Trustees flag new state guidance requiring direct payments to volunteer firefighters; town seeks legal clarity

Staff alerted the board to a recent change in state guidance that affects volunteer firefighter compensation, saying the state board of accounts interprets the rule as requiring direct payments to volunteers — "the town and or the township are gonna have to have to pay the fire department volunteers directly," the presenter said.

Council members discussed practical implementation: if the payment is interpreted as $250 for closing and $250 for vehicle use, some participants warned it could effectively double-pay volunteers in shared-jurisdiction arrangements and would require collecting rosters and W-9s to issue individual checks. Staff said the rule's effective date and proration (whether July 1 applies to calendar-year accounting) are contested points and that the town's attorney and financial advisor would be asked for an official interpretation before the budget is finalized. The board also noted potential county- or state-level consolidation discussions tied to the broader reorganization timetable.