Victorville officials point to falling unsheltered homelessness as HR and firefighters detail hiring gains under AB 2561 review

At a May 5 council meeting, city staff and the Victorville Professional Firefighters Association presented the City of Victorville’s annual AB 2561 report on vacancies, recruitment and retention requirements ahead of the fiscal‑year budget.

The report, presented by Human Resources Officer Heather Barber, showed the city had 570 authorized positions at year‑end 2025 — 72 for the fire department and 498 for other city functions — with an average 2025 vacancy rate of 10.7%. Barber reported that as of 12/31/2025 the professional firefighters’ bargaining unit had an 8.3% vacancy rate (six vacancies) and that the citywide vacancy count and rate had improved: the city posted 47 vacancies (8.2%) as of 04/21/2026 and hired nine new employees on 04/16/2026 (four firefighter paramedics and five firefighter EMTs).

Why it matters: Assembly Bill 2561 requires public agencies to review hiring and vacancy data annually before adopting their fiscal budgets and to hold a public hearing that permits represented employees to participate. The presentation gave the council an accounting of where vacancies remain, the factors driving turnover and the steps staff and the union say are addressing gaps.

‘‘This year, the City of Victorville achieved another significant reduction in unsheltered homelessness showing a 26% decrease from the prior year,’’ said Nettie Jackson, a member of the Continuum of Care board and chair of the Desert Regional Steering Committee, praising the city’s coordinated approach and the wellness center’s 24/7 operations. Jackson’s remarks were presented during the public‑comment portion of the hearing and were cited by staff and council members in subsequent discussion.

Heather Barber laid out the city’s recruitment timeline and practices, noting typical recruitments take about eight to ten weeks, that vacancy rates are computed by dividing vacancies by authorized full‑time positions, and that promotions within the organization were a large portion of the vacancies created in 2025. ‘‘We had a total of 113 position vacancies throughout the year created for different reasons,’’ Barber said, and added that 47 promotions were part of that total. She confirmed that removing promotions from the 113 created vacancies reduces the count of openings attributable to separations or new positions.

Union president Nick Howard described operational pressures in the fire department and urged continued partnership on recruitment and pay. ‘‘Staffing challenges threaten that mission,’’ Howard said, urging expanded outreach beyond the High Desert, adoption of the Firefighter Candidate Testing Center (FCTC) to widen the candidate pool, and continued investment in EMT and paramedic career pathways.

Council members pressed staff on details. Councilman Godin asked whether promotions were included in the 113 vacancy number; Barber confirmed promotions were included and that the city retained a high proportion of employees. Questions also focused on strategies that produced recent hires: Howard and HR both credited faster hiring timelines this year (about a 90‑day process for recent hires), a preceptor program that places paramedic students with department mentors, and the creation of firefighter EMT positions to build an internal pipeline for paramedic training.

The council took no further action beyond receiving and filing the report as required under AB 2561.

What remains relevant: Staff told the council there are still vacancies in specialized and high‑demand fields (IT and others) and that filling 26 positions now in the recruitment pipeline would lower the city’s vacancy rate to about 3.6%. City staff and union leaders urged the council to continue support for competitive wages, streamlined hiring, and regional recruitment efforts.

Next step: The AB 2561 presentation was received and filed; no formal policy vote was required. Council members thanked staff and union representatives and reiterated the importance of continuing recruitment and retention work.