By Jodie Tillman
The Tampa Bay Times
TAMPA, Fla. — A new audit recommends Hillsborough County rethink its longtime use of volunteer fire companies in rural communities, saying those units operate with little oversight and may cost more than they are worth.
The six volunteer fire departments cost the county a total of about $1.5 million each year. That includes $49,950 paid to each company as well as equipment and the cost of sending in career firefighters when the companies don’t have enough volunteers, according to Clifton Larson Allen LLP, the auditors hired by Hillsborough County.
“Volunteers are not free of cost to the community,” the audit says, noting that some of the units are following a nationwide trend of paying volunteers on a per-call basis. The Bloomingdale Volunteer Fire Department, for instance, reported nearly $87,000 in salaries and compensation for 2011, according to federal tax filings.
Full story: Hillsborough audit says volunteer fire companies may cost more than they are worth