Manteca Fire would need to close two of its five fire stations if it was not for the half cent Measure M public safety sales tax passed in 2006.

That tax pays for the salaries and benefits of 18 of the department’s 48 suppression personnel or 37.5 percent of the frontline manpower.

Today, the citizens oversight committee for the public safety tax when they meet at 5 p.m. will be delivered that message by Battalion Chief Franco Torrice.

But it will also come with a heads up on the need for additional firefighters to prevent response times from increasing as Manteca grows, on average, by an additional 1,200 homes a year.

“Without adequate staffing, response times will increase, putting lives and property at risk,” Torrice notes in a report to the committee.

“As the community continues to grow, so too must our ability to respond to emergencies effectively and efficiently.”

Torrice indicates new funding sources will be needed besides from the general fund and Measure M.

The city needs, according to recommendations from its fire department management, 18 more firefighters.

That includes nine for the sixth fire station that is moving forward in southwest Manteca and nine for a separate dedicated tiller truck company to allow it to be stationed at a central location at the Union Road station.

Measure Q could be a source.

But nine firefighters would cost $2.7 million on a reoccurring basis.

Measure Q  is projected to bring in between $12 million and $16 million on an annual basis in constant 2025 dollars.

The three-quarter cent tax was authorized by the voters for only 20 years.

It also is being looked at to address other pressing needs from road maintenance work to increased police staffing.

The city does have one other source of potential funding that is several years away from being in a position it can tap.

That’s a new community facilitates district tax to pay for additional police and firefighters on an ongoing basis.

It only applies, generally, to new housing developments that required council approval to move forward after 2022.

It likely will require between 250 and 300 homes tied to the fee to be in place for a year or so before there are enough funds to cover a frontline public safety position.

As such, the fee can be used to cover the cost of some additional firefighters.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com