SAFE-D pushes for ESD accountability

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1 SAFE-D Official Newsletter of the State Association of Fire and Emergency Districts 4Q 2010 Annual Conference will get down to business Feb SAFE-D s 10th Annual Conference will help ESD leaders run their districts like a a business. The conference is scheduled Feb at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Austin. A block of rooms is available at the SAFE-D rate of $109/night (single or double). To make reservations call Crowne Plaza Toll-Free Reservations at (800) by Jan. 26 and ask for the State Association of Fire and Emergency Districts rate. The return to Austin coincides with the 82nd Legislative Session. Attendees are encouraged to come in Wednesday and visit their legislators. SAFE-D will host a Meet-and-Greet reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday evening. The Conference kicks off Thursday and includes topics such as budgeting for large and small districts, ESD-attorney relations and negotiating skills for working out contracts with service providers. A registration form appears in this newsletter. Watch the SAFE-D website, for schedule updates. pen SAFE-D pushes for ESD accountability In the 82nd Legislature, which begins in January, SAFE-D will support legislation that requires new emergency services district commissioners to receive training in government operations. Under a bill drafted for the session, the Texas Department of Rural Affairs would establish the minimum amount of training. We require training for our firefighters and EMTs, said SAFE-D Pres. Keith Lewis, Just as they need training to do their jobs, ESD commissioners need training to do theirs. Much of the training would likely mirror the popular ESD 101 workshop that SAFE-D has presented across the state. Those workshops provided basic information on topics such as budgeting, Figures compiled by Tax Revenue Consultants show dramatic growth in the use of sales tax by Texas ESDs. Since the law was changed in 2007 to allow carve-out of areas already at the state sales tax limit, receipts have more than doubled Please see Legislature, Page 10

2 Letter from the President: A definitive decade for SAFE-D By Keith Lewis SAFE-D President SAFE-D celebrates its 10th Birthday in What a decade it s been for our organization. We enter the double-digits more resolved than ever to help emergency services districts both EMS and fire work efficiently and deliver the highest quality services to the people they serve. Our focus for our 10th Annual Conference Feb at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Austin will be operating your ESD as a business. We ve just gone through a very loud and very dramatic election season in which many of the candidates promised they would run government like a business. When SAFE-D encourages you to run your ESD like a business, here s what we mean: Strategic Planning: We want to help ESD commissioners take the long view of their districts. Each Board of Commissioners, working in concert with either contract service providers or employees, should take an uncompromising view of the district s strengths and weaknesses. It should set goals to preserve its strengths and improve on its weaknesses. That should result in a five-year plan, including a financial forecast, to meet those goals. Sound Budgeting: A key take-away from the recent election is that Americans want to know their money is spent wisely and not overspent. For ESDs, that begins with making realistic and sustainable budgets that support the strategic plan. Measuring Performance: Just passing the budget doesn t mean that an ESD commissioner s work is done. Throughout the budget year, there must be continuing evaluation. That is not limited to whether the ESD is staying under-budget, although that s important. The evaluation must include whether the district (including its employees or service providers) are Please see Lewis, Page

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4 ABOUT SAFE-D SAFE-D, the Texas State Association of Fire and Emergency Districts, is the only association dedicated to meeting the needs of Texas emergency services districts. Through SAFE-D, member districts work smarter and work better to provide fire protection and emergency medical services to the people they serve. P.O. Box 676, Pflugerville, TX Fax: President: Keith Lewis, Comal County ESD No. 3 Vice President-Legislative: Judy Molenburg Parker County ESD No. 3 Vice President-Education: Scott Morgan Harris County ESD No. 29 Vice President-Membership: Steve Hambric El Paso County ESD No. 1 Secretary-Treasurer: Mike Howe, Travis County ESD No. 2 Board of Directors JJ Arida, Bexar County ESD No. 4 Teresa Campbell, Smith County ESD No. 2 Gil Perez, Bexar County ESD No. 1 Dale Terry, Harris-Fort Bend ESD No. 100 Executive Director Cliff Avery, GCP Association Services Assistant Executive Director Clay Avery, GCP Association Services TO ADVERTISE: CONTACT TRACY WAGNER tbwagner@texas.net

