With a ticking clock growing ever louder in the background, the Orange County Fire Authority rejected several demands made by Irvine that would keep the city in the fold as a voting member of the regional emergency coalition.
“Basically, Irvine was told to pound sand,” said County Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who sits on the Fire Authority board of directors.
This throws the ball back into Irvine’s court. The city is expected to weigh its next move on Tuesday, June 26, just four days before a June 30 deadline for deciding whether it will stay or go.
The problem is this: Thanks to property tax formulas that were locked in decades ago, Irvine pays far more to the Fire Authority than it gets back in services. Depending on how you factor it, Irvine’s over-payment could be as much as $23 million a year, or as little as $5 million a year.