Sec. 12-66. - Expenditure plan.

A.

Statement of Intent. The fundamental principle guiding this expenditure plan is to provide more efficient, effective, and sustainable emergency response, and wildfire prevention capabilities that protect the health and safety of the public in Sonoma County. To achieve this goal, a sub-committee of the Sonoma County Fire Chiefs developed a plan that looks beyond established boundaries to protect the public's safety. The ensuing deployment plan, which is the basis of this expenditure plan, was informed by NFPA 1710/1720 National Standards, as well an analysis of population density, call volumes, station coverage response times, special hazard areas, and local knowledge and was developed to provide a long- term framework for planning, funding, and implementing enhanced fire and wildfire capabilities within Sonoma County. The goals of this expenditure plan embody the lessons learned from the October 2017 fires (Tubbs, Nuns and Pocket fires), 2019 fires (Kincade fire), and 2020 fires (Walbridge and Glass fires) and several hundred years of experience of the local fire chiefs and firefighters that informed this expenditure plan. The Sonoma County Fire Chiefs Association is in support of this article as it has been developed through the guidance and input of all Sonoma County fire agencies and will provide sustainable funding for effective and efficient regional fire response and preparedness services throughout Sonoma County.

B.

Purposes. The expenditure plan for the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax ordinance (the "ordinance") provides for investment into six (6) program categories which include, but are not limited to: wildfire prevention, preparedness, emergency response and vegetation management; recruitment and retention of local firefighters; updates to essential equipment and facilities; transfer of funds among designated local agencies or entities; implementation costs; and countywide expenditures. The tax proceeds must be spent for the purposes authorized in this expenditure plan and may not be used for other purposes. The revenues collected from the tax shall be used only to supplement existing services and shall not be used to pay for existing operations. The percentage of tax being distributed to each agency is set forth in Section 12-66(D).

C.

Permissible Use of Funds. The revenues generated by the retail transactions and use tax imposed by this article shall be allocated by Sonoma County on a quarterly basis with additional independent oversight provided by the oversight committee described in section 12-67 to ensure expenditures are consistent with this section. Funds shall be allocated for programs and projects that do one (1) of the following:

Wildfire Prevention, Preparedness, Response, and Vegetation Management. The addition of approximately two hundred (200) firefighters, which will provide for more efficient, effective, and sustainable fire response, paramedic services, and wildfire prevention and response capabilities that protect the health and safety of Sonoma County residents, business owners, and visitors. The sales tax will fund new regional fire inspectors and a county-wide vegetation management crew to provide enhanced vegetation management to prevent wildfire spread throughout the county. Local fire agencies' staff shall provide vegetation management services in their jurisdictions, including parcel inspections to ensure that property owners are complying with minimum vegetation management standards of the county of Sonoma's abatement of hazardous vegetation and combustible material ordinance or relevant ordinance (that meets the minimum standards established by the county) within an agency's jurisdiction. The county-wide crew will perform vegetation management fire prevention services that will directly mitigate hazards, reduce fuels, reinforce evacuation routes, and construct fuel breaks.

Recruitment and Retention of Local Firefighters. As described above, the sales tax will provide support for approximately two hundred (200) additional firefighters throughout the county to protect the public's health and safety. The enhanced level of service will fund qualified firefighters and paramedics to provide wildfire suppression, emergency response, and vegetation management fire prevention services. In addition, the sales tax will go to certain fire agencies that have specific challenges recruiting and retaining full-time firefighters.

Update Essential Equipment and Facilities. The agencies that provide fire suppression services are authorized upon the approval of their respective legislative bodies, to use their allocation of tax proceeds to bond for the purpose of improving and/or replacing fire facilities, equipment and/or apparatus to increase the capacity of their respective fire suppression agencies to respond to the fire suppression and fire prevention needs of their respective communities including equipment and facilities upgrades, construction and/or acquisition. An agency with municipal fire suppression services may issue limited tax bonds, from time to time, to finance any program or project in accordance with this Expenditure Plan as allowed by applicable law and as approved by their respective legislative body, and the maximum bonded indebtedness shall not exceed the projected 30-year distribution of their annual allocation.

