Escambia County Professional Firefighters Endorse Jeff Bergosh for D1 Commissioner in August 20th Republican Primary!

 We had a great visit this past Monday with the men and women of the ECFR Union.  We had a very frank and honest conversation.  We also buried the hatchet on some of the negatives from the past, pressed the reset button, and shook hands figuratively and literally.

Now we are moving forward.

Thank you to President Justin Marcum and the men and women of ECFR for this endorsement in this race.  It means a lot to me, and we will keep making progress and moving forward to make this the best funded, best compensated department in this region.  Lets GO!

Read the endorsement letter, below.

The Bradshaw McNair Fire Station Ribbon Cutting Held Yesterday in Beulah

 Here is a video of the ceremony and the ribbon cutting.

Two Huge Events Next Week on Fire Service Infrastructure for District 1

On Tuesday--the BCC will be voting on an agreement with the US Navy to acquire 5 acres of property to construct the new Fire Station 20 in Paradise Beach.  The previous station 20 was shut down in 2018 by Administrator Jack Brown.  I have been working ever since to get a replacement, and we are taking another step forward on Tuesday at the meeting.  We have already surveyed this property and purchased some equipment for this station.  It is coming.

And also, on Thursday of next week, we will be cutting the ribbon on Beulah's brand new, state of the art 14,500 SF fire station, the "Bradshaw McNair" fire station.  See the county's press release on this event, below:

"The Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station, serving the residents of the Beulah community, is named after the late District Chief Dwain Bradshaw and retired ECFR District Chief Steve McNair. Chief Bradshaw died in the line of duty while responding to a call on Nov. 6, 2019. Chief McNair served the Beulah community as a volunteer firefighter for over 50 years before retiring. 

The 14,503-square-foot facility will feature four vehicle bays for fire trucks. Along with the standard features within a fire station, such as a kitchen, living room area, gym, bedrooms, and shower facilities, the new Beulah fire station will include a community meeting and training room for public use.

Construction of the Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station was completed by Emerald Coast Constructors, Inc., and was fully funded by Local Option Sales Tax, or L.O.S.T.

"With the opening of the brand new Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station in Beulah, this community will have a state-of-the-art facility, a full-time staff, and multiple pieces of new firefighting and lifesaving equipment that will help protect the citizens and property," said District 1 Commissioner Jeff Bergosh. "This is a fitting tribute to the two men for whom this station is named, Dwain Bradshaw and Steve McNair, as this facility and those who man this station going forward will continue the legacy of service that Mr. Bradshaw and Mr. McNair epitomized. I am thankful for all the staff who worked for the last seven years to keep this project going, and I want to thank my predecessor, Commissioner Wilson Robertson, for his efforts to get momentum behind this project nearly a decade ago. A project like this requires patience, persistence and teamwork, and in this case, the team had it. This station is the fruit of this teamwork."

The Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station is located directly behind the former Beulah Fire Station, which has served Beulah residents since 1977. Numerically, the fire station will remain as ECFR-Station #2.

"This is an exciting time for the community of Beulah and for Escambia County Fire Rescue," said Fire Chief Adam Harrison. "We have seen tremendous growth and opportunity in this community, and we're honored to continue the elevation of Beulah with the addition of this fire station, which will serve the Beulah citizens 24 hours a day, seven days a week."

Opening Soon: The Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station in Beulah

Construction crews are rapidly putting the finishing touches on our newest, state of the art fire station in Escambia County in District 1.

Look for the ribbon-cutting ceremony to be announced very soon.

It has taken nearly 8 years to get to where we are right now; on the cusp of opening this modern station which will be a tremendous asset to Northwest Escambia County in general, and the Beulah community particularly.

The station will be named the Bradshaw-McNair Fire station in honor of two men who dedicated their lives to service.

Volunteer Assistant District Fire Chief #2 Dwain Bradshaw was tragically killed in the line of duty in 2019.

Volunteer District Fire  Chief  #2 Steve McNair has dedicated nearly 6 decades to volunteering as a firefighter in Beulah, and he helped to build the first Beulah Fire station.

