Davis is facing an ongoing budget crisis, and it’s time to talk about the $2 million ladder truck in the room. Not just the truck itself, but the ongoing personnel costs and the political dynamics that brought it here—costs that now weigh heavily on our already overextended General Fund.
In 2022, the City Council voted to purchase a ladder truck and implement staffing Option 3, adding three new full-time firefighter positions, one per shift. The $2 million price tag for the vehicle came out of safety impact funds, and the first three years of staffing costs—approximately $700,000 per year—were covered by federal ARP funds. But now, with that temporary funding about to run out, the city will have to absorb these recurring costs into its General Fund—forever.
That’s a serious problem. And it is more serious than we recognized in 2022.
Davis is currently projecting structural deficits of $3 million per year through 2035, and unless something changes dramatically, city reserves will shrink to unsustainable levels. According to the recent Baker Tilly report, we’ll soon be running annual deficits that grow to $5 million, even after assuming relatively modest increases in pay and benefits.
And yet, while the Council is being advised to wait another year before making cuts, millions in new ongoing obligations have already been locked in—including fire staffing.
The ladder truck may seem like a small budget item compared to the city’s $98 million General Fund, but it represents a symptom of a larger issue: costly decisions justified as public safety imperatives, made without adequate long-term financial planning.
The ladder truck was redundant from the start. UC Davis already operates its own aerial ladder truck. In fact, that truck was used to respond to a downtown Davis fire in 2018—exactly the kind of scenario cited as justification for the city’s purchase. But rather than explore a shared services model or a regional agreement with UC Davis, the city opted to duplicate the resource.
Even worse, city leaders adopted the more limited staffing model (Option 3) knowing full well it would strain firefighter resources and increase overtime costs.
Then Councilmember Will Arnold warned at the time that Option 3 “sort of entrenches the issues we’re having with overtaxing our firefighters and incurring more overtime than I think is sustainable.” He was right.
The city’s own staff report acknowledged that Option 2—adding six new firefighters—was a better fit operationally, but more expensive.
So Davis did what it often does: chose the middle ground, pleasing no one while locking in a half-measure that came with full costs. Today, the result is that we have a truck we probably don’t need, its value to public safety questionable, while its ongoing costs bleed the budget.
Let’s be clear: the politics behind the purchase matter.
The Davis firefighters union was a key supporter of the Council majority at the time (and now). And while public safety unions have every right to advocate for their members, we as a community need to ask whether that advocacy is serving the long-term interests of Davis residents—or just driving unsustainable compensation packages and department expansions.
The truck may have been marketed as “an insurance policy,” in the words of then-Vice Mayor Lucas Frerichs, but insurance policies are only worth their premium if the risk justifies the cost. In a city where high-rise fires are vanishingly rare and UC Davis already has aerial coverage, that rationale doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.
Now, with Measure Q passed by voters last year—ostensibly to fund roads, bike paths, and infrastructure—the city is finding itself unable to use those funds as promised. Instead, much of that money is going toward soaring personnel costs, pension obligations, and staffing shortfalls. It’s a bait and switch of the highest order, and the ladder truck and its related costs are part of that story.
The new budget proposal reveals just how dire the situation has become. The Police Department budget is projected to jump by nearly $4 million in two years. Fire and other departments are seeing similar increases. Employee compensation—fueled by last-minute agreements that include 7% to 10% pay raises and generous COLAs—is rapidly outpacing revenue. Meanwhile, critical infrastructure projects are underfunded, and the city is being forced to choose between deferring maintenance and losing grant matches.
One could argue the ladder truck is a drop in the bucket. But symbolic decisions matter. When city leadership prioritizes expensive, politically driven equipment purchases and additional staff without a viable plan to fund them long-term, it sends a message that fiscal responsibility is negotiable—until the bill comes due.
What’s needed now is a full re-evaluation of fire staffing and equipment needs in the context of shared resources and regional partnerships. UC Davis is not an island. Its emergency infrastructure and Davis’ municipal services should be part of a larger collaborative strategy—not duplicated to satisfy internal politics.
It’s also time for accountability. With a new city manager coming on board, Council must set expectations for fiscal discipline and structural reform. And that means making tough decisions about staffing, compensation, and new initiatives. If we can’t sustain the ladder truck’s costs—and we can’t—it should be on the table, along with other discretionary spending.
Residents of Davis deserve transparency and long-term planning, not one-off decisions that look good on paper and disastrous in the ledger. The ladder truck may have been bought with good intentions, but its impact is a growing burden on a budget teetering on the edge.
If we’re serious about solving the city’s structural deficit, we need to stop pretending we can have everything without trade-offs. The ladder truck is a symbol of that delusion—and unless we change course, it’s also a harbinger of deeper cuts to come.
JFYI if you read Matt Stoller’s anti-monopoly blog, you’ll see that some of the monopoly/oligopoly companies are the ones making fire trucks. Monopolies are price setters, not price getters, and the higher cost reflects that. America! What a country!