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8 FALL WORKSHOP: EMS districts can plug into RACs By Liz Davidson If your ESD offers ambulance service and is not already a member of your regional advisory council, you may want to consider getting involved, an EMS leader urged. At the SAFE-D Fall Workshop in Galveston Nov. 12, Allen Johnson, CEO of Montgomery County Hospital District and Chairman of the Board for the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, shared insight into regional advisory councils (RACs) and what they can do for your community. There are 22 RACs, also known as trauma service areas, across Texas, and each is centered around the region s largest hospital system. Each RAC has a board of directors and staff, and its members are the various stakeholders in health care, such as ambulance services, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, doctors and nurses. When you look at trying to put a trauma system in Texas, there are some very big challenges, Johnson said. Not the least of which is that a significant part of our population doesn t live anywhere near a tertiary care center or a fullservice comprehensive health center. The RACs are responsible for developing trauma plans for the region they serve. It s about having protocols in place to get the patient to the right spot at the right time, Johnson said. Each RAC is organized a little differently because they are given the autonomy to setup systems to meet specific local needs in their community. Johnson said there are several advantages for ambulance services that are members of RACs. Membership in the local RAC enables your ambulance service to be eligible for EMS local project grants through the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), which helps fund small projects in communities across Texas. They look at need in these situations very highly, Johnson said. If it s a project that helps support the local EMS agency and helps fill a need in your local community, you should apply for one of these grants. RACs also offer training opportunities for EMS personnel, often free-of-charge, and coordinate and provide grants for local injury prevention programs, such as child safety or drowning prevention. Johnson added that RACs are important for networking opportunities as well. I want my people in leadership positions to know the people in leadership positions across the region, Johnson said. 8

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10 Legislature/from Page 1 Lewis/from Page 2 service provider relations and public transparency. This measure will help assure lawmakers that ESDs are committed to open and efficient administration of the taxpayers money, Lewis said. With the state facing a budget shortfall as high as $24.5 billion, the chances of passing any increase in the ESD property tax ceiling currently in the state constitution at 10 cents per $100 of property value appear somewhere between slim and none. In the 2009 Legislature, ESDs came within two votes of putting a constitutional amendment to raise the ceiling on the ballot. Since then, more than 20 Democratic representatives who voted for the 2009 amendment including the bill s sponsor, State Rep. Valinda Bolton of Austin lost their elections. That creates an all-butinsurmountable hurdle for any ESD tax cap increase. SAFE-D s legislative agenda will be a centerpiece of the 10th Annual Conference, Feb , in Austin. making sound progress on the goals that the ESD Board has met. Adjusting: After measuring the performance, the ESD has to be prepared to adapt to changes it faces, for example, responding to an emergency that results in substantial damages to equipment, such as a fire engine or ambulance. Business organizations have long known that success favors those who have a bias toward action who respond nimbly when opportunities or challenges arise. That should be a pieceof-cake for ESDs: our whole reason-for-being is to respond quickly to unexpected events. We just need to carry that from the firehouse or the EMS station to the boardroom. I have mentioned business executive David Sokol s book Pleased But Not Satisfied here before. His four steps to achievement are plan, execute, measure and correct. Those steps are integral in operating ESDs like a business. We hope to see you at our 10th Annual Conference in Austin where we can all learn more about how best to serve our constituents. We understand how reducing your overhead keeps a roof over theirs. Our bankers know your business, and that a lot of people are relying on you. So you can rely on us. As a business owner, things like revenue and cash flow are always on your mind. But we also realize that your worries extend beyond the office. After all, you have many people relying on you, and if your business struggles, they struggle too. We never lose sight of that. Tools like our Regions CashCOR analysis combined with our experience and disciplined approach mean we can help eliminate some of those worries and ensure your business has what it needs to run smoothly. Whether it is additional working capital or customized cash management, we will work with you to determine the solution that best fits your needs. Visit a branch or regions.com/business to find out why more business owners are choosing to bank with Regions every day. Brad Thomas office: cell: regions.com/business Treasury Management Leasing Retirement Planning Custom Credit Solutions Insurance 2010 Regions Bank. Accounts subject to the terms and conditions of the Regions Deposit Agreement. All loans subject to credit approval. Investment services are provided through Morgan Keegan & Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Regions Financial Corporation and a member FINRA and SIPC. Securities and insurance products sold through Morgan Keegan are not FDIC-insured, not a deposit, not an obligation of or guaranteed by Regions Bank, its affiliates, or any government agency, and may lose value. 10

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12 4Q Newsletter State Association of Fire and Emergency Districts P.O. Box 676 Pflugerville, TX PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Austin, Texas PERMIT NO. 1