Critics claim Berkeley Fire Department lacks oversight on Measure FF spending

by Irene Benedicto, Bay City News January 15, 2022January 18, 2022

A fire truck sits ready for duty outside Berkeley Fire Station No. 7 in the Berkeley Hills on Jan. 11, 2022. Although voters approved Measure FF in 2020 giving the city's Disaster and Safety Fire Commission oversight of $8.5 million in annual tax revenue for firefighting and prevention measures, committee members say they have yet to see a budget for how the fire department is using the money. (Photo by Harika Maddala/Bay City News)

WHEN BERKELEY VOTERS approved a special property tax in 2020 to bolster firefighting efforts with $8.5 million a year in new revenue, the City Council and the Disaster and Safety Fire Commission were tasked with overseeing the money.

Now, more than a year later, both agencies say the Fire Department is spending its new funds, sometimes without seeking approval or, in many cases, even communicating its plans to them.

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