Holbrook Fire District

Board of Fire Commissioners

Commissioner Joseph Williams

(Chairman Of The Board)

Commissioner Charles Vermilyea

(Vice Chair of The Board) 

 

Commissioner Joseph Patton

Commissioner Christian Heinssen

Commissioner Neil Heffernan

District Manager Thomas Pelio

District Secretary Carolyn Rogers

 District Treasurer Teresa Leonard 

What is a fire district?

A fire district is a separate unit of local government that is established for the purpose of providing fire protection and response to emergencies. A fire district need not have its own firefighters or equipment; it can contract with a neighboring municipality or district.

Fire districts are not necessarily coterminous with towns. They may span several towns or portions of towns, and a town may contain parts of multiple fire districts. In addition, the governing boards of one or more towns and one or more villages may form a joint fire district. If a joint district is formed, the municipal governing boards must adopt a local law dissolving any existing fire, fire alarm or fire protection districts contained within the joint fire district. A fire district is created, extended, or dissolved by a town board. However, such changes must be at the request of a majority of the fire district commissioners or land-owning resident taxpayers of the district, and is subject to permissive referendum. Details on how such changes may occur are in the Department of State’s publication on fire protection consolidation.

A fire district is overseen by an elected board of commissioners composed of five members serving five year terms. (The fire commissioners in joint fire districts may be elected or appointed.) The Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) reports that there are 867 fire districts, an increase of 20 districts in the past 20 years. The commissioners appoint the members of the fire companies within the fire district, and may provide for the removal of those members for cause. They also organize, operate, maintain and equip fire companies.