Tacoma City Council passes budget, adds $2.5 million to maintain fire department staffing
Dec 11, 2024, 10:50 AM
Exterior of the Tacoma Fire Department (Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
The Tacoma City Council has voted to pass the 2025-2026 budget, ultimately voting to increase funding for the fire department to prevent cutting a key program that helps reduce overtime.
While the initial budget proposal increased funding to the fire department, it called for cutting 16 roving firefighter positions, part of a program put in place in 2024 to offset overtime costs and firefighter burnout.
The positions fill open spots at the stations that need them, such as when someone calls out sick.
The cuts were proposed to help the city dig its way out of a $24 million deficit.
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“The program was put in to help save the city money; without it, everybody here has to pick up extra shifts to make sure people are safe in the city,” firefighter Kris Hampton said.
During Tuesday’s council meeting, council members approved an amendment to add $2.5 million to the fire department to guarantee no service disruptions and ensure flexibility.
“We’ve had a lot of really valid input into our budget,” Councilmember Joe Bushnell said. “And it’s been very clear that a lot of folks have a lot of care.”
The effort was met with celebrations from members of the public and the firefighters’ union, which has been pushing to keep the program for weeks.
Officials said there are 60 open firefighter positions, leaving the current fire crews overworked. They said if the cuts had been approved, both firefighters and residents would have suffered.
“Right now, you’re seeing unprecedented overtime because you’re so short-staffed,” Allyson Hinzman, President of IAFF Local 31, said. “We have members working over 100 hours a week.”
Hampton told KIRO 7 that the response times for Tacoma crews average about 10 minutes, more than half the industry standard response time.
“In our line of work, every second matters. It can mean the difference between life and death,” Hampton said.
Had the roving firefighters been cut, Tacoma would have saved about $4 million. However, firefighters said in previous years of being short-staffed, the average amount of department overtime was around $6 million each year.
If the positions had been cut, the employees would have received permanent spots at various stations, but union officials said it would have left other stations with scheduling gaps.
Both city leaders, fire union officials and members of the public acknowledged this funding is only the tip of the iceberg.
“This helps stop the bleeding,” Hinzman said. “This doesn’t solve the problem.”
Hinzman said not only is the department short-staffed, but it is also in desperate need of building and equipment updates.
“We are failing. We are at a critical breaking point. Our rigs are failing, the equipment’s failing and, on top of that, the facilities are failing. We truly are running thin,” Hinzman said.
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City leaders acknowledged digging the city out of its deficit will take significant work.
Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards said the approved budget reduces the deficit from roughly $24 million to roughly $15 million.
City officials said that means programs and services that residents use and enjoy will always have to be cut.
“The things that people want us to fund will impact the other things people want us to fund,” Councilmember Jamika Scott said. “Those things are always going to be true unless we continue to do this work to address that structural deficit.”
