018_ 12,192,595---------------_-_-- 69,045---------240,000-------------- 40,000----349,045—12,541,640 2019 12,473,387 - - - 12,473,387 Additional details on the "Other Adjustments" column is as follows: • 2010: Increase of $85K for fleet O&M • 2012: $21,693 for reinstating .25 FTE • 2014: $340K to fund LEOFF retiree medical and $40K to add fire permits to TRAKiT. • 2015: 80K for vacation payouts (not related to service separations), $210K for payouts due to service separation, and 90K for associated benefits. Also includes $60K for radio purchases • 2016: $90K for vacation payouts (not related to service separations), $220K for payouts due to service separation, and 93K for associated benefits. • 2018: $69k to budget for transfer to firemen's pension fund 2019 Projected Year -End 19 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 12 Staff is preparing a projected year-end model ak}Oo with a discussion on the assumptions that will be included in the model. The model will be completed and presented at a future meeting. New information for July U. 2019 Mutual Aid In addition kzthe City'Sfirefqhten;nGSpondinqto enlerqencyincidents within the boundaries of the Qty, the cr8vvS also respond to, and [eoeiva, mutual aid. Mutual aid provided is when the City'sfiref0hterorespond to anemergency incident inanother iuhSdiction'Sboundaries, Mutual aid received is when firefighters from other jurisdictions respond into the City's area to respond to an incident. The charts below graphically display mutual aid qiven and received on a City -Wide basis, by iuhsdiCtiOn, and by station. Data provided is from 2014 throuqh 2018. The first Chart demonstrates that, in total, the City provides more mutual that what is received. For the period 3hVvvn. the City responded to a total of 3.804 mutual aid calls and received a total Of 2.822 naceived, a net difference of572. 0 20l4-2O18Mutual Aid 2015 mMutual Aid Given 0. 2017 utual Aid Received Another way to look at mutual aid is to analyze mutual aid given and received, but by iUhSdiCtion. As the chart below indicates, the City responds into Kinq County Fire District #20 (Skyway) and the Renton RFAmore than the City receives aid. Conversely, PUOetSound FlFAprovides the City more mutual aid than the City provides the FlFA. Entities included in the "Other" Cateqory include the foUovvnQ: Black OianlVOd F[)#17. BoeiOq 20 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 13 Fire, Valley |7FA. VashoO Island Fire & Rescue, and Woodinville. While the number of calls in many of these areas are minimal, it does demonstrate that the City of Tukwila fire department can respond tocalls iOareas that donot border the Qty� 610 zss go Mutual Aid by Jurisdiction 2014-2018/SUrDrn8[iZed\ �� zsz ra 1,S7z a Received 63s 365 415 289 Other The final mutual aid chart looks at the Sonoe data as the chart above but displays the data by station. VVhi|e, in total, the City qives more mutual aid than is mnoaiv8d. both Station 52 and Station 54receive more mutual aid than provide mutual aid, hovvewer. Stations 51 and 53respond to more mutual aid calls that receive. It in also worth noting that Station 52 gives and receives the least amount of mutual aid than any other station, This could be relevant information since one of the policy choices presented includes naducinq staffing levels at this station. 21 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 14 450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 MUTUAL AID BY STATION GIVEN AND RECEIVED 111 11 0 n ME t & 51- Mutual Aid 51- Mutual Aid 52 - Mutual Aid 52- Mutual Aid 53- Mutual Aid 53 - Mutual Aid 54 - Mutual Aid 54- Mutual Aid Given Received Given Received Given Received Given Received 2014 340 122 28 55 105 102 133 287 2015 410 122 12 33 142 79 153 279 2016 286 110 24 37 153 91 203 338 2017 259 115 22 45 169 95 209 284 2018 273 137 29 51 118 89 223 302 Schedule for Future Meetings Additional topics related to the fire department that will be presented at future meetings. Below is a tentative schedule with meeting dates and topics: July 22, 2019: Existing service levels for Tukwila fire department August 12, 2019: Cost and service level comparison to other fire/EMS service providers August 28, 2019: Options for service levels and how to fund the different service level options A memo on the fire marshal's office will also be presented as a topic for discussion at the July 22, 2019 meeting. DISCUSSION To begin the discussion on next steps to address the fire department's projected overbudget situation, two options