Countywide : Fire Department’s Plan to be Weighed

The Board of Supervisors today will consider an interim reorganization plan for the County Fire Department, a streamlining that officials say could save $1 million while guiding the department toward the major restructuring scheduled for January.

The interim reorganization, which would delete 14 administrative posts, is seen as way to reduce overhead while providing a bridge for the January transition to a fire protection district, department management services director Fausto Reyes said.

The supervisors in May approved the department’s sweeping governmental shift, which in five months will make the county home to the state’s largest consolidated fire protection district.

That change, which required state legislation, was made to give the 16 cities served by the Fire Department a direct voice in its operation through a governing board. The department’s operations are currently controlled only by the supervisors.

“The anticipation of the realigning and restructuring that will come with the district creation, coupled with the budget situation, made this the opportune time to restructure our organization,” Reyes said.

The interim reorganization would dissolve the department’s administrative bureau, one of the four major organizational areas within the department, and redistribute its responsibilities.

The plan also would delete more than a dozen jobs that are currently unfilled or shortly will be left open through the retirement incentive program and transfers. Another four jobs will be classified as civilian posts.

Those cuts and shifts would translate to a $1-million savings, Reyes said.

“Basically, it’s a mixture of a number of different options that we identified as giving us some opportunities to lower costs,” Reyes said. He added that no field personnel would be affected.

The report that accompanies the plan as it goes before the Board of Supervisors makes it clear that the revamped organizational structure is intended only for the short term.

While the temporary structure “is not desirable on a long-term basis, it continues to offer a workable interim measure until funding is stabilized and a more equitable organizational structure can be put into place,” the report states.

Officials said neither the interim reorganization nor the creation of the fire protection district next year would result in changes in service or taxes.

The consolidated fire district will be governed by a board with representatives from six cities on a rotating basis and one county supervisor, a format that city officials hope will make the department responsive to residents.

The supervisors will meet at 9:30 a.m. in the first-floor hearing room of the Orange County Hall of Administration, 10 Civic Center Plaza.