Kings, N.S., councillors approve funding boost for volunteer fire departments

COLDBROOK, N.S. — Volunteer fire departments serving Kings County will receive an increase in the coming year, but a new policy for operating funding has yet to be established.

Rob Frost, County of Kings deputy chief administrative officer, reported at the December council session that staff is working on getting a new policy in place for funding non-contracted volunteer fire departments in Kings.

“That work is still ongoing, but is progressing and progressing well,” Frost said.

He said that the current practice, without a formal policy, involves the Fire Services Advisory Committee (FSAC) making a recommendation every year for an annual operational funding increase.

At a recent FSAC meeting, it was recommended that the October-to-October Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Nova Scotia be used to determine the funding increase.

The CPI represents changes in prices as experienced by consumers. It measures price change by comparing, through time, the cost of a fixed basket of goods and services to determine the rate of inflation.

This is the same metric that was used last year when non-contracted departments received a 7.7 per cent increase. This year, the CPI calculation was 3.2 per cent.

Frost said that fire chiefs expressed during discussions at the FSAC that they don’t believe a 3.2 per cent increase is keeping pace with cost increases they’ve been experiencing. Insurance costs have gone up significantly, as have fuel and heating oil costs due to the so-called carbon tax (fuel charges under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Act and Clean Fuels Regulations).

The FSAC recommended that council approve an increase of six per cent for non-contracted departments, based on CPI and “the anticipated area growth.”

Council approved the motion unanimously.

Costs up for fire departments

Kings County Firefighters Association (KCFFA) president Jeff Skaling, chief of the Canning Fire Department, said the six per cent figure was recommended after discussion with the chiefs present at the Nov. 23 FSAC meeting.

“If there are no significant unexpected increases, the six per cent will likely be adequate, but it depends on fuel, heating and insurance costs,” Skaling said in a recent email.

For the Canning department, insurance was up 22 per cent, costing the department about $32,000 for the 2022-2023 fiscal year. Fuel was up 67 per cent, costing the department almost $11,000 for diesel and gas for vehicles; and heating was up 48 per cent, costing the department about $16,000 for furnace oil.

Skaling said that if increases like those continue to occur, the six per cent funding boost wouldn’t cover the cost for those line items.

“The carbon tax is hurting everyone,” Skaling said. “Firefighters have to drive to the station for emergency calls, meetings, and training and are paying significantly more personally on fuel.”

When asked if he could give any insight into how funding policy discussions are progressing, Frost said it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to speak to the discussions occurring with the policy working group until such time as it’s presented to all departments.

Last year, when councillors approved an operating funding increase, they also voted unanimously to have the chief administrative officer bring forth proposals for consistent honorariums for volunteer firefighters as part of a new fire funding policy.

The FSAC had recommended that honorariums be provided to all members at a base rate of $1,000 per member for 2023-2024.

Skaling said the proposal for an honorarium policy is being discussed by the FSAC policy subcommittee, and they hope to have some updates on progress early this year.

“The chiefs feel that a consistent and reasonable honorarium policy would be essential in helping with firefighter retention and recruitment,” Skaling said.

Budget impact

The impact of the six per cent increase on the municipality’s bottom line will be $110,068, bringing total operating funding for all non-contracted departments in Kings to $1,943,300 for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. There are 13 fire departments serving the municipality, nine non-contracted and four contracted.

The nine non-contracted departments include Aylesford, Canning, Waterville, Greenwich, Halls Harbour, Kingston, New Minas, Port Williams, and Springfield. The four contracted departments include Kentville, Wolfville, Hantsport, and Berwick.

Frost said that for the four departments that are under contract, annual increases are determined by what is stipulated in the contract, although all are slightly different.

Coun. Martha Armstrong asked when the nine non-contracted departments would be put under contract to provide service to the municipality.

“I said it last year and I said it the year before that, so I’m just going to reiterate that,” Armstrong said.

Frost said that, because of changes this year to the municipal budgeting process, they asked for non-contracted departments to submit their operating budgets for the 2024-2025 fiscal year by Jan. 10. If budgets are not submitted by then or if information is not up-to-date, departments would be funded at the same rate as last year.

Coun. Joel Hirtle said his thought is that CPI doesn’t properly account for cost increases being experienced by volunteer fire departments. He said CPI is aimed more at individual consumers or families and asked if any thought has been given to using another inflation metric.

Frost said the municipality has typically used CPI to calculate such increases. In some fire service contracts, CPI over a given timeframe is considered, plus an additional percentage.

Seeking exemption

Skaling confirmed that the KCFFA sent a letter to the municipality asking them to petition the federal government for a carbon tax exemption for first response agencies. Council accepted the letter, and a letter from the Town of Oxford, asking for an exemption for volunteer emergency service providers from new fuel charges, at the Dec. 19 committee of the whole session.

In response to a question from Coun. June Granger, Deputy Mayor Emily Lutz said the correspondence would be discussed and the municipality would respond. She said that if there is anything resulting that needs council’s consideration, the matter would be brought back.

At the December council session, Armstrong asked, if a letter was sent to senior government requesting to have the carbon tax removed from fuel costs for volunteer fire departments and they agreed, would the municipality decrease the amount of funding it’s providing to departments.

Frost said that would be a decision of council, but it becomes difficult without a contract and without a policy to tell departments after the fact that what was committed to in terms of operating funds is not what they’re going to get.