WASHINGTON CO. COMMISSIONERS TO VOTE ON CREATING JOB DESCRIPTION FOR COUNTY FIRE MARSHAL

  

Washington County Commissioners will meet Tuesday to consider the creation of a job description for a county fire marshal.

According to the proposed description, the fire marshal would operate and supervise the fire marshal’s office and would be responsible for “coordination of the delivery of fire suppression throughout the county, investigation of fires within the county, inspection of all county and other buildings for fire code safety, administration and enforcement of the fire code, providing recommendations regarding burn bans and fireworks, rescue operations, hazardous material response, emergency management planning, and public fire education programs.”

County Judge John Durrenberger called the position “a real need”, saying the county currently does not have anyone qualified to inspect the growing number of subdivisions and new commercial construction and make sure they meet proper code.  He said other counties of Washington County’s size have fire marshals, and that this official would work in tandem with the City of Brenham fire marshal, assisting the city when needed.

Durrenberger also said the fire marshal would assist in ensuring volunteer firefighters are trained, which dictates how much funding the county’s volunteer fire departments receive annually.  He said, “There’s no way that this position removes anything from the volunteer fire departments.”

Some volunteer fire department officials, however, have privately shared concerns with KWHI about the level of impact the fire marshal could potentially have on volunteer fire department operations.

Among the desired knowledge, skills and abilities listed for the position are:

• Knowledge of the management and oversight of a municipal/county fire department;
• Knowledge of budget development, management and justification practices and procedures;
• Knowledge of the purchase, operation, maintenance and uses of firefighting apparatus and equipment;
• Knowledge of and capability to coordinate the grant writing process for Texas Forest Service, FEMA, cooperatives, and philanthropic organizations;
• Ability to plan, prioritize, assign and direct the work of fire department personnel;
• Capability to effectively work in an interdisciplinary role with Sheriff, EMS and Volunteer Fire Department Chiefs;
• Skill in responding to and managing emergencies and incidents.

The proposed job description lists a pay range of $79,843 - $119,764 annually, which would come from the general fund.  Durrenberger said the funding for this position is already included in the current adopted budget. 

When asked about the timing of the court’s consideration of the job description in relation to the upcoming emergency services district election for the Chappell Hill and Meyersville VFDs, Durrenberger stated that this position was discussed years before the ESD proposal and has no connection to it. 

In other business, commissioners will:

• Act on a right-of-way permit application for the 2025 Blue Bell Fun Run in Washington County.
• Potentially authorize the county judge to sign a renewed Microsoft volume licensing enterprise agreement for Washington County’s Microsoft Office 365 licenses.
• Receive a presentation of the Washington County Human Resources quarterly report.
• Act on a subdivision variance request for a land division fronting FM 390 East, consisting of 243.52 acres in Precinct 1.
• Consider an order of public interest and a plat revision for the Nicholson Lake subdivision in Precinct 2.

Commissioners will meet Tuesday at 9 a.m. at the Washington County Courthouse.