Lumberland to vote on Fire Department Service Award

Taxpayer calls for more information

By SANDY LONG

GLEN SPEY, NY — No one wants taxes to increase, but most of us want to see the dedication of our firefighters and emergency personnel amply rewarded. These two issues have come into conflict in the Town of Lumberland, where a referendum will appear on the ballot during the primary election scheduled for February 5. Voters will decide whether or not to establish a length of service award program (LOSAP) for the town’s firefighters and emergency personnel.

The LOSAP would provide benefits of $30 per month per year of service to firemen and emergency personnel upon retirement. The award program would require the town to come up with an additional budgetary allotment of approximately $72,400. Town supervisor John LiGreci said that the money would have to come from the town’s reserve fund, which he estimated at approximately $420,000. The town currently designates $160,000 to its fire department to be spent as it deems necessary.

LiGreci said that a tax increase of approximately 3.5 to 4 percent could result if voters approve the referendum as it is currently written.

According to the New York State Office of the State Comptroller (NYOSC), Article 11-A of the General Municipal Law authorizes local governments to sponsor LOSAPs for volunteer firefighters. The purpose of the legislation was to facilitate the recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters. The programs provide municipally funded pension-like benefits based on an individual’s length of volunteer firefighting service.

An informational meeting was held on January 18 at the town hall, during which a summary of the program was presented. Resident Lewis Powell attended the session, which he said left “lots of unanswered questions,” and that more information should be provided to voters before they head to the polls. “At a time when America might be facing a recession and people have to decide between buying food or medicine, we can’t afford to make a decision like this without all the facts,” Powell said.

Among his concerns, Powell said that more than one option should be offered to voters, that lower tier award amounts should be considered and that greater accountability of current funding provided to the fire department should be requested before a decision is made. A member of the Mohegan Lake Taxpayers Association, he added, “We, as taxpayers, have no choice about the plan. They presented only one option.”

Ann Steimle, president of the Lumberland Fire Department, which selected the plan being presented to the town, said that the higher-tiered plan was chosen to provide the greatest incentive to recruiting new members and retaining those who are already trained in these special skills. “The better plan enables us to plan for the town’s future, to meet the growth challenges we are facing. It’s proportionate to the amount of calls we receive,” Steimle said.

The Lumberland Fire Department (LFD) sent an initial letter to townspeople describing the LOSAP program and encouraging attendance at the informational session. The letter cited response to 280 emergency calls in 2007 totaling 5,853 hours of community service and noted that, “For the past 57 years, Lumberland Fire Department has stood behind you. Now we are asking you to stand behind us.” Based on questions generated at the town meeting, Steimle said the LFD is preparing a second informational mailing.

Powell said that the meeting was poorly promoted, resulting in low attendance. LiGreci estimated attendance at 50 people and said that roughly half were fire personnel and their families.

In its report on volunteer firefighter LOSAPs, the NYOSC included the following finding: “Based on our review of enrollment trends and discussions with local government officials, it appears that the programs may not be effective in recruiting volunteer firefighters.”

But the report also recommended that, “LOSAP programs should continue to be offered as a benefit to volunteers, but the Legislature may wish to consider authorizing additional incentives to provide volunteers with a more immediate benefit than does a service award program.” Visit www.osc.state.ny.us/localgov/audits/swr/2001ps2.htm to see a copy of the report.

Both Powell and LiGreci stressed that they are not questioning the quality of the fire department’s work, nor its importance to the community. “There’s no question that they do a good job,” Powell said, “but people need to know what they’re voting on and what the consequences will be.” According to LiGreci, participation in the program is not mandatory. If the referendum fails, the fire department will have the opportunity to resubmit its request in the future.