CLEVELAND, Tenn. – If Bradley County and Cleveland decide next week to merge fire, rescue and emergency medical services, the new department would become functional on July 1, 2012.
That date would be the start of fiscal year 2012-13.
That’s one of the recommendations being forwarded by a task force created to provide a road map for merger, if the Bradley County Commission and Cleveland City Council choose to do so.
The merger may come up for vote on Wednesday, when the commission and council are scheduled to meet to hear all the recommendations. If it is approved, the task force recommends the coming year be devoted to organizing a governing board and other details, including hiring a chief.
The county and city are scheduled to decide yes or no on the merger on June 20.
The task force met Thursday and approved a spreadsheet developed by city and county representatives to calculate how much a combined department would cost.
“If anyone assumes this spreadsheet has all the answers, please don’t make that assumption,” city Finance Director Mike Keith said as he passed around the financial estimate.
“This is an exercise about looking into the future,” Task Force Chairman Julian Sullivan said.
According to the projection, a combined department would spend more than $17.3 million in budget year 2012-2013. By comparison, the city and county’s separate departments now spend a total of about $14.3 million.
The difference between the estimates on the spreadsheet and what the two governments spend now include unknowns addressed by the task force Thursday. One issue to be settled is equalizing vacation days; another is the number of families that will enroll in a joint health insurance plan.
The spreadsheet also assumes current salaries. The task force agreed that 2 percent should be factored into future years to be realistic, whether the raises happen or not.
The spreadsheet also includes a projected additional 12.8 cents from the city’s property tax rate. The city pays 57 cents from its current $1.65 tax rate per $100 of assessed value for fire services.
The estimate shows 17 cents added to the county’s fire tax, which is collected separately from county property taxes. The current county rates are 41 cents in the urban fringe around the city limits now covered by the Cleveland Fire Department under contract, and 34 cents for others.