Transfer of Funds Among Designated Local Agencies or Other Entities. Local agencies which receive funds allocated from the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax ordinance shall be permitted to enter into an agreement with any other local agency or entity which is delivering products and/or services which accomplish the purposes of this article.

Implementation Costs. In addition to the purposes set forth above, Sonoma County is permitted to allocate funds raised by the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax ordinance to pay for expenses incurred after the effective date of the ordinance which relate to the implementation of the tax, including payments necessary for the operation of the oversight committee and measure reporting set forth in Section 12-67. These expenses shall be accounted for, and any amount in excess of the amount allocated to the county in Section 12-66(D) shall be removed from the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax account prior to distribution of funds to agencies, as set forth in Section 12-66(D).

Countywide Expenditures. Revenue allocated to the Sonoma County Fire Chiefs Association (SCFCA) may fund countywide fire service expenses. The types of expenses to be funded include but are not limited to: REDCOM dispatch fees (districts and cities) and additional capacity to bring REDCOM to a command center lever of service; Lexipol fees; public and non-profit organizations that assist with countywide vegetation management utilizing the adopted community wildfire protection plan; technologies to improve and enhanced fire protection and prevention, paramedic services, and disaster response; red flag and winter storm upstaffing; countywide recruitment and training programs; SCFCA administrative support to ensure tax measure compliance; sustainability of current county funding agreements for service provision; and potential one-time gap funding to fire agencies as determined by the SCFCA. Each funding recipient shall be required to prepare an annual report that will be provided to the SCFCA no later than the last day of the third month following the end of the fiscal year to be included in the SCFCA's annual report to the oversight committee.

D.

Allocation of funds. The following entities will receive a percentage of tax allocated as follows:

Entity Percentage of Tax

City of Healdsburg 2.51%

City of Petaluma 7.19%

City of Rohnert Park 5.50%

City of Santa Rosa 14.40%

City of Sebastopol 1.80%

City of Sonoma 1.18%

Cazadero Community Services District 1.14%

Cloverdale Fire Protection District (including the City of Cloverdale) 2.78%

Gold Ridge Fire Protection District 2.89%

Graton Fire Protection District 1.06%

Kenwood Fire Protection District 1.87%

Monte Rio Fire Protection District 2.43%

North Sonoma Coast Fire Protection District 2.39%

Northern Sonoma County Fire Protection District 5.00%

Occidental Community Services District 1.61%

Rancho Adobe Fire Protection District (including the City of Cotati) 3.50%

Schell-Vista Fire Protection District 1.20%

Sonoma County Fire District (including the Town of Windsor) 6.61%

Sonoma Valley Fire District 5.20%

Timber Cove Fire Protection District 2.47%

Community Service Area 40 (Bodega) 0.13%

Community Service Area 40 (Camp Meeker) 0.39%

Community Service Area 40 (Fort Ross) 0.02%

Community Service Area 40 (Lakeville) 1.97%

Community Service Area 40 (Two Rock) 0.03%

Community Service Area 40 (Valley Ford) 1.96%

Community Service Area 40 (Wilmar) 2.28%

Northern Sonoma County Fire Protection District - 5.00% Fund and manage Countywide Vegetation Management Crews

County of Sonoma - Fire Prevention and Haz-Mat 0.42% Division

County of Sonoma Auditor-Controller-Treasurer-Tax Collector Administrative Fee 1.00%

Sonoma County Chiefs Association 14.07%

E.

Allocation of remaining funds.

With each quarterly distribution, the entirety of funds held within the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax account should be allocated among entities, as set forth in Section 12-66(D).

In the event any entity enumerated in Section 12-66(D) consolidates with, or is annexed by, any other entity, the successor agency shall receive the funds allocated to the enumerated entity.

In the event that the entirety of funds from the improved and enhanced local fire protection, paramedic services and disaster response transactions and use tax account cannot be distributed according to the schedule set forth in subsection D of this section, all remaining funds shall be distributed to REDCOM.

(Measure H, § 3, 3-5-2024)