NWFR Board of Fire Commissioners Meeting

BOARD of COMMISSIONERS ROLE

The role of the Board of Fire Commissioners of North Whatcom Fire and Rescue District is to establish the policies and budget of the District; provide fiscal controls; provide a conduit to the citizens of the community; and to employ a Fire Chief to implement and direct the necessary functions following the strategic plans and policies of the District. The District is governed by the Board and not the Commissioners individually. Only the Board has the authority to act, the individual Commissioners have no authority to act unless delegated that power by the Board.

Role of the Individual Commissioner

Each individual Commissioner works as part of a team on the Board to reach decisions of the Board. Each Commissioner should review the packet of material prepared by staff prior to the meeting of the Board in order to be prepared for the meeting. Once the Board has reached a decision, the individual Commissioner should make an effort to support the decision of the Board even if they do not like the decision of the Board.

Guiding Principles

Through honest, open and visionary direction; we, the Board of Commissioners for North Whatcom Fire and Rescue, will lead by example. We shall hold ourselves accountable while engaging in open dialogue and transparent policy development. We embrace new ideas and accept change as needed to provide the resources for agency employees required to perform their duties safely and with excellence. We shall strive for policies that result in the highest quality of public safety services that can be reasonably provided in a timely manner to those we serve.

We will adhere to a spirit of cooperation and collaboration with our colleagues and respect each other’s opinions while remaining fully accountable for our actions as officials in fulfilling a public trust.