The rendering above is an abstract of what will be a bronze memorial to these men, which will be prominently displayed at the station that will bear their names.

Check out this Tour of Escambia's Newest, Soon-to-be-Completed Fire Station in Beulah, District 1

And thanks to John Singley and the folks from Studio 850 for coming out and touring the facility and filming the video.

This facility, once completed, will be known as the Bradshaw-McNair Fire station, in honor of fallen firefighter Dwain Bradshaw and long-serving Beulah Fire Chief  Steve McNair.

This will be a great amenity for the Beulah Community!

An Incredible Letter to Receive--HUGE Congratulations to ECFR

We receive a lot of correspondence from various persons in our offices as county commissioners.  Lots of it is negative, much of it is invitations to events, and very few of it is what one would consider "good news."

But not this letter that came in earlier this month.  It was from a firsthand, eyewitness to ECFR's response to a heart attack victim in District 1 out on Perdido Key.

And the truly outstanding part of it was this witness and letter-writer also happens to be in the business, as a Medical Doctor and EMS worker from Mississippi with more than 25 years experience in the field, currently serving as the Mississippi State Highway Patrol's Medical Director.  His lauditory, positive, and uplifting account was really inspiring to read.

So thanks for sending the letter, for your encouraging and positive remarks. 

And congratulations once again to our outstanding Escambia County First Responders!

3-Year Buget Deal between BCC and ECSO on Tomorrow's Agenda

The proposed 3-year funding agreement between the BCC and ECSO to be considered tomorrow is the latest demonstration of this Board's support for public safety, first responders,  and law enforcement

There is a fairly profound agenda item on tomorrow's BCC regular meeting agenda.

Over the last several months, staff and personnel from the county and ECSO have been working toward a multi-year budget deal for the ECSO.  

The BCC had a similar, 4-year deal negotiated back in 2018.

If the board approves this deal and the Sheriff signs it--the two entities will have a deal that makes the budgeting for the next three years "plug and play."  No drama like we have seen before, no billboards, no negativity, just a fair and straightforward three year deal that provides what the ECSO needs--including significant yearly pay increases in each of the next three years--- while simultaneously necessitating NO tax rate increases for citizens and NO raising of the Sheriff's MSTU.

This will be a big deal if passed and enacted--which I feel fairly certain will happen.

It demonstrates this board's continuing support of public safety, corrections,  and first responders--as this comes on the heels of us providing historic raises and bonuses for ECFR, EMS, and corrections.

While it is easy for some to denigrate us and attempt to falesly accuse this board of "not supporting" public safety-----those false assessements fall flat in the face of our demonstrated support for public safety and first responders through our actions via this budget.

And this potential 3-year deal with ECSO is just the latest example of this effort and commitment. 

See the backup for this three year deal here.

When the Chips are Down and Requests for Specific Information are Vital for Local Governments......

.....we should be able to request clarification and technical guidance and assistance from the state's Department of Revenue if it is a matter under their purview.  Right? (And when I say "when the chips are down, I am of course speaking metaphorically--not literally.  No, not talking about the Joker or Poker)

Case in point:  The recent initiative the county is advancing to find a more intelligent way to fund the ever growing, ever expanding budget for fire service in Escambia County while simultaneously giving a tax break to Escambia County taxpaying property owners by eliminating the MSBU for fire.

You see, because we have given significant pay increases, settled the contract with ECFR's labor union, and increased staffing for ECFR (all without raising taxes or increasing the MSBU)--we now need to find a better way to keep up with the costs of this important public safety service.

So when we brought forward the idea of replacing the MSBU with a 1/2 penny sales tax (which is permissable under state law--but also not widespread among the 67 Florida counties)--we naturally had questions.  Several specific, directed, and important ones.

So we reached out for technical guidance to the Florida Department of Revenue--after first reaching out to the office of Economic and Demographic Research.  EDR sent us to DOR.  DOR didn't answer the phone.  multiple times.

