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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEmergency Services Committee Minutes 02.24.2020MINUTES CITY OF LAUREL EMERGENCY SERVICES COMMITTEE MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 An Emergency Services Committee Meeting was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by Committee Chair Bruce McGee at 6:00 p.m. on February 24, 2020. COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: _x_ Bruce McGee, Chair x Iry Wilke x Pat Kimmet Richard Dawes Public Input: None. General Items: 1. Review and approve the 27, 2020. Motion by Council Mei meeting of January 27;'.. and all six committee 6 2. Removal of Ri Chairman McGee -state(' process to remove a me Council Member Klose Committee,�effective in Brent Levi' Stan I by x Richard Klose _x :Heidi Sparks xT,'Tarvn Massa Ambulance f of Police Committee meeting of January 3mer`gency Services Committee .A vote was taken on the motion, 6-0. Services Committee: Dawes;ha§'no_t Been to a meeting in a very long time, and the Sity Attorney, was to have a motion by the Committee. n to,remove Richard Dawes from the Emergency Services arvn Massa seconded the motion to remove Richard Dawes from the Emergency Services Committee. 71 e Chairmen stated that the appointment to fill the vacancy is the authority of the Mayor. He stated that he would inform the Mayor of the vacancy, so a new member couldbe appointed?';The Committee asked if the vacancy would be advertised, and the Chair stated there isalways-something posted regarding vacancies. The Chair stated that anyone interested in serving on the Emergency Services Committee needs to formalize a letter to the Mayor. The Chair stated if anyone interested in serving on the Committee had any questions, he would be happy to answer them. All six Committee members present voted aye, motion carried 6-0. 3. Update from the Fire Chief, Brent Peters: The Fire Chief stated that the report for January 2020, the Firefighters have responded to 42 calls totaling 495 hours. There were 2 hours of fire prevention, 203 hours of training, and 46 hours of maintenance for a grand total of 746 hours. The Chief stated that longtime retired Firefighter, Chuck Rogers passed away. He was a member of the Laurel Volunteer Fire Department for 27 years, and a Mayor of Laurel at one time. The Chief gave the details regarding Mr. Rogers funeral. The Chief wanted to follow-up on last month's conversation. The Chief had a correction that needed to be made in the minutes of the January 27, 2020 meeting. He had already told the Clerk/Treasurer, but the number of gallons maintained is 3500. The Chief did some research regarding billing for services, and he has yet to find anything regarding billing in the State of Montana. The only items he has found to date are regarding negligent arson, or if someone does not live within the districts. He stated there are mixed reviews regarding Fire Department's billing for services. This is due to the fact that Cities receive tax money to fund these services. The Districts pay directly for the fire services so he is not sure if they can double bill for those services. He stated that in some states it is legal to bill for services and in some states it is not. The Chief is going to continue to research this question. The Chief stated if the City can bill for services, we need to be prepared for some angry citizens, because they are basically being double billed. The Chief compared it to the Safety Mill Levy because people are paying for services and then being asked to pay for it again. The Chief' stated that the City Attorney may want to take a look at this. The Chair explained this discussion . topic stemmed from him asking if the Fire Department was billing: for services covered by insurances. The Chief stated again that he has not found the 1ega1'•statutes that would allow for this billing. He has found blogs and forums talking about it bufthose!.can be filled with inaccurate information. The Chief stated that he could go talk to in'surance,agents regarding this and see what information they share with him. The Chief stated the Department can,definitely bill if the individuals are not in the City or Fire Districts. The Chief stated that he is}working with the Clerk/Treasurer and going forward any bills froii lhe`Fire Department wiltbe generated by the Chief and sent to the Clerk/Treasurer. The Chair stated if agrees the City Attomey�igpds to weigh in on this, and he would like to take this to City Council a"nd"find ou or not. The Committee asked the Chief :ifthis would be,for,pe taxes to the City, and the Chief confirmed