Leaders from the City of Statesboro and Bulloch County sat down last week, for a long-awaited conversation facilitated by the Statesboro-Bulloch Chamber of Commerce. The discussion focused on the future of fire protection in the Five Mile Fire District, with the County set to assume full responsibility for the area beginning July 1.
The meeting came in response to concerns from residents, business owners, and insurance providers regarding how the transition of fire services might impact safety, costs, and service levels within the district. The Chamber had previously sent out a letter detailing their proposed solution: a one-year extension of the City’s fire coverage in the Five Mile District through July 1, 2026, while maintaining the current 2.7 mill rate to allow time for a stable transition. The Chamber’s plan, supported by input from insurers, was intended to preserve the district’s ISO Class 2 rating while giving the County more time to build out infrastructure and staffing.
An ISO rating is a number assigned to a community by the Insurance Services Office (ISO) that reflects the quality and effectiveness of its fire protection services. Ratings range from 1 (best) to 10 (no recognized fire protection). A lower ISO rating can translate into lower property insurance premiums for homeowners and businesses, making the retention of a low ISO rating a high-stakes issue for many residents.
Another critical topic discussed was the difference between mutual aid and automatic aid. Mutual aid is a type of agreement where one department can request help from another department on a case-by-case basis. Automatic aid, on the other hand, means that departments respond simultaneously and immediately to certain calls regardless of jurisdiction. Automatic aid agreements are more proactive and ensure quicker response times, but they also involve greater resource commitments and planning.
Chamber Board Member John Roach helped open the meeting by emphasizing the importance of communication and collaboration between local governments. He explained that the Chamber’s goal in organizing the discussion was not to take sides, but to create a space where city and county leaders could speak candidly about the future of fire protection in the Five Mile District. Roach noted that the Chamber had heard concerns from residents, businesses, and insurers, and hoped the conversation would serve as a starting point for more productive dialogue.
Commissioner Timmy Rushing thanked the Chamber and stated that the County’s plans to take over fire service in the Five Mile Fire District were not sudden. “This has been building for 45 years,” he said, referencing his own experience as one of the County’s first volunteer firefighters in the 1980s. He emphasized that the County has made intentional moves in recent years, including raising taxes two years ago, to fund fire service improvements.
He reiterated that the County’s original offer was straightforward: split the Five Mile District down the middle, let the City keep providing service to half of it, and provide the City $1.7 million to do so. “All we wanted to do is build our district, and we asked for the City to take half the five mile district and get half the money, $1.7 million, and we’d keep mutual aid in place,” Rushing said. He explained that the County gave the six-month termination notice per the original agreement and felt it was time to move forward with its own fire protection model.
Rushing also acknowledged that the County was under pressure to act, especially with parts of the southeast portion of the district at risk of becoming ISO Class 10, the lowest protection rating. “We’ve got to act now — because we can’t let that happen to our citizens.”
Mayor Jonathan McCollar responded firmly, saying that the City had not been included in the decision-making process. “When you say ‘we,’ that didn’t include the City of Statesboro,” he said. “We had no input on what was presented to us.”
McCollar voiced concern over the lack of communication and negotiation. He said the City had proposed a phased plan that would prioritize rural areas outside the city first, with a gradual handoff over time. “You don’t pull the plug overnight on something that’s working this well,” he said.
He raised serious questions about equity and efficiency. “We’re asking people to pay more, in taxes and probably in insurance, to receive less service,” McCollar warned. “And we’re not just talking about property. We’re talking about people’s lives.”
Rushing defended the County’s timeline and said it had never been the County’s intention to cut the City out. Instead, he pointed to previous conversations where, according to him, City leaders indicated it was “all or nothing” either the City would continue to serve the whole district or not at all.
McCollar pushed back, clarifying that his comments about not building inside the district were based on concerns about dual taxation. “No representative with any brains is going to let their constituents pay twice for the same service,” he said. He added that the City had always been willing to discuss a shared approach, but no actual dialogue occurred. “We were handed a document. That’s not negotiation.”
The mayor said the City's position was never about turf, but about accountability to taxpayers.
County Fire Chief Ben Tapley stepped in to address one of the financial concerns that had come up repeatedly: dual taxation. Tapley clarified that the County’s fire services are funded by a dedicated fire fund, which is separate from the County’s general fund. So while city residents do pay county taxes, those taxes do not go directly toward funding fire services.
He also pointed out that the City had actually initiated the end of the automatic aid agreement, not the County.
