Even with the approval of two new labor contracts retroactive to July 1, the Moraga-Orinda Fire District expects to reverse the general fund budget deficit of $583,000 to a $99,000 surplus for the current fiscal year, based on a midyear budget adjustment presented to the board at its Feb. 20 district meeting. And though the resultant increase to the general fund balance raises it to more than $6.3 million, equal to 25 percent of budgeted revenue, director John Jex cautioned that the district was still far short of what it needs to safely operate.
The district approved new three-year contracts with its chief officers association and with its clerical and technical employees that run through June 30, 2021. The additional $72,000 expense of those two contracts was included in the surplus the district recognized for the current year.