Fire protection is a critical and costly local service that is primarily funded through taxpayer revenue. We recently published a report explaining how fire protection services are delivered in New York State. Generally speaking, a great number of New York taxpayers are concerned with local property tax burdens and the quality of services received. When presented with proposed changes to fire protection services as part of municipal reorganization or consolidation, or shared service initiatives, many home and property owners express deep concern over the possible diminution of fire services. Yet, most residents have only a limited understanding of the complex way in which fire protection is provided in their local community. Moreover, only a very few voters ever attend fire district budget meetings or bother to vote in annual fire district elections. This post provides some basics about fire district elections, when and where they are held, and what is at stake. In so doing, it touches on some concerns with how fire district elections are conducted as an explanation of why these important municipal elections are typically ignored by the public.

What are Fire Districts?

There are 902 independent fire districts in New York State, each with a five-member elected board of fire commissioners. Fire districts are public corporations created by a town (or towns jointly) pursuant to Town Law. Under the New York State Constitution, fire districts are autonomous and independent municipal entities. Fire districts have their own independently elected governing board of commissioners and independent power to levy taxes and incur debt. Fire district commissioners adopt the rules and regulations governing all fire departments and companies that directly provide the fire protection services to residents and properties within the district. Fire district boards create and approve their own budgets, certified copies of which are submitted to the town(s) and to the county for tax collection purposes (Town Law §§ 174, 181). While proposed budgets are subject to public notice and hearing requirements, the five-member board has final approval authority and town boards or budget officers cannot make changes. Few taxpayers attend fire district board meetings to comment on budgetary decisions, so the primary control over such decisions is through the selection of commissioners in fire district elections.

How are Fire District Elections Administered?

Fire district elections take place annually on the second Tuesday of December, off-cycle from town and village elections, with some municipality-specific exceptions under Town Law §175. Notice of the election, including the time, place, and hours of the polling locations (usually a designated fire station or stations) must be publicly posted between 27 and 34 days in advance.

Fire district elections take place annually on the second Tuesday of December, off-cycle from town and village elections…

Town Law §175 requires only that the polls must be open from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., leaving it to the fire district board’s discretion to authorize any additional polling hours—something that few districts do. Thus, the opportunity to vote in fire district elections is typically limited to just a few hours on a specified day. The elections are open to all voters who have resided in the district for at least 30 days and are registered (23 days in advance). Under Article 11, §175-a, with voter approval of such a proposition, fire districts may adopt additional voter registration requirements, the administration of which is up to the fire district secretary.

Fire districts conduct their own elections and are permitted, but not required, to use the state-approved voting systems that are required for many municipal and all state and federal elections. Under Town Law §175, the secretary of the fire district prepares the ballots. The board of commissioners designates a district election chairperson and appoints between two and four election inspectors and ballot clerks to supervise voting and count ballots. Such individuals must be registered electors of the district and cannot be an elected officer of the district, but there are otherwise no qualifications. A certified copy of election results must be filed with the board of commissioners and the clerk of the town (or towns) in which the district is located. Some but not all towns and fire districts routinely post and regularly archive fire district election results on their webpages.

What Is On the Ballot?

The five-year terms of fire district commissioners are staggered so that voters select one commissioner at each annual election, barring resignations and vacancies. In those districts which elect (rather than appoint) their treasurer, the annual election may also include the election of a fire district treasurer. Treasurers serve three-year terms; therefore, the position will only be on the ballot when the current officer’s term has expired or there is a vacancy. Fire district elections may also include propositions or bonding referenda for the purchase of equipment, capital reserve funding, or the construction of fire stations that are subject to voter approval (at either annual or special fire district elections).

Apathy or Accessibility?

Fire District elections are generally very low turnout and minimally contested affairs—even though fire district budgets and referendum often involve significant taxpayer revenues. Tables 1 and 2 summarize the 2021 fire district elections in the Town of Tonawanda in Erie County (population 72,636) and the Town of Smithtown in Suffolk County (population 116,296), respectively. In both illustrative examples, the number of voters is minimal, totaling fewer than 200 votes in most districts. Tables 1 and 2 also include the 2021 revenues of each district to demonstrate the significant sums of moneys controlled by the fire district board of commissioners. Voter turnout will sometimes uptick when fire district levies require a dramatic increase in property taxes (i.e., taxpayer revolts), where driven by micro-politics (i.e., personalized community politics), or around municipal reorganization efforts (proposed consolidations or dissolutions).

TABLE 1. Fire District Election Results Town of Tonawanda (Erie County) in 2021

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Election Data Source: https://www.tonawanda.ny.us/document-center/fire-protection/fire-district-annual-election.html.

Revenue Data Source: OSC Open Book Data.

Note: The Town of Tonawanda had 51,147 enrolled active voters as of November 1, 2021.

*The state allows municipalities and fire districts (FDs) to participate in the Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP) to award pension-like benefits based on years of service (or credits).

 

TABLE 2. Fire District Election Results Town of Smithtown (Suffolk County) in 2021

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Data Source: https://www.smithtownny.gov/DocumentCenter/View/5708/Fire-Districts-Election-Results?bidId=.

The Town of Smithtown had 90,311 enrolled active voters as of November 1, 2021.

Despite the critical nature of the service and the importance which residents attach to fire protection services, the low levels of participation—less than 1 percent of the registered voters of the district in almost all cases—suggests voter apathy. Moreover, according to multiple media accounts, most of the votes cast in these elections are cast by members of the fire department and their families. Most residents, in other words, do not bother to vote in fire district elections—possibly because they are satisfied with the level of service in their area, but more likely due to the opaqueness of the process and low levels of awareness. Voters do not necessarily recognize the stakes in these elections either because of the complex and confusing way in which fire protection services are delivered, and because they lack sufficient familiarity with the logistical and financial aspects of fire protection to feel informed voting on the selection of commissioners or bonding referenda.

Local government experts have long recognized that the low turnout rates are, in significant part, attributable to practical concerns over how fire district elections are conducted. Participation is so exceptionally low because these elections do not coincide with other municipal or special district (e.g., school district) elections, are internally administered, and are not widely publicized. Fire district elections occur during the winter when inclement weather is more likely to be a deterrent to voters and are restricted to few polling hours at limited locations on a single day—hours that are scheduled during prime time for families. Moreover, fire district elections do not typically allow for absentee voting, meaning that older voters or those with physical disabilities are excluded from taking part. Legislative changes that would increase the visibility of and access to fire district elections have been periodically introduced but tend to face opposition from municipal fire associations.

Most residents, in other words, do not bother to vote in fire district elections—possibly because they are satisfied with the level of service in their area, but more likely due to the opaqueness of the process and low levels of awareness.

To Learn More

To learn more about fire district services and elections, try visiting your town and county websites for a list of and links to fire districts in your area. Many, but not all independent fire districts maintain their own municipal websites with information on board meetings that are open to the public, minutes of recent or past meetings, and official notice of pending annual and special fire district elections or referenda. To learn more about how fire protection is provided in New York State, check our report on the consolidation of fire protection services in New York.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lisa Parshall is a fellow at the Rockefeller Institute of Government and a professor of political science at Daemen College in Amherst, New York