Top Ten Mistakes
Made by Fire Boards
Facilitated By Jeff Dyar
jeffdyar@skywerx.com
The Far View Group, LLC All Rights Reserved 2010
2
Upper Pine River Fire Protection
District
 formed in November 1974
 covers 265 square miles La Plata County
 urban interface fire protection district We
 mutual aid with the forest service and surrounding fire
districts.
…a little about me
 39 Years in EMS/fire service
 EMS and Health & Safety
Programs, NFA (ret.)
 Recent Opportunities:
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FEMA Ops Chief
Littleton Report
WTC Response
2002 Olympics
Mesa Verde fires
PRVFPD Board Member
LPFPD Member
Author
One night you were dreaming about
being a Board Member …..
Warning!
The following activity is considered
dangerous by some adults…
Proceed under Caution and
at Your Own Risk!
Who Are You People?
 Where are you from?
 What do you do?
 What do you want from this session?
…. Two Minute Drill!
A Reality Check
 New Member Training/mentoring
 Background Check for new Board Members
 Position/duties description for Members
 Agreement on Roles and Responsibilities
 Human Resources/policy Guide – legally reviewed
 Conflict Management Plan
Conflict of Interest
 any situation in which an individual or corporation
(either private or governmental) is in a position to
exploit a professional or official capacity in some way
for their personal or corporate benefit.
 A director or executive of a corporation will be subject
to legal liability if a conflict of interest breaches his Duty
of Loyalty
Nepotism
 Nepotism - noun : favoritism (as in appointment to a
job) based on kinship Merriam-Webster Online
Dictionary
 Cannot Discriminate Based on Nepotism
 District Policy/ethics should guide actions
Accounting/Auditing
 29-1-603 CRS Annual Audit
 $500K - $100K Exemption
 Embezzlement is the act of dishonestly
appropriating or secreting assets by one or more
individuals to whom such assets have been
entrusted
Conflict Management Plan
 Conflict is inevitable, normal, guaranteed
 Behavioral Expectations
 Conflict Resolution
What are your expectations for
behavior?
 Just do your job!
 Can’t we all just get along?
 Read the Personnel Manual
 Define it, coach it, measure it!
Insurance
 Professional -error or omission, a mistake, which
causes financial harm to another, can occur on almost
any transaction in any profession
 Bond –
 Surety minimum $1000 – Individual director
 Corporate Fidelity minimum $5K – Entire board
 Required – Workers Comp, Health Care, Capital
Investment, Investment
Role Ambiguity – Board and
Chief
The Job of a Board Member or
Elected Official
 Fiduciary Responsibilities
 Oversight of the Organization
 Support of the Organizational Leadership
 Coordinate with Neighboring Organizations
 Keep Current on State and Federal Issues
 Set Budget and Administrative Parameters
Job of the Fire Chief
 Administer the Budget approved by the board
 Manage the Day to Day Activities
 Manage Human Resources
 Manage Operations, Prevention and Planning
 Inform and Educate the Board/EF
Role Ambiguity – Board and
Members
 Duty of Loyalty
 a term used in corporate law to describe a fiduciaries'
"conflicts of interest and requires fiduciaries to put the
corporation's interests ahead of their own.”
CRS Violations
 Meetings
 Elections
 Bylaws
 Auditing
 Tabor
 Fiduciary Requirements
Hiring Processes
 For a Chief – Have a Process
 Credentialing – Work Experience
 For Firefighter – Validated Testing
 Validated Test – Written
 Agility – CPAT
• Top Two for Litigation
HR Management
 Legally Reviewed Policies and Procedures
 SDA has a sample set - Don’t Copy
 Beware of Legally Required Policies
 Training for ALL MEMBERS, STAFF, DIRECTORS
Training
 95% of New Members don’t receive Training
 95% of Established Members don’t receive Training
 Most Boards don’t do Strategic Planning
 Most Boards don’t manage Conflict
 50% of Districts have no HR policies
HOUSE BILL 09-1199
 24-33.5-1212. Training for directors of fire protection districts - pilot
program - advisory board - training fund - repeal. (5) (a) The division
shall offer courses to directors of fire protection districts in accordance
with this section at no charge …..
Tentative Curriculum – 4 hours, 8 deliveries across State
- Wildland-Urban Interface Planning
- Strategic Planning – Fire District
- Roles/Responsibilities – Fiduciary
Delivery before June 2011
What to Do Now!
 Get Training
 for new Directors, recurrent for ALL Directors
 Don’t forget Admin and Chief Officers
 HB 1199
• Review the “Top Ten” and conduct a Vulnerability
Assessment
• Get Outside Help
Thanks for Attending!
For Information on this presentation, a copy of the presentation
or help with District issues, Contact:
Jeffdyar@skywerx.com (970) 769-0788