Fort Hunter Fire District

Some of the frequently asked questions concerning fire protection in suburban areas are:

• What is the difference between a Fire District and a Volunteer Fire Company?

• What is funded by tax dollars and what is covered by donations?

• Who is paid?

• What is the Service Awards Program?

This article will briefly answer these questions.

• The Fire District is a Municipal Government under State law. There are five (5) Commissioners elected by the registered voters residing within the geographic boundaries of the Fire District. The Treasurer is elected in Fort Hunter. The Fire District Secretary is appointed and paid a minimal salary. In our district the Treasurer and Secretary are the same person.

• The Fort Hunter Volunteer Fire Company is a not-for-profit entity and has no governmental status. Members of the company elect the executive and firematic officers. Any resident of the district can apply or membership. If an individual is elected that person must pass a probation period.

• The Fire District is required each year to adopt a budget subject to the State Finance Law. The Town Board cannot routinely overrule this budget. The tax rate is established based upon the budget and the value of the property in the District. The tax monies provide funds for fire fighting, fire apparatus, equipment, insurance, physical examinations, service awards, construction and maintenance of the fire station.

There are, however, a number of functions which require some funding that is not covered by tax dollars. The money from your donations pays for phone stickers for community residents, special insurance, food at emergency incidents, rehabilitation provisions, and other related activities. For example, in anticipation of the celebration of our 50th anniversary and the Albany County convention we used a substantial portion of last year’s fund drive proceeds to purchase full dress uniforms, including the formal jacket, for our 55 senior members. This is the first time in our 50-year history that the Company has adopted and used the formal firefighter’s dress uniform, which is worn by most departments.

The members of the Board of Fire Commissioners, the Firematic and executive Officers of the Fire Company and the Firefighters receive no direct compensation in the form of salary or tax waivers.

The Service Awards Program is a small retirement plan, which allows a firefighter to accumulate credit toward monthly payments upon reaching age 60. The individual must meet an annual minimum requirement in terms of training and fire fighting in order for that year to be credited for retirement. There is a five-year minimum for vesting. We currently have a number of active firefighters over the age of 60 who make an excellent contribution to the community, but no longer receive retirement credit. This problem is being discussed in with the State Comptroller and the Legislature.

The relationship between a fire district and fire company is somewhat analogous to a school system. A school board would be similar to the board of commissioners, the superintendent and principals are comparable to a fire chief and the officers, and the teachers and support staff function like the firefighters.

The fire district has purchased new state of the art fire protective gear for all of our 30 “interior firefighters.” Each of these company members has a personal fitted mask for use with our new Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA). The “interior firefighters” wear SCBAs to enter burning buildings or areas where the air could be toxic. Each of our courageous firefighters is a volunteer who fights the serious fires and responds to a wide range of other emergencies in our district and in neighboring communities through our mutual aid agreements.

The Fire District has taken delivery of a new 1999 Engine/Pumper to replace our oldest truck, a 1976 Ward LaFrance pumper. This new pumper will provide the Company with an up to date fleet of fire fighting vehicles as follows:

1999 Engine/Pumper E-36

1998 Brush Truck E-35

1995 Squad Truck S-33

Command Vehicles 301 302 303

1992 Engine/Tanker/Pumper ETA-34

1987 Engine/Pumper E-37

The Fort Hunter Fire District has purchased all of these state-of-the-art trucks without borrowing any money through careful planning and use of reserve funds. This mechanism has saved thousands of taxpayer dollars over the years.

All property owners in the Fire District pay a fire tax of less than $1 for each thousand dollars of assessment. The Fire District budget is generally distributed as follows:

Fire Truck/Equipment Reserve 17.8%

Service Awards 17.8%

Annual Equipment Purchases 12.1%

Building Reserve 11.2%

Insurance 10.6%

Equipment Maintenance/Repairs 6.9%

Building Maintenance/Repairs 5.6%

Utilities 5.4%

Building/Property Debt 4.1%

Fire Training 3.8%

Fees, Taxes, Notices 1.4%

Other Subtotal 3.3%

Total 100%

The Board of Fire Commissioners has a meeting on the second Monday of every month at 7:30 p.m to conduct the regular business of the Fire District. There are scheduled meetings on the fourth Monday in January, February, and March and the second Wednesday of the month to complete pending business matters. The public is invited to these commissioners’ meetings.