TUSTIN : Council to Act on County Fire Pact

The City Council will hold a special meeting at 6:30 this evening to consider an agreement that would give Tustin and other cities greater control over the Orange County Fire Department.

Following the special meeting, the council will meet at 7 p.m. with local school board members. The study session is being held so city and school officials can discuss issues of mutual concern and possibly set some annual goals.

The matter of the Fire Department has taken on added importance as a result of the county bankruptcy filing Dec. 6. Officials from Tustin and other cities are worried that the department’s $36-million reserve fund may be tapped as the county grapples with its financial crisis.

If that occurred, the 18 cities that contract with the county for fire service may be forced to contribute more money.

“That is a significant issue that everybody is concerned about,” Tustin City Manager William A. Huston said Tuesday. He said city officials are taking a firm stand that the $36 million in reserves belong to the Fire Department and should not be used to help mitigate the county’s financial problems.

For the past three years, city and county officials have been working to form a joint powers authority to oversee Fire Department operations. The new fire authority board of directors would be made up of an elected official from each of the 18 cities, and two representatives from the county Board of Supervisors.

The department is currently run by the supervisors and operated on a day-to-day basis by Fire Chief Larry J. Holms.

Huston said the joint powers authority is being pursued by the cities in an effort to keep costs under control. The quality of fire service has not been an issue, he said. Tustin spends about $3.6 million annually for fire service.

In July, Tustin officials approved an agreement with the county to form the joint-powers authority. The Board of Supervisors later modified the agreement, which meant that the 18 cities had to reconsider the matter.