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Item 1.D.
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| City Council Regular | |
| Date: | 12/16/2024 |
| Title: | Billings Urban Fire Service Area Agreement with Yellowstone County |
| Presented by: | Andy Zoeller, Finance Director |
| Department: | Finance |
| Presentation: | No |
| Legal Review: | Yes |
| Project Number: | N/A |
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends City Council approve the agreement extending fire protection to the Billings Urban Fire Service Area (BUFSA) for another 5 years.
BACKGROUND (Consistency with Adopted Plans and Policies, if applicable)
The City has provided fire protection service to the area in Yellowstone County immediately surrounding the City limits in an area called the BUFSA since 1988. This agreement between the City of Billings and the BUFSA requires the City of Billings to provide Fire and Emergency services to the area identified within the agreement, and Yellowstone County assesses property owners annually to cover the cost of providing these services. In FY25, the projected cost will be $2,603,460. The formula for assessing cost is based upon the ratio of the taxable value within the BUFSA compared to the taxable value of the City Limits. That ratio is applied to the prior year actual costs of running the Fire Department.
ALTERNATIVES
City Council may:
- Approve the BUFSA agreement; or,
- Amend the BUFSA agreement
- Not Approve the agreement.
FISCAL EFFECTS
This agreement will provide $2.6 million of funding for the Fire Department in FY25 and sets the funding formula for the next 5 years of the BUFSA agreement. The FY25 budget estimated the BUFSA reimbursement at $2.3 million. Any additional funds will go into the general fund cash reserve.