Maybe Qatar will gift Davis a firetruck ! ;-)
“The $2 million price tag for the vehicle came out of safety impact funds, and the first three years of staffing costs—approximately $700,000 per year—were covered by federal ARP funds.”
Where do “safety impact funds” come from?
I’d suggest selling this thing – maybe to the town that got Davis’ MRAP for free.
By the way, when did the “3 year” (free) period start, and has it been used at all so far? (Other than to perhaps get a cat out of a tree?)
The ladder truck duplicates the resources that a MOU with UCD could have provided. True enough but imagine a scenario where there is a high rise fire and a cat stuck up a tree at the same moment! Redundancy is the answer and how can you value the public safety of that cat?
When the ladder truck came up U mall was going to be six stories and several new apartment buildings are five or six stories. The Hibbert property is supposed to be four stories and the movie theater was going to be six stories. So the ladder truck made some sense if you are redeveloping upwards. Problem is that Davis dithered with its downtown plan for so long that most of these projects are no longer economically viable at current interest rates.
Ron, the flaw in your logic is that modern fire codes require buildings to be equipped with fire suppression systems that extinguish the fire long before the ladder truck would arrive on the scene.
Honestly, I’m not seeing where the ladder truck itself adds much to cost, assuming that it’s paid off. At least, not in light of this from the article:
“The city’s own staff report acknowledged that Option 2—adding six new firefighters—was a better fit operationally, but more expensive.”
The article itself doesn’t explain everything, so maybe it’s intended for those who have followed it more-closely than I have. Nor is there an explanation regarding the reason that more firefighters are needed.
But I do know that it’s generally personnel – and not vehicles, which comprise the bulk of the ongoing costs.
I would think (but don’t know) if “any” firefighter can operate a ladder truck, or if you need a dedicated person/team for it.
In any case, I think the best use for it might be to catch-up on some overdue tree trimming in Davis. Maybe we can get the firefighters to do that when they’re not out rescuing cats. :-)
$700K plus in ongoing personnel costs
Yes, but how much would “Option 2” have cost? Sounds like it would have been more (regardless of the ladder truck?)
Are more firefighters needed – regardless of the ladder truck? And if so, why? Or is that team only needed BECAUSE of the ladder truck?
(That’s the part/explanation that’s missing, here.)
The point isn’t the difference between Option 2 and Option 3, it’s the added ongoing personnel costs for something that was of questionable use that now represents between 20 and 25 percent of the ongoing budget deficit.
2022? You mean when Dan Carson was on the City Council. Too bad he didn’t apply the same budget discipline he now complains this CC doesn’t have.
You noticed that too
For the record: (1) At the time the decision to purchase the truck was being considered, I personally pushed both publicly and privately for UC Davis and the city to share the cost of ongoing operation of the ladder truck. City management took the issue up with UCD leaders, but I was advised that UCD refused to consider such an arrangement with the city. (2) An independent consultant with national expertise in fire staffing and deployment recommended the city invest in the truck. Among other factors, we were advised that UC Davis’s ladder truck was frequently down for repair. I was and am risk-adverse when it comes to ensuring our public safety services have the tools they need, especially after URC (a high-rise facility) experienced some fires. (3) What’s driving the current fiscal meltdown is not a few additional city firefighters. It’s the decision by the current Council, two years running, to restructure the pay of virtually the entire city workforce and then pile on with COLAs and bonuses, at the cost of $3.2 million to the General Fund in just the most recent round of MOUs.
Thanks Dan
I respectfully disagree with Dan. He is approaching these two expenditure situations from an either/or perspective. They aren’t mutually exclusive, and indeed BOTH are contributing to the City’s sorry financial situation.
Regarding the availability (or rather unavailability) of the UCD ladder truck due to maintenance/repair, I took the time to meet with UCD’s Fire Chief Nathaniel Hartinger to get first-hand information about how often the City has requested the UCD ladder truck and been unable to get said access. Chief Hartinger said that he could not recall even a single such denial of service, and that further, when the ladder truck was/is being serviced, they borrow a ladder truck from West Sacramento to ensure there is no break in availability.
It seems the consultant was in the pocket of the Firefighters’ Union.
Below are the credentials of the founding director of Fitch and Associates. Their team is full of people just like him with strong field experience and impressive educational and analytical credentials. I note that, in the same report in which their professional experts recommended we get a ladder truck, they recommended AGAINST the city adding a fourth fire station, a favorite (and costly) idea favored by the firefighters. Go back and watch the video of their presentation of the Standards of Cover report to council. They know what they’re talking about.