City Manager Charles Penny agreed that the City had notified the County that automatic aid would cease on July 1, but said that decision came after the County’s abrupt change in direction and funding. “Our fire department has been responding to County calls under automatic aid,” Penny said. “That essentially means the City has been subsidizing the County.”
Penny explained that the City’s current fire staffing levels, now at 69 full-time firefighters, were made possible through a combination of city investment and a federal SAFER grant (added 12 firefighters). That funding allowed the City to properly staff fire trucks with four-person crews, enabling them to act immediately upon arrival without waiting for backup.
However, Penny noted that when the grant expires in 2027, the City will be responsible for the full cost of those positions and had already communicated to the County that additional funding support would be needed at that time. What concerned him most, he said, was that despite those earlier discussions, the County unexpectedly pulled roughly half of the $2.3 million in fire district funding during the January 3 meeting. As a result, the City is now preparing its budget without any contribution from the County for fire protection outside city limits.
Still, he echoed Mayor McCollar’s call for calm, saying, “There’s a way to do what the County wants and what the City wants — but it requires both sides to sit down and talk.”
After the lengthy exchange, both McCollar and Rushing agreed that the only way forward was through actual staff-level conversations. McCollar proposed that each government appoint a team to begin mapping out what a phased plan could look like.
Rushing agreed and added urgency. “We’ve got people about to be hit with an ISO rating of 10,” he said. “We’ve got to start somewhere, and this is it.”
City Fire Chief Tim Grams provided technical context on how automatic aid has changed over the years. When he became Chief in 2010, the City had fewer staff and the County was mostly volunteer, making the mutual support system beneficial for both.
But today, Grams said, the City is better staffed and more capable of self-sufficient response. “We have 20 firefighters per shift now. The challenge isn’t people — it’s water.”
Grams said he wasn’t opposed to automatic aid, but it had to be fair. “I need to be able to justify the benefit to Mr. Penny and our Council that we're getting an equal benefit, and I'm just not sure that that's where we're at.”
Randy Tillman, the County’s Interim Manager, chimed in to say that fairness should be viewed from both directions. “If the City believes it’s subsidizing the County, then it’s fair to say the County could argue the same thing,” he said.
Tillman emphasized that under the current agreements, both governments are expected to respond to incidents , making the claim of one-sidedness more complicated. “We need to make sure we're defining fairness the same way.”
Chamber President Jennifer Davis thanked all participants and reiterated that the Chamber would help coordinate future meetings. She said the Chamber would continue working with both Interim County Manager Randy Tillman and City Manager Charles Penny to keep the business community informed. “This should not be the last meeting,” she said.
During the meeting, Penny briefly shifted the conversation to a potential opportunity for intergovernmental collaboration beyond fire services. Citing the county’s rising healthcare costs discussed during recent budget meetings, Penny invited the County to consider partnering with the City’s employee health clinic.
The City operates a part-time clinic next to City Hall, staffed by a nurse practitioner and offering services such as flu and strep tests, virtual appointments, and routine wellness care. “Some of our employees even use it as their primary healthcare,” Penny said, noting that the setup has helped reduce insurance costs.
The clinic currently operates three days a week, but Penny said the provider would welcome expanding to five days if the County were to participate. He estimated the city’s contract at about $300,000 per year and suggested the County reach out to insurance consultant Mark Brown for further discussions.
“This isn’t something we have to decide today,” Penny added, “but if the County is interested in reducing long-term costs, it’s a conversation worth having.”
Commission Chairman David Bennett closed the meeting with a forward-looking message. He recalled a conversation with Senator Billy Hickman, who had expressed concern about how divided local governments had become. “I promised him I would work to bridge those gaps,” Bennett said.
He stressed that growth is coming, and with it, increased demand for infrastructure and services. “We can’t keep working in silos,” he said. “We’ve got to work together, even if that means having uncomfortable conversations.”
Bennett ended on a hopeful note. “I feel confident these two fire chiefs can get together and figure this out,” he said. “And I look forward to hearing something good come out of it.”
The common theme of the entire meeting was that everyone in the room wanted to do what was best for Bulloch County and the City of Statesboro. The leaders want to take care of all of it's citizens financially and in regards to their safety. They are looking into meeting again in the future, possibly may. As Jennifer Davis mentioned, this is not something than can be settled all in one meeting.
A meeting is being set up between County Fire Chief Ben Tapley, Interim County Manager Randy Tillman, Statesboro Fire Chief Tim Grams and Statesboro City Manager Charles Penny to continue the conversation.
