HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter of Support Re the Establishment of a Butte County Fire Protection District BUTTE COUNTY
ADMINISTRATION
MAY 2 6 2017
ity
of sOROVILL ..CA P-ORMf ,Linda L. .(.Alrnerer
OFFICE O_F',rHF_M_AYOIt Y" MAYOR
r
9135 Montgomery Street — -
NO-t;;uj la°" Oroville, CA 95965-4897
(630)538-2433 FAX(530) 538-2.468
www,art�fnros!i11��o�
May 16, 2017
Butte County-- Board of Supervisors
25 County Center Drive, Suite 200
Oroville, California 95965
RE: LETTER OF SUPPORT REGARDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A BUTTE
COUNTY FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT
Dear Supervisors:
The City of Oroville hereby formally expresses its support of the proposed
establishment of a Butte County Fire Protection District (BCFPD). The best way to
ensure stability of a new BCFPD is to develop dedicated funding sources that can be
used exclusively for a fire protection district. Among the variety of funding mechanisms,
a single, countywide fire protection district offers the best features to maintain stable
services. It would allow residents receiving the service to determine the level of service,
it would allow the ability to continue working with CAL FIRE, it would allow other
jurisdictions (incorporated cities and other special districts within the County) to join the
district, and would allow for governance dependent or independent from the Board of
Supervisors. The formation of a fire protection district would require LAFCO and voter
approval.
The Matrix Consulting analysis highlights the current inability to fund public safety
functions, with rising expenditures and revenues to provide those services falling well
behind. The City of Oroville is currently struggling to fund the current level of service
needs for its public safety programs and believes that a regional fire protection district
may be the best approach for the future.
In addition to the above fiscal concerns, the incident at the Oroville Dam resulted in the
evacuation of almost 200,000 people, infrastructure damage and a needed Unified
Command Structure for the emergency operations associated with the disaster. It's
clear that the regional approach of a unified command would have been extremely
beneficial to the City of Oroville, Butte County and the other cities downstream.
1
For these reasons, we enthusiastically support the proposed establishment of a Butte
County Fire Protection District. Should you have any questions regarding our position,
please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Lin a L. Dahlmeier, Mayor
City of Oroville
2