Everyone is talking about doing more with less these days. I keep wondering when we will be discussing doing less with less. Some taxpayers are so naà¯ve about what government does that their expectations are totally unrealistic. On one hand, they will complain about not receiving services in a timely fashion. On the other, they’ll say that we are (or were) overcompensated public employees and we just need to work smarter, while cutting government resources (including employees).
There’s some truth to both sides of this same “coin,” but in the end, the taxpayers–or those manipulating public policy with huge amounts of campaign money–will win in at least one regard: Their demands will require fire departments to do things differently. That might mean cutting back on some programs, but it will also mean asking us to consider creative (and sometimes painful) ideas.
Learning from One Another
Recently, fire prevention leaders met at the national Prevention, Advocacy, Resource and Data Exchange (PARADE) conference. It was among the best conferences I’ve ever attended; if federal funding allows it to continue, I would highly recommend that those eligible for attendance take advantage of it. At PARADE, we have an opportunity to interact with our peers across the nation; to learn from what they are doing; and to share our own ideas about what is, and is not, working locally. The concept is simple but profound: We often learn best from each other.
One idea based on that concept came out of the FEMA Region IX discussions, where a few people from California were discussing fire code enforcement programs. One progressive fire marshal was keenly aware of the sensitivity of the topic, but given the fact that they’re starting to see more private-sector inspections, she was wondering if we should consider partnering with the private sector.
In fact, we do so already in many places all across the nation. The inspection, testing and maintenance of fire extinguisher, fire sprinkler, fire alarm and commercial kitchen suppression systems are done by private contractors all over the United States. The model codes say they must be done, but they don’t say by whom or how. So we usually limit our role to ensuring that the private contractors are doing their job properly.
I suspect we will see more private sector companies starting to offer services for all fire code inspections. Using private inspectors is a subject worthy of debate and analysis–and extreme caution. We can almost always find someone who is willing to work for less on a given job. When we do, we run the risk of finding out that there’s a reason they will work for less: They don’t possess the knowledge or skills to do the job properly. I found that out last year when I hired the wrong contractor to do landscaping!
Tapping a New Resource
But at least one jurisdiction is looking at another aspect of fire code inspections. Adria Paesani is a deputy fire marshal in Fountain Valley, Calif. Her department has been using local senior citizens to help them with fire inspection workload since 1997.
Called the Fire Inspection Reserve Seniors Taskforce (FIRST), the group comprises 10—20 trained volunteer inspectors, each of whom is given a uniform and a vehicle. They’re limited to inspecting small businesses occupying less than 5,000 square feet and not requiring any fire code permits for special occupancies or processes.
The group’s first priority is to help ensure that the city’s 1,200 annual fire code inspections are completed. But, time permitting, these volunteers are also used for home safety inspections, community events and public education presentations. They work a flexible schedule, in pairs, four to five hours per day, one day per week.
For departments considering self-inspections for some businesses just because we don’t have the resources to inspect them at all, using volunteers just might be a good option. In Fountain Valley, these volunteers allow for annual inspections of all occupancies while career firefighters concentrate their efforts on target hazard inspections and other vital aspects of their jobs, like training, preplanning and running EMS and fire calls throughout the day.
Note: I’m not naà¯ve to the concerns that inexpensive labor–or even volunteers–can be used to eliminate full-time employees or to fight union contracts deemed too expensive. In the end, less-expensive labor can sound like a good thing, but it can be bad for the economy because no one is making enough to keep the economy afloat. And of course, volunteers can never replace highly trained and qualified fire inspectors across the nation. But for work already not getting done, we might consider this option as a viable alternative to self-inspections when we’re trying to do more with fewer dollars than we received last year.
To learn more about the Fountain Valley FIRST program, e-mail Deputy Fire Marshal Paesani at adria.paesani@fountainvalley.org.