So we sent specific, detailed questions to their office of technical assistance.  Specific, numbered questions that we should be able to get answers to from the agency department that handles this.

We sent a letter------- and waited.  About a month later--we received this "responsive" reply. (below)  Now, this letter that I am posting below gives very little guidance, a few hyper links, and cut and paste boiler-plate "information" that is comletely, totally, and 100% "non" responsive and  unhelpful.  Thankfully we have dedicated staff who demonstrate a can-do attitude and have expressed to me, optimistically, that they can navigate the statute and requirments without assistance (that's obviously not forthcoming) from DOR and give the board at least the option and ability to have this matter ready for addition to the general election ballot in 2024 if the BCC votes to move this idea forward.  Thankfully we have staff that will not be stymied by non-responsive, non informative gobldygook from a state bureaucrat in Tallahassee that threw this thing together.  Yes, when the chips are down and specific information and technical guidance and assistance was/is needed by a local government from the Tallahassee deep state---here's what we got!  😜  (And the letter writer proudly exclaims we ought to

What Happened?

Some folks are asking about the "why" an ambulance was not dispatched to a fainting episode at an area eaterie, where the patient, once sat up back in her chair,  specifically requested transport to an Emergency Room...

Late Saturday afternoon I received an email from a foodserver who works at a restaurant out on Perdido Key in District 1.  The email came to my personal email account, with the heading "Piss-poor EMS."

In the email, this individual reported that a patient was literally on the ground, on the floor, in her restaurant with no response from EMS for two hours.

Obviously, I am going to look behind that.  Which I did.

From her email:

"I work at Sunset Grille at Holiday Harbor. I also live on Innerarity Point. Tonight I had a guest faint at my restaurant. She needed medical attention.. She wanted to be transported by ambulance. After lying on our restaurant floor for almost TWO  HOURS,  her family opted to drive her to emergency care. This is absolutely unacceptable. It is not only embarrassing it is very worrisome. Escambia County HAS to do better! How can you expect repeat tourism when they experience zero aid in need? Our clientele is elderly and if not that then also not used to our climate. How do we prevent this embarrassment from happening again??? Unacceptable!!!!!"

In her follow-on email to me, she provided a little more context:

"The woman fainted at her table after dinner. As a mainly outdoor restaurant (XXXXXXXXXX) this does happen occasionally. Some require and some decline medical attention. This guest requested professional help. We called 911 immediately. My boss XXXXXXXXXXX spoke with the operator. 30-40 minutes later we called again and were told we were on a list for an ambulance. Another half our later we called 911 a third time and received the same update. We were on a list. At that point the family opted to drive her to the closest urgent care themselves. Five minutes after they left the fire department showed up. I am not in the medical field, I sling shrimp baskets. If one of my guests requests an ambulance I am going to get her one. And while I understand prioritizing emergencies, I

On WCOA's "Real News with Rick Outzen" Later this Morning

I'll be on "Real News with Rick Outzen" later this morning talking public safety budgeting for the upcoming year

I've been invited to appear on the morning drive's best and highest rated local news/talk program "Real News with Rick Outzen" later this morning.

I'll be discussing and recapping last week's BCC meeting and some topics sure to come up will be:

1.  Funding for ECFR

2.  This year's budget

3.  Finding a proper location for the D1 Medical Examiner's Office

4.  Public Safety budgeting for the upcoming year and potentially 3-years.

Ahead of our meeting this Thursday--this discussion this morning should be a good one.

Once I get the podcast back from Rick, I will post it here.

Swapping the Taxes?

Later this morning we will have a committee of the whole meeting.  A large part of the conversation will center on how we pay for the increasing budgetary requirments for our Fire Service in Escambia County.

Costs have escalated and they continue to do so.  The current MSBU structure is coming up about $2 million short every year--necessitating a general fund transfer yearly to cover this shortfall.  

Add in the increasing costs of personnel, raises that we recently gave to keep us competitive with nearby districts, and we are in a position going forward where we will need about an additional $5 million yearly over the next few years to keep up.

