To: Board of Directors
From: Lewis Broschard, Chief, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District
Report Title: East Bay Wildfire Coalition of Governments - Fiscal Agent and Annual Dues
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
CONSIDER APPROVING and AUTHORIZING the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District to serve as the fiscal agent under the “Memorandum of Understanding for Coordination of Wildfire Prevention Activities to Protect the East Bay Hills in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties,” dated April 28, 2024, among the County, the District, Alameda County, Alameda County Fire Department, and the Cities of Berkeley, El Cerrito, Hercules, Oakland, Pinole, and Richmond.
AUTHORIZE the Fire District to pay County and Fire District dues under the MOU in an amount not to exceed $30,000 for Fiscal Year 2025/2026.
DIRECT the Auditor-Controller to establish a designated fund to maintain monies received by the District in its capacity as the fiscal agent under the MOU.
DIRECT the Fire Chief, or designee, to invoice the East Bay Wildfire Coalition of Governments (EBWC) to recover the costs of staff time necessary to perform the activities as the fiscal agent under the MOU.
DIRECT the Fire Chief, or designee, to provide a report to the Board prior to June 30, 2026 on the effectiveness of the MOU and impacts of the collaboration with Alameda County agencies through the MOU.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The annual dues of $30,000 for fiscal year 2025/2026 will be paid from the Fire District’s General Operating Fund. The Fire District will also incur costs in staff time that is dedicated to support the fiscal agent responsibilities. While the workload is minimal at this time, there is the potential of increased staff time required to support grant applications, grant management, procurement, and other responsibilities of the fiscal agent. The Fire District will be reimbursed for its costs to act as the fiscal agent under the MOU.
BACKGROUND:
Effective April 28, 2024, Contra Costa County, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, Alameda County, Alameda County Fire Department, the Cities of Berkeley, El Cerrito, Hercules, Pinole, Oakland, and Richmond, and the Rodeo-Hercules Fire Protection District entered into a memorandum of understanding (agreement) for coordinating wildfire prevention activities within the East Bay hills of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. (The Fire District is now the successor agency to RHFPD.) Under the agreement, the parties are coordinating and cooperating on policy issues and on developing plans to mitigate wildfire risk within their respective jurisdictions in the East Bay hills. The agreement is intended to bring the two counties, and those individual agencies within the two counties, into one organized group for the purposes outlined above. Within Contra Costa County itself, the fire agencies have a strong existing relationship with coordination and collaboration on issues of fire prevention, fire code ordinance development, and wildfire mitigation.
Under the agreement, one party is required to act as the fiscal agent for the parties’ joint activities. The Fire District will act as the fiscal agent for three years beginning in fiscal year 2025/2026. As fiscal agent, the Fire District will receive dues monies from other member agencies and enter into contracts with consultants and other contractors for services on behalf of the agencies, among other duties. Under the agreement, the other participating agencies are required to indemnify and defend the fiscal agent from third-party lawsuits and other liabilities that arise under the agreement.
Member agencies are required to pay dues to support coordinated activities under the agreement.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
The parties to the MOU would need to designate another participating agency to serve as the fiscal agent under the MOU, and the County and Fire District would not be authorized to pay dues required under the MOU.