tliis was correct. -,Tl would do the billing if the Fire Departm'er l and Ambulance -Di two officers. The Department will be down an officer because one officer is moving to Helena, and another officer has already left the department. The Chief explained the next big project for the department is upgrading their radios. The repeater is also a high priority, and some site surveys need to be done so a better location for it can be found. He explained that the portable radios also need to be upgraded. Currently the department has hand-me-down radios that are 14-15 years old. He stated the current portable radios are no longer serviced, and this is another reason they need to be upgraded. The Committee asked what has caused the increase in warrants. The Chief explained that two of the big ones served were for the Taco Bell drive thru robbery. The Marshalls assisted with getting those two individuals served and through their attorneys they turned themselves in. The Chief explained that most of this is due to female's that have warrants. The jail has gotten the new female wing open so they will take the individual on the warrant. The Committee asked about the new jail being built in Carbon County. They wanted to know iftlilkwould be a location the City of Laurel would contact for taking individuals. The Chief stated'that would be out of jurisdiction for the City of Laurel and if they did take anyone the City would have to pay for it. He stated this jail will open full because this jail is years behind being build. ;It`was pecessary years ago, but the levy did not pass for it. He does hope that when that jail opensit will allowv,for more room at the Yellowstone jail. The Chief stated the Yellowstone County jail is so full'that inmates are being housed in Townsend. Officers must drive to Townsend to pick up inmafesand then drive them back. 5. Update from the Ambulance Director, The Ambulance Director stated the total,numbe was 118. The Department is a lot busier, and,is Director stated they need more people.tHe,stati the call volume they currently have. He stated day is the only solution. The transports are kup;, department had 30 and this year they had 50.,;F department can respond to'transports'�Ie state( The Committee asked if the:Director kept track Director stated they do ke6p,6ck of -those calls 16 calls, howeverthe Quick Response Unit or.( how long.therresjS6nse.`iswhen the departme:'hw quick, however sometimes ,Pt can take along tin morning and there was no ambulance available respond to the,call, and the full-time employees this call was noPlife threatening and;the individ r of patierit contacts is 164, compared to last year having a lot ofovertime due to that. The Ambulance .dIaving a combined department would not sustain novmg Fforward-having full time employees on every compared`to last year ,:In January 2019, the `.e stated this will.helu with revenue because now the I the,department.is'still overwhelmed at this time. of, how many calls the department cannot make. The He stated in January 2020 the department missed )RU went to 9 of those calls. The Committee asked nisses a•call. The Director stated sometimes it is ie<The Department missed a call at 4:OOam this until 8:OOam. There was nobody available to responded when they arrived. The Director stated ual was stable at a nursing home, however he has. witnessed life threatening calls havehto wait for long periods of time. The Committee asked how many full-time employees,the department had now. The Director stated there were 5 full time employees and the Mayor.;has,dj6 `description for a director. The Committee asked how many of the volunteer became full time en ployees, and the Director state three of them did. The Committee asked if there was a plan in place to get more volunteers to replace those three. The Director stated the department is advertising for volunteers. He stated people do not want to volunteer for $3.50 and hour. He stated the department is looking at adjusting the $3.50 an hour. New Business: None Old Business: 6. Safety Mill Levy Discussion: The Chair stated that the Ambulance Director had provided him with DA Davidson's contact information. They assist with bond levy projects. The Chair contacted DA Davidson and spoke with Bridgette Extrum. The Chair and her had a great conversation. Bridgette provided the Chair with some ideas regarding the levy. She stated Dorsey and Whitney may be a good source for help with the Safety Mill Levy. She also recommended contacting Montana League of Cities and Towns. The Clerk/Treasurer previously provided the number of days required to get a Safety Mill Levy on a ballot. It