regarding policy are being presented below as possible ways to keep the fire department within budget. Additional options could be presented at a later date. Policy Discussion There are some policy choices that relate to both the fire department budget as well as levels of service. As discussed above, there are a few items that, as a policy, the City does not budget for when drafting the biennial budget: • Pipeline positions — salary and benefits for an entry level firefighter is approximately $98 thousand. • Known retirements — based on current information, payouts in June are expected to be approximately $72 thousand total for three firefighters. Additionally, the current policy sets minimum staffing levels at 13 per shift. If staffing falls below 13, minimum staffing overtime is triggered. 22 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 15 Two suggestions that could keep the Fire department within budget follow. 1\Increase budget/revenues bJsupport current level cf service and staffing The first method vvVu|d be to increase the fire department's budget to include funding for the pipeline positions and add budget for retirements that have already occurred in 2019 as well as those that are planned for |mbar in the year. Funds could either come from increasing existing revenue sources, adding new revenue smurcee, decreasing budgets in other departments, or combination ofall the above. 71Deoreose minimum staffing level ho12ondays when minimum staffing isnot met A policy option for the Fire Department would be to change the level of service to 12 rather than 13. When nnininnunn staffing is ba|ovv 13, rather than calling ' in one shift of overtime, the Fine Station 52 mid car could he placed in service rather than an engine. The mid oar can respond to most calls but the reduction in service would come into play when o fine oa|| comes from Station 52's area. An engine from another station would become the first due in unit. lengthening the response time. Engine 52|aalso the second in enginefor most fire calls inthe City. |fthis engine is swapped out for the aid car, this will cause a delay in a second engine arriving on scene, putting the first -in unit at risk. The "two in -bmo out" rule bVthe 'State OSHA / L& |, is required for entry into o hazardous envir0Dment, such as a fire. Each ofTukmUa'S fire Units are staffed Gt3. a second staffed fire unit ieneeded. Fi[egrouUdstaffing levels (NFPA171O)will also beaffected, which will require anincrease ofaid from our neighboring fire agencies. From January 1, 2019 through April 30, 2019, there were 60 days when minimum staffing was below 13, resulting in nnininnunn staffing overtime. Each shift ofovertime costs approximately $1.400. If. on those RD dayo, minimum staffing was reduced to 12 and the aid car placed in service, total savings |novertime costs would have -been $-4'thousand. Below isechart showing fire callsbv type that Station 52engine r8opondedtOfnJnl2O14Ulrough 2018. The chart represents first -in calls only and does not include fire calls were Station 52was the second in engine. As demonstrated by the second chart, Station 52 responds to the fewest fire calls ofall four stations. []Daverage, this station responds asfirst in on48fire calls ayear. 23 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 16 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 12 9 IIIII 5 Structure 185 6 10 8 Station 52 Fire Responses by Type Vehicle & mobile property 126 114 100 53 II 2014 56 12 ....„ 25 7 5 10 Natural Rubbish & Vegetation Dumpsters 0 5 82015 2017 IN 2018 Fire Calls by Station By Year with Average Response Times 38 42 44 62 62 63 72 57 101 76 6 7 44 Other types 102 85 0:07:12 0:06:29 0:05:46 0:05:02 0:04:19 86 0:03:36 0:02:53 0:02:10 0:01:26 0:00:43 0:00:00 51 51 51 51 51 52 52 52 52 52 53 53 53 53 53 54 54 54 54 54 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 us= Fire Calls ........Response Time New Option: Fully Fund Current Service Levels Another option available would be to fully fund the current service levels in the following manner: 1) As previously mentioned, the current staffing model includes 19 24-hour personnel per shift. Between 2013 and 2018, the average number of overtime hours worked was 12,000 across all divisions within the fire department. Assuming an hourly rate of $60 per hour, to fully fund overtime at the average number of overtime hours worked annually, the total overtime budget would be $720 thousand. The current overtime budget for 2019 is $531 thousand. If the budget were trued up to reflect the average number of overtime hours worked, the budget should be increased an additional $189 thousand. Adjusting benefits would add an additional $24 thousand for a total increase in budget of $213 thousand. 