FAQs

The level of service the City provides in many areas is statutory and is not something the City has the power to reduce.  Areas like courts, permitting, and legal areas have deadlines and levels of service we cannot change.  We control the level of service in Parks and Streets, and both of those have already been removed from the general fund and are not directly competing with the Fire Department for that capped fund.  

Station reliability is defined as how often an engine is busy on another call and a neighboring engine responds in their district.  The National Fire Protection Association has a national standard of 90%.  The red areas in the chart below show where our fire stations have fallen below that standard in recent years.  Click on the chart to enlarge.

The Missoula Fire Department provides structure fire, wildland fire, Advanced Life Support Emergency Medical Services, Hazardous Materials response and rescue services.

Missoula is not alone in facing funding challenges.  The increase in emergency services demand has impacted all major Montana cities. Service demands outpaced projected budgets, resulting in a funding imbalance in the public safety sector requiring the need for additional resources and funding, to continue to provide emergency response services. Other Montana communities have also requested public safety levies recently or plan to within the next couple of years.

Nearly 60% of the overall call volume consists of a medical emergency. Due to this need for emergency medical response, Missoula Fire Department personnel are trained and certified at a minimum as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs). Approximately 30% of MFD personnel have furthered their education and training as Paramedics.

When Missoula Fire Department personnel are not responding to emergencies, they participate in ongoing training, on and off duty.  Each training requires specialized equipment and detailed knowledge of the skills and tools to support the community. Annual training hours in 2020 and 2021 were down due to COVID protocol and limiting crew interaction and potential spread. 2022 annual training hours are standard annual training hours.

Missoula Fire Department Training Hours

 

In the first year, the City expects to raise approximately $7 million.  

• Provides 20 additional firefighting positions to assist with current call volumes while a future site for a new station is identified. 
• Permanent funding for Mobile Support Team to provide a response to people in crisis.  (MST is currently funded at $1.2 million.  The listed amount of $930,000 anticipates that we may be able to receive partial reimbursement for the program from Medicaid.)
• Provide for an additional source of revenue for Fire Department operations that are currently funded with the City’s constrained General Fund.
• Provide for fire apparatus replacement. 
• Ensure competitive firefighter wages. 
• Ensure adequate funding for operations and training.