By Duane W. Gang
The Press Enterprise
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Riverside County may be in for a showdown with the state over as much as $14 million in funding.
But this time, it could be the county considering withholding payment.
The county hires Cal Fire for fire protection and currently pays more than $12 million a year in administrative fees on its more than $100 million contract with the state.
And the cost may go up next year. If the county maintains its current level of service, the amount could jump to $14 million, officials said.
County supervisors say that’s too much, particularly during a time when they face significant budget constraints and might have to close fire stations.
Supervisors have raised the prospect of simply not paying the fee or giving the state less. The county sent a strongly worded letter to Cal Fire dated Saturday.
“What happens if we just don’t pay it?” Supervisor John Tavaglione asked Fire Chief John Hawkins at a recent budget workshop. “What is the state going to do?”
“That is definitely an option,” replied Hawkins, who is in the difficult position of working for the supervisors as well as Cal Fire in Sacramento.
It’s unclear what the state would do if the county withheld a payment. But a Cal Fire official said the agency values the county’s contract and is willing to discuss options.
Riverside County is the biggest entity contracting with the state for fire service.
The contract is five times larger than the next agency, Hawkins said. San Bernardino County has its own Fire Department.
“If they want to give up the largest contract in the state of California, let them put us on notice,” Tavaglione said.
“This is our opportunity. We are going to tell them we are not going to send the full check.”
In the county’s letter to Cal Fire Director Del Waters, Board Chairman Marion Ashley said the proposed increase also affects the budgets of 18 cities and one special district that contract with the county for fire protection.
“An increase in the rate during such dire economic times is unrealistic and not acceptable,” Ashley wrote. “If the rate were modified, we believe fire stations could remain open.”
The county faces a $107 million budget gap for the fiscal year starting July 1, and supervisors are struggling to overcome the shortfall.
They asked Hawkins to present scenarios in which he cuts 3 percent and 10 percent from the Fire Department’s budget.
Under its current contract, the county pays the state $133.4 million, including the administrative fee.
The Fire Department receives $42.5 million from the county general fund, where supervisors have the most discretion. The remaining funding comes from contract cities and other fire protection taxes.
A 3 percent cut to $42.5 million portion would equal $1.27 million and mean the closure of at least three fire stations, Hawkins said. A 10 percent cut would equal $4.25 million and the closure of at least five stations.
No decision on station closures has been made. Supervisors expect to adopt a final budget by early August.
“You can see the bottom line and the options,” Hawkins told supervisors. “At this point, I feel we as a Fire Department have brought to you the very best we can do. We are now at the point of fire stations.”
Hawkins suggested the county needs relief on the administrative fee.
The fee on the county’s contract is currently 11 percent - 6.5 percent goes to Cal Fire and 4.5 percent goes to the state Department of Finance.
It’s expected to go up to 11.06 percent next year, Hawkins said.
Even if Cal Fire did not reduce the fee, the state could spend more of it locally to support the county’s contract, thus freeing other funding for firefighting operations, Hawkins and county officials said.
The administrative fee covers payroll, human resources, computer systems and other support services.
Spending more of the administrative fee locally to support the county’s contract is possible and would provide “immediate relief” in helping prevent fire stations from closing, Ashley wrote.
Board reaction
County Executive Officer Bill Luna said supervisors have a better case for a reduction this year, given the prospect of fire station closures.
“Last year we put our request on the record and asked the director of Cal Fire to give us relief,” Luna said. “We got a polite answer: No.”
Supervisor Jeff Stone called the fee exorbitant at a recent meeting.
In an interview, Supervisor Bob Buster said that not only does the county need relief now on the administrative fee but more predictability on how much it will be in future years.
Supervisor John Benoit, a former state senator, has been named the point person on any negotiations with Cal Fire.
Open to Dialogue
Cal Fire Deputy Director Janet Upton said agency officials were in Riverside as recently as late March to discuss the administrative fee.
“We are committed to ongoing dialogue with the board,” she said in a telephone interview.
Upton said she is not aware of any local government simply refusing to pay an administrative fee to Cal Fire.
“I certainly hope that doesn’t happen,” she said.
There has been past precedent for helping counties that are in fiscal difficulties, Upton said.
In 2006 in Tulare County and last year in Butte County, Upton said Cal Fire allowed the two to delay quarterly payments on their contracts because of money problems.
In his letter, Ashley said supervisors believe their issues are legitimate and would like to negotiate them.
“We know that the State has serious budget concerns,” he wrote. “The concerns of Riverside County are equally difficult. No one wants to cut public safety but funding options are dwindling.”
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