So the idea that is being brought forward is an addition of about $40 yearly to the MSBU that residents pay.  This would bring the total (currently $125 per house) to $165 per house.

As I have stated on a number of occassions, I do not support raising year over year rates on existing Escambia County taxpaying property owners.

While I know Fire needs the money, and I want to be supportive of the MSBU along with my counterparts--I want to do it in such a way that the taxpayers are held harmless.

So later this morning I'll put forward the idea of  supporting a $40 dollar increase to the MSBU conditioned on the simultaneous implementation of a commensurate reduction in the ad valorem millage rate of 6.615 mills---down to 6.390 Mills.  This can be accomplished by adding the $40 increase to the MSBU and lowering the millage rate to 6.390 mills which will leave the taxpayers flat as the two will essentially offset each other.  

Now, the good news is that the overall tax roll has had a massive increase this year, approaching a 15% increase.

FY21             $20,902,196,260.00

FY22 (est.)    $23,890,256,161.00 

So if we can lower the ad valorem to 6.390 and increase the MSBU we will:

1.) Set up ECFR with a dedicated funding source going forward for the years to come that meets their budgetary requirements

2.) Increase our ad valorem revenue $13-14 Million over last year's collection

3.) Not increase year over year tax rates on Escambia County Taxpaying property owners.

I hope I can get support for this, but we will see what happens at the meeting.

Otherwise, if we simply levy the static 6.615 Mills to the growing tax roll we will realize nearly a $20 million dollar increase year over year  AND if we also add $40 the MSBU--that would be an additional $5 Million the taxpaying property owners would have to shoulder.  That's $25 Million in additional, new revenue from the property owners year over year.  I think that is too much.

But I'm just one vote.  We will see how things go later this morning....

Why Does the School District's 1/2 Cent Sales Tax Outperform the County's 1/2 Cent Sales Tax?

 At a recent BCC meeting where we discussed my idea of funding the fire service with a consumption-style 1/2 cent sales tax to generate more revenue while simultaneously not adding more taxes to existing property owners--and instead providing a big tax break to Escambia County property-owning taxpayers-----a lowball figure of $24-$25 Million was thrown out as being "what the county's half penny generates yearly"

It seemed low, that figure.  

And I remembered as a school board member we were doing that amount 5-6 years ago when I served on that board.  Plus, the economy locally has gone straight up like a rocket since then--with the minor COVID recession of 2020-2021 (the economic pain of which was largely masked-over with unprecedented federal money printing and stimulus provision nationwide to).

So the natural question is this:  Why Does the School District's 1/2 Cent Sales Tax Outperform the County's 1/2 Cent Sales Tax?

Look at this chart, below, that will be provided to the members of the school district's 1/2 cent sales tax watchdog committee later this week.  This graph indicates the total revenue (quarterly and monthly reimbursements including interest/investment income on the funds)  received from the school district's 1/2 cent discretionary sales tax over several fiscal years.  Over the last 3 years the average revenue is what I thought the BCC's 1/2 sales tax should be--just under $30 million per year.

So I'm waiting for staff to clarify/explain--but it seems to me that their 1/2 penny is doing better than ours is.  So if so, I want to know why.  If not-----what is the real number the BCC's 1/2 penny is generating?  I think my statements at the last meeting were right--$30 Million yearly.

But we will see when staff answers my query on this topic later this morning.

Mythology versus Reality on Sales Tax Referendum versus Higher Property Taxes to Pay for Fire......

Separate facts from mythology if you want to make a cogent argument against everyone sharing in the shouldering of a tax to pay for fire service

Some folks are already attempting to shoot holes through the idea of a sales tax based system for funding fire protection in Escambia County.  They are implying it would harm those who are poor and struggling to pay for food.

But sales taxes are not applied to groceries.  Groceries are exempt. To say otherwise is untrue.

Gas is also exempt from this particular sales tax.  (Don't get me wrong--each gallon of gas is LOADED UP with all kinds of Federal, State, and some Local taxes---but this particluar sales tax is not applied and would not be applied--so this change, in and of itself, will not make gas more expensive for poor people) To say otherwise is untrue.

