Fire Department under budget | Maryland Gazette (HometownGlenBurnie.com)

The man was referring to more than a decade of the department's overspending each year of, not only the overtime budget, but also its overall budget.

Chief Stokes vowed to restore the public's trust in the budget process and in the fire department's ability to manage its money. And it appears Chief Stokes has kept his word.

For the first time in at least a decade, the county Fire Department's overtime budget is projected to come in under its $5.77 million budgeted for fiscal 2008 - by about $68,000.

Battalion Chief Matthew Tobia, a county Fire Department spokesman, said the department is also projected to have a surplus of $2.5 million in its overall budget. The money will be returned to the general fund of the county.

This marks only the second year since 1993 the department hasn't had to dip into a special fund to balance the books. The county provides the fund to help departments in danger of going over budget, said Kurt Svendsen, the county assistant budget officer.

Despite having an excess in overall spending money fiscal 2007, the department still went $800,000 over its overtime budget in that year, making fiscal 2008 the first time a fire chief has kept both budgets out of the red in years, county Fire Department officials said.

The surplus is thanks to a combination of factors in addition to several money-saving plans Chief Stokes ushered in during his first six months on the job.

First, Chief Stokes "laid down the law" when it came to approval of overtime hours, Chief Tobia said. Deputy chiefs are now required to approve and personally review every overtime expenditure individually, he said.

The staff was also directed to scale back on sending officers to serve on promotion panels across the country. Chief Tobia said the county Fire Department is often asked to send officers as far away as San Francisco to serve on promotion panels.

Taxpayers wind up footing the bill not only for the officers' travel expenses, but also the overtime pay required to compensate the firefighter who works their shift while they're gone.

The communication between career firefighters and volunteers has also strengthened, leading to a decrease in overtime during emergency situations.

The department tries to forecast any possible weather emergency that will require extra units so it can have volunteers on standby.

And this fiscal year, County Executive John R. Leopold authorized the institution of an new physical agility test that will help the county Fire Department hires more physically fit candidates, which will lead to less injuries.

The implementation took some time to get established, and in turn the department did not hire as many firefighters as budgeted, Chief Tobia said.

This caused a delay in hiring vacancies and may spell some trouble for fiscal 2009.

"With the delay in hiring, it may be felt in fiscal 2009," Chief Tobia said. "We're going to need to use more overtime to fill those vacancies."

The highly anticipated Annapolis Neck fire station is also expected to open in April, and will require more staffing.

Changes in fiscal 2009 will also include the retirement of Chief Stokes in October. Deputy Chief J. Robert Ray, appointed this summer by the county executive, will replace him.

In a written statement, Mr. Leopold said Chief Stokes demonstrates it is possible to ensure residents public safety and be a responsible steward of the taxpayer dollars.