Palm Beach Fire Rescue: Finance & Planning Operations Unveiled

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue's Finance Section ensures transparency and adherence to departmental practices and policies, aligning resources with the agency's evolving needs. The section oversees budget management, expenditures and revenue collection, complying with federal, state and county regulations.

Responsible procurement of goods and services is another core function, emphasizing the prudent use of department resources while meeting the requirements of the Purchasing Department and the Office of Equal Business Opportunity. Working with the County Attorney's Office, the Finance Section prepares specifications for agreements and contracts, including those for direct services, special events, vehicle maintenance, fire inspections, municipal service agreements and hazardous materials incidents. The section also analyzes costs associated with activations and deployments to assist the department with expense recovery.

The Planning Section supports decision-making and service level evaluations by analyzing data across all Palm Beach County Fire Rescue operations. The section uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to produce and maintain the Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) map. Spatial analysis tools provide leadership with information for complex location-based issues.

Specific duties include developing plans for future fire stations, analyzing the impact of land-use changes, regional development and annexations on fire rescue services. The section also assists the Insurance Service Office in determining the department's rating for property insurance. They provide annual statistics reports for the department and served municipalities, produce the PBCFR annual report, offer cartographic services and conduct spatial analysis for routine and special projects. Additionally, the section works to improve the CAD mapping and routing system and troubleshoot reported issues.

Chief Herman W. Brice leads the Fire Rescue Complex at 405 Pike Road, West Palm Beach, FL 33411-3815. The department can be reached at 561-616-7030.