The Berkeley County Council approved a hike in the county’s annual fire fees to pay for paid firefighters, however it was a lesser amount than originally proposed.
By a 3-2 vote, with councilmen Jim Barnhart and Dan Dulyea voting against, the council passed a resolution to double fire fees for both residential and commercial buildings, generating an estimated $2.1 million in revenues.
The council’s original proposal would have tripled the county’s fees to raise an estimated $4.2 million to pay for 60 paid firefighters to staff the county’s five fire departments with four full time positions. The county currently pays for nine full-time firemen.