The dollar amount given to the Derby Storm Ambulance & Rescue Corps dominated a 33-minute public hearing on the city’s proposed $39 million budget Monday.
Barbara DeGennaro and Carmen DiCenso, both members of the Board of Aldermen, asked the tax board to reconsider their decision to allocate $55,000 for the agency.
Both indicated the tax board should give the Storms more money.
The ambulance-rescue corps had requested $120,000 from the tax board.
Tax board chairman Jim Butler said at previous public meetings the Storms do not share full financial data with the tax board. He said the Storms are constantly expanding.
Derby tax board member Larry Bussell had similar questions about the Storms, including why they don’t fall directly under city control.
Bussell said he had wanted to talk about Storm funding in a private, executive session. Budget discussions cannot be discussed in that manner, per state law.
During the public hearing on the budget in Derby City Hall, Derby Storms Chief Louis Oliwa brought along his agency’s accountant to answer any questions the tax board might have.
The video of the meeting is posted above.
The tax board didn’t have specific financial questions for the Storms. Butler relayed some general questions about billing. Some of the billing questions, though, would be topics addressed specifically to an individual’s insurance company, not necessarily the ambulance service (example — what happens when an insurance company refuses to pay the bill?).
As to Bussell’s question about control of the service, members have explained that Storm Ambulance Rescue is different because it is an independent, nonprofit agency. It is not a city agency.
They file annual form 990s with the Internal Revenue Service and the documents are posted on GuideStar.org, a free website where anyone can research nonprofit groups.
GuideStar.org lists the Storms’ total revenue from 2013 as $413,765 and its total expenses as $431,209. The 2013 IRS form 990 is embedded at the end of this story.
A 2007 report on the ambulance service is embedded below. Similar questions were being asked back then. At the time, the city was giving the Storms $80,000 annually, a dollar amount that has been decreasing.
DeGennaro pointed out the array of services Storm ambulance provides the city at no cost — above and beyond taking people to the hospital. Her comments happen about 19 minutes into the video.
“Their call volume has not decreased. It has increased,” she said.
DeGennaro, a lawyer, also pointed out the tax board asked to see the ambulance service’s books — something members did not request of the many other nonprofit groups the city gives money to, ranging from Troop 3 Boy Scouts to TEAM, Inc.
DiCenso noted specially trained rescue crews from the Storms keep watch over city sewer department workers when they enter confined spaces because of the inherent danger involved in entering those spaces. The city is not charged for that service, DiCenso said.
A similar debate over Storm funding happened in 2013.
Other Budget Info
The $39 million budget features a zero percent increase in the mill rate, city officials said. Click here for a previous story on the budget.
Total spending is up about 2 percent in the proposed budget, or about $808,000. Most employees are seeing raises of 2 to 3 percent, but some department heads deviate from that norm.
The tax board is scheduled to give Derby Public Schools a 4.3 percent increase, with a $17,292,486 allocation slated for next year.
The tax board could adopt the budget at a meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight (Tuesday, May 19) during a meeting in Derby City Hall.
Supporting Docs
Below we have:
1. The Derby budget, as proposed.
2. A 2007 report about the Storms prepared for former Derby Mayor Anthony Staffieri
3. The 2013 IRS form 990 for the Storms
