Last week's budget hearings

budget saw some winners and losers.

One of the departments that got some of its requests, but not all, was

the Department of Fire and Emergency Services.

Chief Jack Krakeel asked the board to fund an emergency program assistant.

He explained that he had secured a federal grant to pay $70,000 for 18

months of the program, because the assistant would also be in charge

of the Citizens Emergency Response Team.

The grant helps pay for the cost of the CERT program, and Krakeel thought

this would be a good way to add a necessary employee to the department.

"There hasn't been new staff added in 20 years," he

said.

But Commissioner Linda Wells,

who always bring an extra-sharp pencil to the budget hearings, didn't

think the position was necessary.

"It's just an assistant for (Capt.) Pete Nelms," she

said.

The commissioners questioned

whether Krakeel couldn't just add

the new program into his already existing ones.

"I can't take on another new program without help. The responsibilities

in the departments have increased dramatically in the last 10 years," he

said.

Commission chairman Greg Dunn

also said he didn't favor just accepting

the program for 18 months.

"It would be a permanent position that we would have to fund," he

said.

While the commissioners gave the go-ahead for hiring three firefighters

and emergency management technicians, the commission did not approve

promoting three captains to shift commanders.

"This is just creating a hierarchy of staff," Wells

said.

Krakeel said his department handled 5,700 calls a year and mans nine

fire stations and 37 staffers, and shift commanders would help coordinate

resources throughout the county.

But the board said they were in line with the recently completed personnel

study that assisted bumping up salaries in the last year to help Fayette

remain competitive with other government agencies.

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