Taylor hopes to beef up Fire Department City explores adding three firefighters
The Taylor Fire Department could see some muchneeded growth after City Council this month directed staff to look into funding three additional firefighters.
The number of first responders in the department has not kept pace with the recommended amount for a city the size of Taylor, which has a population of about 18,000, officials said.
“We have top-of-the-line equipment and the most modern technology, so we’re in great shape that way. Where we need to put our efforts is into gaining personnel strength,” Fire Chief Daniel Baum said.
A proposal to add a supervisory battalion chief would cost $116,100, while funding for three firefighter positions is $158,504 including onboarding costs and gear.
In the next year’s budget, hiring three firefighters would cost about $108,000 more than adding a single battalion chief, but some on the council expressed support for the idea.
“The funds set aside could afford to do one battalion chief, but that doesn’t put boots on the ground in fighting a fire,” Mayor Dwayne Ariola said about the decision directing city staff to look into the three hires.
In 2022, just as Samsung Austin Semiconductor announced it would be building in Taylor, a third-party consultant submitted a study recommending Taylor’s fire services expand to include more firefighters, battalion chiefs to supervise shifts and a third fire station near Taylor High School.
While the city has been able to add a trio of firefighters to the roster since then, it is still not at the recommended staffing ratio, first responders said.
The department has four people on shift at each of the two fire stations during rotations.
There are 27 members of the department, including the chief, an assistant chief, seven lieutenants, six drivers/ operators and 12 personnel assigned the rank of firefighter, officials said. During the Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget sessions, Baum requested the city fund an additional six firefighters and three battalion chiefs. The department does not have any battalion chiefs and the requested increase in force was not included in the approved budget.
The budget did include $177,000 allocated as matching funds in case the department was awarded a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The budget recommended that if the grant application was not approved, the funds be repurposed to add one battalion chief to the force.
The grant was not awarded, so an item was added to the Jan. 8 council agenda to introduce an ordinance to hire a battalion chief.
Baum presented a cost comparison of what the impact would be if the city hired additional firefighters instead of a battalion chief.
“Like any community that grows, demands for service increase and the department services have to scale up appropriately,” Baum told the Taylor Press. “The fire department is a department of the city and the city has a finite amount of revenue it makes every year and that money has to be applied to fund all city services. We’re just one slice of the pie.” If approved, the new hires would be funded for six months out of the current budget.
While the department faces challenges adding personnel, the city has funded some capital improvements.
Fire Station Two will undergo a comprehensive remodeling this year, and Fire Station One is anticipated to be revamped next year if funding is approved.
Fire crews took delivery of a replacement fire engine in 2025 and are expecting a replacement ladder truck in December.
“We’re looking to make incremental plans, but nothing moves quickly,” Baum said. Certainly not moving as fast as the growth is coming but we have plans and visions. At the end of the day, it takes funding to execute it.”
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“Demands for service increase and the department services have to scale up appropriately.”
— Fire Chief Daniel Baum
