Germantown fire budget shows ambulance revenue, $6.5 million Station 2 renovation request

Germantown’s fire department told the Public Safety Committee that ambulance fees and a county EMS grant will underpin much of the 2026 fire budget while department wage increases and planned capital work, including a $6.5 million renovation to Station 2, account for most expenditure growth.

Why it matters: the committee heard that fire personnel costs and station capital projects are central to the village’s larger capital and tax outlook. Trustees asked for cost splits and questioned which capital items might be deferred to limit the 2027 tax impact.

Revenue and contract support
Staff described ambulance billing as the fire department’s primary revenue, roughly $800,000 annually in the proposed budget. The presentation also included an intergovernmental line for a Washington County EMS grant of $177,000 budgeted in 2026; staff said the grant is intended to offset EMS operations countywide.

State fire insurance aid and public fire protection
Staff noted that state fire insurance aid — a return of 2% of commercial/industrial fire insurance premiums to support fire inspection and related work — has increased in recent years. The presentation said 2023 receipts were roughly $133,000 and the 2026 projection is near $165,000.

The committee also reviewed the public fire protection charge the general fund pays to the water utility to maintain hydrant pressure and related infrastructure; staff said that charge is roughly $535,000 and described how the village splits costs between the tax roll and the utility to reflect differences in served areas.

Capital requests and vehicles
The fire department’s two largest capital requests included a $6.5 million renovation of Fire Station 2 and $275,000 for two vehicles: a battalion chief command vehicle (presented as approximately $160,000 including upfitting) and a second vehicle to support fire inspections and incident response (additional upfitting and graphics included). Staff said the upfitted command vehicle provides pull‑out trays, extra radios, dry‑erase boards and other equipment needed to run prolonged incidents — a capability the department used during the recent flooding.

Personnel and staffing
Staff described the department as "100% full minus one person" and said the village keeps a vacancy for an assistant chief position until physical facilities expansion creates room for that role. Wages and steps in the fire union contract were identified as the major driver of salary increases; staff explained that step increases and negotiated percentage increases can produce double‑digit percentage effects for individual firefighters moving through pay steps.

Ending: Trustees again asked whether capital projects could be postponed to lower near‑term tax impacts. Village staff said they will present high‑level capital summaries and options at the committee‑of‑the‑whole meeting and will include the requested line‑item breakdowns before subsequent budget votes.