Joseph J. Fitch, PhD
Founding Partner
jfitch@emprize.net
Dr. Jay Fitch is internationally recognized for leadership as a consultant, educator and innovator in EMS and public safety. His body of work, spanning over 40 years, includes the development and implementation of original operational and strategic solutions for organizations, as well as the broader systems in which they operate. His knowledge of the industry and his expertise in organizational development is built on real-world experience. Dr. Fitch certified in multiple disciplines: as a firefighter, police officer and paramedic. He was named EMS Director in St. Louis at the age of 24. Dr. Fitch was responsible for the operational implementation of the Kansas City EMS system and served as president of a large private ambulance service. Since creating Fitch & Associates, he has led numerous complex projects reflecting the entire public safety spectrum, with results that have transformed emergency services for those communities.
From these varied experiences, Dr. Fitch learned to value many perspectives—from patient to caregiver to public official—that go into creating exemplary EMS/public safety programs. Since 1984, the team at Fitch & Associates has worked with small and large organizations throughout the world to understand their current situation and develop pathways toward greater success. In recent years, MedServ Management Services was developed to meet evolving client needs and provide long-term contract management services.
With a doctorate degree in Organizational Psychology, Dr. Fitch is in demand as a speaker and author. He has written and spoken extensively, contributing hundreds of articles and seminars. He was the lead author for the highly regarded textbook Beyond the Street: A Handbook for EMS Leadership and Management and was the editor of Prehospital Care Administration. His community activities include serving for more than a decade on the Board of Directors of a municipal fire district and a suburban Kansas City healthcare facility. Dr. Fitch is a long-term member of the International City and County Management Association, has authored several ICMA member reports on emergency services and has served on its annual conference program committee. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and serves on the Editorial Board of JEMS (Journal of Emergency Medical Services). He is currently serving as a Commissioner for the American College of Paramedic Executives.
From page 131 of the Fitch & Associates analysis:
9) Acquire a Ladder Truck Controlled and Operated by the Davis Fire Department
Through interviews, data analysis and review of documents showing the out of service details of
the UC Davis Ladder Truck, it is recommended that the City of Davis invest in their own ladder
truck. The data analysis demonstrates that coverage would be improved. More importantly, there
would be a redundant ladder truck to serve the City of Davis when the UC Davis apparatus is out
of service or out of the response area for training. Critical tasks for structure fires and technical
rescues need the services and equipment of a ladder truck. The data analysis shows the best location would be Station 31, except there are facility limitations and the truck would not fit inside the apparatus bay. Station 33 would be the next best location to house Davis’ truck. A community the size of the City of Davis with the complexity of risk should not be without consistent ladder truck service or depend on an apparatus from distant communities when the
UC Davis apparatus is unavailable.
This comment I filed awhile ago seems to have gotten lost in the blogosphere, so here goes:
Below are the credentials of the founding director of Fitch and Associates. Their team is full of people just like him with strong field experience and impressive educational and analytical credentials. I note that, in the same report in which their professional experts recommended we get a ladder truck, they recommended AGAINST the city adding a fourth fire station, a favorite (and costly) idea favored by the firefighters. Go back and watch the video of their presentation of the Standards of Cover report to council. They know what they’re talking about.
Joseph J. Fitch, PhD Founding Partner jfitch@emprize.net Dr. Jay Fitch is internationally recognized for leadership as a consultant, educator and innovator in EMS and public safety. His body of work, spanning over 40 years, includes the development and implementation of original operational and strategic solutions for organizations, as well as the broader systems in which they operate. His knowledge of the industry and his expertise in organizational development is built on real-world experience. Dr. Fitch certified in multiple disciplines: as a firefighter, police officer and paramedic. He was named EMS Director in St. Louis at the age of 24. Dr. Fitch was responsible for the operational implementation of the Kansas City EMS system and served as president of a large private ambulance service. Since creating Fitch & Associates, he has led numerous complex projects reflecting the entire public safety spectrum, with results that have transformed emergency services for those communities.
From these varied experiences, Dr. Fitch learned to value many perspectives—from patient to caregiver to public official—that go into creating exemplary EMS/public safety programs. Since 1984, the team at Fitch & Associates has worked with small and large organizations throughout the world to understand their current situation and develop pathways toward greater success. In recent years, MedServ Management Services was developed to meet evolving client needs and provide long-term contract management services.
With a doctorate degree in Organizational Psychology, Dr. Fitch is in demand as a speaker and author. He has written and spoken extensively, contributing hundreds of articles and seminars. He was the lead author for the highly regarded textbook Beyond the Street: A Handbook for EMS Leadership and Management and was the editor of Prehospital Care Administration. His community activities include serving for more than a decade on the Board of Directors of a municipal fire district and a suburban Kansas City healthcare facility. Dr. Fitch is a long-term member of the International City and County Management Association, has authored several ICMA member reports on emergency services and has served on its annual conference program committee. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and serves on the Editorial Board of JEMS (Journal of Emergency Medical Services). He is currently serving as a Commissioner for the American College of Paramedic Executives.