Oversight committee backs police and fire items, hears that turnout gear replacements face new test standard

The PSVS Citizens Oversight Committee voted to find several police and fire proposals consistent with PSVS priorities, including a Bakersfield Police Department radio site generator and fuel tank replacement ($738,900), a firefighting turnout replacement ($250,000), and HVAC replacements at fire stations 5, 6 and 13 ($141,000). Member Avery moved the advisory motion, Member Harmon seconded, and the electronic vote passed; the clerk announced the motion was approved with Members Ortiz and Rojas Mora absent.

Committee members asked for clarification on turnout gear numbers. The supplemental memo identified replacement of roughly 162 turnout coats and 157 pairs of turnout pants and an estimated full exposure of about $7,719,500. A fire department representative told the committee that hydrostatic testing—an NFPA-derived test that OSHA has recently adopted—will cause a majority of older turnouts to fail the new standard; the department expects to phase replacements over time rather than replace all gear immediately.

Member Reid asked how much of the turnout replacement cost would be covered by PSVS this year; staff said $250,000 is allocated now, with the expectation of additional allocations in future years to complete phased replacement. The committee also heard that the city’s strategy is to phase replacement based on testing results rather than record the full exposure as an immediate single-year cost.

Staff provided a broader budget context: finance staff reported the general fund police budget increased by $28,000,000 year over year, including about $6,100,000 of PSVS dollars, while recreation and parks and economic/community development saw smaller changes. The committee discussed contingency priorities and asked staff to continue providing service-level impacts and cost-benefit details as ongoing contracts and multi-year items are evaluated.

The committee’s advisory finding will be included in the materials sent to the city council as it finalizes the FY 2026–27 budget.