From the Chiefs

The Fire Chiefs Association of Santa Barbara County (FCA) was disappointed to learn of the initial ruling provided by Santa Barbara Superior Court Judge Geck. The ruling extended the American Medical Response ambulance transport contract until July 16, 2024, when the court rules on the non-exclusive ambulance transport permit ordinance in question.

The one silver lining in this process is that the community will now be able to glean more information about why the initial Request For Proposals (RFP) was canceled, why the County Board of Supervisors made the decision to move in another direction for the provision of ambulance services in the county, and adopt a non-exclusive permit process.

Your Fire Chiefs of Santa Barbara County will continue to advocate and look out for the public’s best interest while remaining 100 percent committed to ensuring that Santa Barbara County is prepared for the variety of emergencies that threaten and impact our communities. We will continue to daylight the current system’s shortcomings and ensure the process includes transparency and accountability as we navigate this issue through the court system. We sincerely appreciate the community’s continued support as we remain committed to providing a more robust and community­-centered ambulance model.

The Fire Chiefs Association works for all communities, cities, and districts in the county to ensure that we are the best protected in all aspects of emergency medical and fire services. Years ago, it became evident that our citizens were not being best served by the deployment plan of the current private ambulance provider. The FCA has been working for years to establish a more robust and superior, community-based ambulance system that would accomplish the following:

1. More comprehensive EMS ambulance services with robust deployment of 30 percent more ambulances on the streets than is currently provided.
   1. Dedicated 9-1-1 and interfacility transport fleets designed for maximum ambulance availability.
   1. Additional surge ambulances strategically placed at fire stations deployable during significant emergencies.
2. Fully transparent and accountable to an independent community advisory board of community members, stakeholders, and hospitals.
3. Revenues are reinvested into our local community to provide additional and much-needed community­ focused EMS services such as low-acuity response, behavioral health, and community paramedicine programs.

Whether we end up with one or more providers, your County Fire Chiefs advocate for our respected communities and those that we serve. Our collective interest remains the same. We determined that more ambulances are needed in the system. This plan was created with input from each community in the county. We have always advocated for more units, more accountability, and revenue reinvestment locally. We will continue to be your voice in the EMS system.

Chris Mailes is president of the Fire Chiefs Association of Santa Barbara County and is fire chief for the City of Santa Barbara Fire Department.