requires 85 days, after the order of resolution, to be placed on a ballot. The soonest this could be placed on a ballot is possibly June 2"d. Bridgette stated ifthe mill levy was in the amount of 20 mills, it would raise approximately $160,000 a year for theAmbulance Department. This would increase the taxes on a $100,000 home by $4 a year. At;would increase the taxes on a $200,000 home by $8 a year. These are loose figures, so, t[ie 'o ittee needs to know how much money the Ambulance Department needs annually, and"what those rids will be used for. The Committee also needs to know the length of time the I'evy is going to be•for. If the levy is given a sunset date, it can be brought forward again to the voters prior to that sunset date to extend it. The Ambulance Director stated that five more emnlovees would be needed fo`r the,deoartment and this would cost approximately $241,000. The Directoi Whitehall and it is $120,000. He would like to try this fiscal year. He agrees this levy would'need a The Ambulance Director has called Cdurity=Co mn The County will need to assist with this funding:,;' accurate and detailed information to to talk with the County regiiiding an mill levy. The Committee wants'to and thoroughly. The Committee d& taking as long as it is. Th6'C' Qmmitt close. The Ambulance Directer,stat' not getting by" with',the stat_t`th6y.haio good time for'"this levy`: The•Amb'ula should not,give up. Shepardlaid�not the levy for a,second time. The`Con Police and Fire'<Departments. The Department doing good financially,' Committee reauested'-a'list of levies' sere is•an ambulahce'available for sale in ase this ambulanceNfoilhe department .te for review, and increase or decrease. Pitman regarding an Ambulance district. mittee wants to make sure they have The Ambulance Director is working hard lommitfee talked about the timing of the iven enough time to be prepared properly of understand'4hy the information gathering process is igreed that•the June 2nd date was going to be cutting it too hiiNevy needs to move forward because his department is Tkie Coinmittee agreed that the November election is not a Director stated in case this levy fails the first time, the City s their levy the first time, and they went back and tweaked ttee requested to know what the future needs are of the mittee wants to know this so when the Ambulance focus can switch to the other two departments. The h sunset dates. They feel this information would be vital to provide to the community: =The<community may be more agreeable to pass this levy if other levies are sunsetting. One of the`'Committee members requested the levy be put on the June 2nd ballot for approval. The Chair stated tie -would request this be put on the March 31d meeting agenda and see what the response is. The Committee will continue to discuss balancing the timeline versus giving the levy appropriate attention. The Chair stated the City could possibly pick a separate ballot date however the cost of ballots, etc. would have to be paid for the City. Putting this levy on with an already scheduled election cuts those costs. The Committee requested to know what the cost of a mail -in ballot would be, or special election. Chief Peters stated he agreed that the other two departments needed to be looked at for their needs. The Chief has a questionnaire that he would like to get out to the Council and the Community. It is a questionnaire asking what individuals want. He stated this questionnaire will help him and the department budget for future needs of the City. Other Items: None Announcements Next Emergency Services meeting will be held on March, 2020, at 6:OOpm Motion by Committee Member Kimmet to adjourn, seconded by Council Member Klose. A vote was taken on the motion. All six Committee Members present voted aye. Motion carried 6-0. The Emergency Services Committee adjourned at 7:07 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Bethany Langve Clerk/Treasurer NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of the Council for the listed workshop agenda items. 0, Britt v Moorman Bret Rutherford <brutherford@co.yellowstone.mt.gov> Wednesday, March 4, 2020 7:42 AM Bethany Langve suoje� . RE: Special Election Costs Without any knowing any details, roughly $3,800 for mail ballot and $5,700 for poll election. From: Bethany Langve <cityclerk@laurel.mt.gov> Sent: Tuesday, March 3, 2020 8:38 PM To: Bret Rutherford <brutherford@co.yellowstone.mt.gov> Subject: Special Election Costs Hello Bret, How much would a special election cost approximately for the City of Laurel? gethavwu L-Rwgve Clerk/Treasurer City of Laurel, Montana (406) 628-7431 extension 2 1