Other necessary purchases that are subject to taxation that are important to all citizens, (wealthy/middle class/poor)-- such as back to school supplies or hurricane supplies--are frequently given sales tax amnesty periods where no state taxes are applied to applicable purchases.  So with proper planning--- even those sales taxes can be avoided by all consumers in Escambia County.

Yes--big ticket items like automobiles, appliances, furniture--yes these carry a sales tax burden.  But often these taxes can be rolled into the financing deal or a discount equal to sales taxes can be negotiated.

Yes--retail and big ticket purchases are subject to sales tax.  That means if someone is "POOR" and they spend, say, $5,000 a month on non-exempt retail purchases, the total additional sales taxes they would pay if this proposal for a half-penny moves forward by the voters, would be............insert sound of drumroll............   ($25 dollars extra).  (Most truly poor individuals won't even spend $5,000 per YEAR on cash money purchases subject to full taxation--when all exempt purchases they make are taken out of the equation.....)

Here's a couple of newsflashes:

1.  If you are spending $5,000  per month (equalling 60K Yearly) on sales tax applicable non-exempt retail merchandise you probably do not meet any rational definition of  "poor."

2.  If you still, somehow, feel as though you are "poor" and yet can afford to spend $5,000 per month

A Humble Privilege: Naming Station 2 the "Bradshaw-McNair Fire Station"

Watch the ceremony via this video, above

Friday morning was a great day for Escambia County, ECFR, and the Beulah Community of District 1.

It was my honor and humble privilege to host the community, fellow elected officials, and county staff members as we broke ground on Escambia County's newest, most modern fire facility in Beulah.

It has been a long time coming, and the effort to make this happen predates my time on the board.

But finally, at long last, the Board has approved the expenditure of $8.4 Million to build this facility.  They have also unanimously approved the naming of this facility in honor of 2 great men, Dwain S. Bradshaw and Steve McNair.

What a great day; days like this are what it is all about! 

Check out the local media coverage of the event here, here, and here 

See all the pictures from the event, below:

Beulah Fire Station Construction Groundbreaking Friday, May 6th at 11:30AM

Exterior Elevations of the soon to be constructed Beulah Fire Station from the latest design drawings

Escambia County will host a groundbreaking for the newest fire station in the County--the Beulah Fire Station, Station 2,  on 9-Mile Road in Beulah.

The station will be modern, state of the art and will have all the amenities necessary to support the Firefighters and all of their equipment.  This location is the current site of Escambia's Station 2, which for decades was an all-volunteer station.

You can read all about what this station will look like and its size and functionality in this blog post from last year.

Recently, the county has paid for a full-time daytime crew of Firefighters, and the volunteers are running calls in the evenings and on weekends.  By all reports the new arrangement is working very well which is great for this community.

It has been a long road to get us to this point, getting the property acquired from the volunteers, getting the design done, cobbling together the funding, taking the project to bid, and now, finally, getting the construction started.

COVID-19 slowed the process significantly--but we are now back on track.

In addition to the groundbreaking, It will be my intention to dedicate the facility to two men and their families who have sacrificed so much over the years to this community and this station.  One of these individuals, Chief Dwain S. Bradshaw, sacrificed his life in the line of duty to the citizens of Escambia County.  The other, Chief Steve McNair, gave over 50 years of service to the Beulah community and helped build the current station 2.

These two men each gave for their community, gave much.  So it is my intention to honor both men with this facility which I will ask the BCC to support as I bring a resolution to name this, our newst ECFR station, The "Bradshaw-McNair" Fire Station.

I intend to bring the resolution and proclamation for naming this facility in honor of Mr. Bradshaw and Mr. McNair  to the regular Board of County Commissioners Meeting on May 5th, and to present the proclamation to Mr. Bradshaw's family and Mr. McNair the following day at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The entire Beulah community and all those who have served the Beulah Community as Volunteer Firefighters are invited and are encouraged to attend.  We will also have current fire personnel and other dignitaries present as well.  This will be a great day for the families of Mr. Bradshaw and Mr. McNair, the community, for Beulah, for ECFR, and for our entire county.

