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Brevard County loses 20% of firefighters as commissioners start impact fee study to fill funding gap

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Published  February 5, 2025 6:26pm EST
Brevard County
FOX 35 Orlando

Brevard firefighters quitting over low pay

Brevard County firefighters are quitting over low pay and the union is trying to fight for raises. FOX 35's Esther Bower has the latest info.

The Brief

    • Firefighters are leaving in droves in Brevard County.
    • The union says, they’ve lost 20% of the entire department which puts staffing at "critical" levels.
    • To keep the public involved in the issue, the union organized a community rally and information session. It’s set for Thursday morning at 11 a.m. at the government center located at Judge Fran Jamieson Way.

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - Firefighters are leaving in droves in Brevard County.

By the numbers:

The union says, they’ve lost 20% of the entire department which puts staffing at "critical" levels.

This comes as the county is struggling to figure out how they can pay firefighters more, so people don’t keep leaving.

To keep the public involved in the issue, the union organized a community rally and information session. It’s set for Thursday morning at 11 a.m. at the government center located at Judge Fran Jamieson Way.

It's open to everyone, and the goal is to let the public know what firefights are dealing with and how it relates to overall public safety.

What they're saying:

"What’s tomorrow going to look like?," said Michael Bramson who’s the president of Brevard County professional firefighters, local 2969 union.

His concerns are growing after 121 first responders called it quits since last January.

"Mandatory overtime is the morale killer that we’re very concerned about, and we just don’t see a solution in hand."

County commissioner Katie Delaney thought she had a solution to help fill the funding gap.

"If we raise the impact fees, it could free up some money from the general fund which we can use for salaries," she said at the Jan. 28 commission meeting.

Delaney wants to raise fire and EMS impact fees for developers.

She says these haven’t been updated in 30 years, but not all commissioners are fully on board.

County commissioner Katie Delaney

"I think it’s better we bring this at another meeting," District 5 commissioner Thad Altman said when the idea first came before the board.

Delaney struggled to get any commissioners to second her initial proposal about studying impact fee raises.

"As the chair, it’s not something I want to start making seconds," said board chair Rob Feltner.

Other county commissioners wanted to vote at a different meeting, but Delaney argued they can't because public safety is in jeopardy.

"I want to make sure that when I call 911 somebody comes quickly, and they can't come quickly if we don't have enough people," said Delaney.

In the end, Delaney swayed enough commissioners, and a razor thin 3-2 vote passed to study the fees at the January meeting.

The fire union just wants to see studying finally lead to action.

"They're going to have to make hard decisions," said Bramson. "They're going to have to move things around, and that’s on them. It’s solely on them."

Commissioner Goodson and Adkinson were the two votes against studying new fees for fire and EMS.

The fire department is operating without a current contract, and no one has seen a raise since October 2023, according to the union.

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The Source: The information in this article comes from reporting done by FOX 35's Esther Bower.

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