For years the county’s largest independent fire protection district spent millions of dollars on unique benefits for employees and board members. Some of those decisions are being re-evaluated or ratcheted back, but it may be too late.
This month, San Miguel, which serves 150,000 people in East County, issued a request for proposals from other agencies to take over service. Proposals are due March 9.
“For a firefighter, this was the place to be,” said San Miguel’s fire chief, August Ghio. “It was always at the top in terms of compensation. Not now, but that’s after major sacrifices that have been taken by our employees.”