Everyone is invited to come and witness this great day in Escambia County! 

Read about Chief Dwain S. Bradshaw here and here

Read about Chief Steve McNair here 

Update on Timeline for Construction of New Beulah Fire Station

The glacially slow process of building the new fire station in Beulah has consumed the first five full years of my time on the Board of County Commissioners.

But we're finally on the brink of moving this project forward.

Property has been acquired (took 3 years), design funded, and construction is funded.  Now, all that is left is getting this project out to bid.  According to staff, we are looking at a May groundbreaking.  Below is the tentative schedule for this project based on Building Inspections being able to review and comment on the plans within 30 days and Purchasing having out for bids within 14 days.

• DRC Review Completed and submitted to Building Inspections for their review                    - Jan 19, 2022
• Building Inspections review completed                                                                                             - Feb 18, 2022
• Submit to Purchasing                                                                                                                              - Feb 21, 2022
• Purchasing advertise                                                                                                                              - Mar 8, 2022
• Open Bids                                                                                                                                                  -  Apr 8, 2022
• Take to Board                                                                                                                                           - Apr 21, 2022
• Date of Commencement and Ground Breaking                                                                               - May 5, 2022
• Completion                                                                                                                                               - Jun 30, 2023

 

Escambia's "Keep the Wreath Green" Fire Awareness Campaign Featured on Fox Weather's National Broadcast!

And the CMR's very own Davis Wood gave a great interview and description of the campaign to prevent house fires over the Holiday Season!

Way to go Escambia CMR, Pensacola Police Dept. Pensacola Fire Department, and ECFR!

Watch the segment here.

On FM 92.3 AM 1620 Later This Morning Discussing A 4-Part Strategy on Fire Funding/Budgeting

I'll be on the radio later this morning discussing public safety.  Last week, I had a coffee with the commissioner event that featured all the players in public safety---EMS chief, Fire Chief, Administrator, and Director of Public Safety.

We covered a lot of ground, and on that podcast I discussed my four part strategy for right-sizing the budgets of EMS, Fire, and Public Safety WITHOUT raising the millage rate.

Andrew McKay asked me to join him later this morning to discuss this four part initiative.

I look forward to doing so at 8:05 this morning.

If I am provided a recording of the interview--I'll post it here.

Replay--65th Coffee with the Commissioner Public Safety Roundtable Discussion

We had our 65th Coffee with the Commissioner yesterday--and it was a very interesting discussion about the County's Public Safety Division.

Lots of positive changes coming, lots to be optimistic about!

You can watch the roundtable discussion by clicking the video linked above.

65th Coffee with the Commissioner this Wednesday: Escambia County Public Safety Roundtable Discussion

Join us for our 65th edition of the Coffee with the Commissioner this coming Wednesday, September 8th from 6:30-7:30 AM

We will be having a discussion on the state of Public Safety in Escambia County.

I'm pleased to announce that on the Zoom meeting will be our Public Safety Director, Eric Gilmore, our Fire Chief, Jason Catrambone, and our EMS Chief, David Torsell.  Additionally, Wes Moreno, Escambia County Administrator will also be on the call.

We will discuss the upcoming budget, status of bargaining, challenges ahead, and opportunities ahead for improving our operations, responses, and overall readiness.

I will also be discussing my 4-Part strategy for stabilization of the ECFR budget--which I have already discussed with Eric Gilmore and with Chief Catrambone.  And full disclosure--they don't necessarily agree with some of what I will propose.  But we will have the discussion.

I look forward to the conversation--be sure to join us for the livestream on Facebook, and feel free to send questions in advance if you would like to do so.

I'll get to as many of them as I can!

Join me for our virtual 65th Coffee with the Commissioner event Wednesday, Sept. 9th. The live stream will take place from 6:30 - 7:30 a.m. To join the meeting, go to the following Facebook page and watch the live stream: www.facebook.com/CommissionerBergosh/.