24 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 17 Fbm Overtime Costs Compared to Number,of OvertimeHours (Excludes benefits) 2010��'� '2011 � 2012 2013 w 2014 �2015 2016 Overtime $ 407,964 446,557 440,553 754,079 857,927 658,738 495,855 514,312 647,876 Overtime Hours 8,221 8,907 8,8314,592 16,127 12,065 8,717 9,038 11.046 Cost per Hour wzao 50.13 *9.89 51.68 53.20 54.60 5s89 e6.90 58.65 720,000 12,000 nuoo 2\ Fund the cost associated with the academy. The length of the academy is approximately 18 weeks and during those weeks, the fire department carries the full cost ofthe recruit (salary and benefits of approximately $40 thousand in total) but does not receive a level of service in return. Budget could beprovided tOcover the costs Dfthe academy. Budget for four recruits would add $1OUthousand tothe existing budget. 3) Fund the cost of separations of service (retirements. etc.). Because current policy requires minimum staffing of 13. the fire department must absorb the costs of separations without reducing service levels, Todate, the department is aware ofthree upcoming retirements with estimated payouts totaling $72thousond. Adding budget of $1DOthousand would cover not only kn0vvD separations but provide some funding for possible future separations. To summarize, to fully fund current service levels, total budget of $473 thousand would be added to the 2019 budget. Future budget years would include these amnne increases with COLA adjustments factored in. True upovertime $213.000 Fund academy 100.000 Fund service separations 100,000 Total increase in budget $473.000 Service Levels Another policy decision is related to service levels. Staff will be bringing forward information on azietiDQ service levels to the Public Safety oD00d1ee in the near future. This information will be beneficial indiscussing the Fire department budget. To enhance the discussion onservice levels, staff iagathering data on call statistics. Some of the information being gathered is call types by year and calls by station. Detailed call statistics will help guide future discussions on how best to address the budget situation with the fire department. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) The NFP/\igmnon-profit organization that convenes committees comprised offine service -related professionals for the purpose ofdeveloping fire, electrical, and other life -safety standards. These standards are often utilized to make policy decisions regarding staffing and service levels. NFPA 1710 provides minimum standards related to the organization and deployment of fire suppression oporationa, emergency medical operatione, and epooio| operations by career (paid) fire departments. Standards recommended by NFPA 1710 are summarized below and represent the resources necessary to provide the highest probability of a successful and safe outcome. * Single-family dwellings: nnininnunn 14 nnonnbero. 15 if aerial is used 25 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 18 • High-rise with highest floor greater than 75 ft above lowest level of fire apparatus access: minimum 42 members, 43 if building is equipped with a fire pump. In addition to reviewing NFPA standards on staffing levels, it is important to review incidents and response times. As the chart below indicates, from 2014 through 2017, the number of incidents each year increased. However, in 2018 the total number of incidents decreased. It is too early to know if 2018 was an anomaly or the start of a new trend. Along with the increase in incidents, response times also increased in apparent correlation with the increase in incidents except for 2017. In 2017 average response time actually decreased. 6000 5800 5600 0 5200 5000 4800 0:06:12 2014 2015 0:06: 2016 Total Incidents 5840 • ••••• • 0:06.!9. • 2017 Avg Resp Time 2018 0:06:29 0:06:20 0:06:12 0:06:03 0:05:54 0:05:46 0:05:37 0:05:28 Another trend in service levels worth noting is that the average duration of an incident has been declining over time. The shorter duration on calls helps to mitigate the impacts of increased call volume on average response times. 26 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 19 6000 5800 5600 5400 5200 5000 4800 03752 5156 2014 RECOMMENDATION For information only 5 2015 5752 2016 5840 2017 Total Incidents m .*0 -Avg Duration 2018 27