September 13, 2018 Minutes
Fire District Commissioner Meeting
Dallin called the meeting to order at 8:05. Gordon said the opening prayer. Those present were: Commissioners Jim Deuel, Dallin Gambles, Gordon Ball, and Roger Anderson; Fire Chief Carl Anderson and Assistant Fire Chief Nic White; Battalion Chiefs Jim Kelly, Blaine Ker, and Adam Rhodes standing in for Mitch Bingham. Mike Miller was absent because he was on a fire call.
Agenda Approval: Jim moved to accept the agenda as presented. Roger seconded. The vote by Jim, Dallin, Gordon, and Roger was unanimous.
Minutes: The commissioners reviewed the minutes previously. Roger moved to accept the minutes. Gordon seconded. The vote by Jim, Dallin, Gordon, and Roger was unanimous.
Budget Review: Melanie reviewed the budget. We are under budget from where we would expect to be at this point in the fiscal year.
Approval of Expenditures-ACTION ITEM Jim reviewed the expenditures. He asked what a bill for truck 143 for $6000 was for. It was a repair due to an ember getting caught in the air intake and melting the plastic tubing and ruining the turbo. This may be covered by insurance. Jim moved to approve the expenditures in the amount of $42,564.15. Gordon seconded. The vote by Jim, Dallin, Gordon, and Roger was unanimous.
Patron Input (3 minute time limit): Jason Averill asked what the final numbers were for the Menan building. It came in at $1.722 million.
OLD BUSINESS:
- Roger asked if there has been a difference in response to calls since the raise went into effect. The leadership affirmed that there has been an increase in response. Jason Averill did say that he would like to see those who are on call but do not get called out to get some sort of compensation for the time that they are on call. The commissioners do agree that this needs to be looked at to make compensation fair for those who are on call.
NEW BUSINESS:
- Discussion of ethics in government-Dennis Wilkinson: Dennis gave the commissioners binders on open meeting laws. He reviewed recent changes to the law: 1. If a government entity has a social media presence or website, the agenda needs to be posted on it. 2. If the agenda item needs a vote, it needs to be identified as an action item. 3. Final action may not be taken on an item if it is added after the start of a meeting unless there is an emergency that exists. The reasons for the emergency would need to be recorded in the minutes.
- Introduction of Assistant Chief Nic White: Jim introduced the new Assistant Fire Chief, Nic White, who started in this position on the first of September.
FIRE CHIEF REPORT: Carl said that the burn ban has been lifted in the county. Patrons still need to call the county and let them know that they are going to burn.
Brush 3 (truck from the BLM) has been a good truck. They got some new tires from the IDL but they are not made for the load capacity of this truck. He will have to get new tires for the truck because the old tires got chewed up on lava rock.
They sent out trucks to the Medicine Lodge Fire under the INL mutual aid agreement.
ASSISTANT CHIEF REPORT: Nic has nothing to report yet.
BATALLION CHIEF STATION ACTIVITY REPORTS:
Station 1. Jim: 78 EMS calls and 22 fire calls. That does not include the calls where they assisted another station. Everyone is doing a phenomenal job and the pay increase has helped get volunteers to respond. A previous volunteer passed away from a motorcycle accident to which station 1 responded. Jim asked what the direction of the district is so that they can start preparing and get everyone on the same page. The commissioners recognize that a full-time station will probably be a necessity sooner rather than later. The BCs will discuss it with Carl and Nic and bring it to the commissioners. The commissioners will form a committee soon to create a plan that will help the district move in the direction of a full-time station.
Station 2. Blaine 16 EMS and 4 fire calls. They responded to a fire call in Swan Valley as well as to a severe car accident in which all victims survived.
Station 3. Nic reported for station 4: 16 total calls but it felt like more. They had Lana’s retirement party.
Station 4. Adam stood in for Mitch Bingham: 21 total calls. They had around 1000 people attend the open house.
COMMISSIONER REPORTS:
Jim moved to adjourn at 8:55. Roger seconded. The vote by Jim, Dallin, Gordon, and Roger was unanimous.
Roger-EMS & Training/Gordon-Equipment /Dallin-Facilities/Jim-Budget/Mike-PR