By Mark J. Armstrong
Kerrville Daily Times, Texas
KERR COUNTY, Texas — As city and county officials start the process of building spending plans for the next fiscal year, expect to hear more about ambulances, EMS and other services shared between Kerrville and Kerr County.
These joint services are governed by interlocal agreements between local entities, and many of those agreements are set to expire in September. The biggest of those deals, the one that previously drew the most public interest and likely will again this year, is the EMS contract for countywide ambulance services outside the city limits.
Under the current contracts, the Kerrville Fire Department, which manages a variety of emergency services for city residents, provides countywide ambulance services. Residents who use that service are billed, but the portions that go unpaid — usually because of limits set by Medicare — are funded by local taxpayers.
Kerr County currently is paying about $1 million annually for this service and limited area fire services outside the city limits. The city’s total budget for providing services to both county and city residents is about $7 million.
The sticking point between city and county officials here isn’t the quality of the services provided but the cost, and it is a debate that has been ongoing for years. County officials say they want to pay only for the ambulance services provided by the city while city officials contend there’s no way to separate the two.
Spending for fire protection and EMS are separated in the city’s budget. Expenditures are expected to come in at $4 million for fire protection and at $2.8 million for emergency medical services. The fire marshal’s office is a separate expenditure in the budget.
But these services aren’t really separate. The administration for the fire trucks, ambulance crews and rescue units all fall under the fire chief and his deputy chief. Firefighters also are all certified at a minimum emergency medical technician and can be called to go out with an ambulance crew if needed. All are housed and dispatched out of four fire stations across the city.
According to city officials, this intermingling of services is why it’s not possible to separate the two when asking the county to share in the cost.
Most recently, city officials revealed budget plans that no longer include county funding for fire and ambulance services, while county officials continued plans to seek bids for ambulance services. None of this will affect city residents who dial 911 for an ambulance, but it could mean a new service provider for residents outside the city limits.
The fire and EMS contract is only one of the interlocal agreements between the city and county. Agreements for managing the city-county owned airport and for election services through the county’s election department haven’t been as contentious and are expected to continue for years to come.
County officials may seek some changes this year in an agreement for the county animal control department, and last year the city pulled out of the deal for county tax collection, instead opting to ask the Kerrville Independent School District to collect city taxes for them.
The other major deal that, at least for now, seems to be at an end is the public library. Commissioners haven’t budgeted county tax dollars for the Butt-Holdsworth Memorial Library in two years and don’t seem eager to change direction.
Of course, voters will select a new county judge in the March primary election, and since the county judge is responsible for presenting a county spending plan to commissioners, anything is possible.