The proposed 2023 Public Safety Levy failed to pass. What happens next?
Great Falls voters did not pass the proposed Public Safety Levy in November of 2023. However, public safety needs have not changed in our community, and they are still not being met.
The City Commission is evaluating next steps to solve this issue. The Commission created the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) in April of 2024 to evaluate Great Falls’ public safety needs and to recommend improvements. The PSAC met eight times over several months and delivered recommendations to the City Commission in September of 2024. A few of those recommendations included:
- Add approximately 14 patrol officers
- Add two investigators and two dispatchers
- Enhance School Resource Officers programs
- Add approximately 16 firefighters
- Add one fire prevention personnel
- Add one jury clerk and one courtroom clerk in the Municipal Court
- Add one prosecutor and one victim/witness coordinator in the City Attorney’s Office
The full list of the PSAC’s recommendations can be found here.
Continue scrolling to read how funding shortfalls are affecting Great Falls’ public safety.
What are your expectations for public safety in Great Falls?
Great Falls, Montana, has always been a community where quality of life is the number one priority – a place where residents can enjoy safe neighborhoods, send their children to school with peace-of-mind, be confident their homes and property are secure, trust that someone will respond in case of a medical emergency, and be assured the legal process will protect them and their loved ones. This is the desire and expectation of everyone who calls Great Falls home, and it’s currently at risk.
What impact is our funding shortfall having on public safety in Great Falls?
Single-family structure fires require a total effective response force of 16 members. Great Falls Fire Rescue currently staffs a response force of 13 members. 50% of GFFR calls occur simultaneously. This affects response times and available staffing for an effective response.
Fire & Emergency Medical calls have increased by 700% since 1969. First responders can only adequately address one major incident at a time.
Great Falls Fire Rescue recently received a lower rating from the Insurance Services Office due to lack of proper fire and medical coverage for a geographical area. This will cause insurance rates in our city to rise, mostly affecting businesses.
There are currently only 4 school resource officers (SROs) and 1 SRO supervisor for over 11,000 students and staff at 21 Great Falls Public Schools. SROs play an important role in mentoring youth and proactively deterring crime and conflict at our schools.
Great Falls Fire Rescue cannot meet the national standards for staffing or response times for structure fires. Risks to life safety and costs of fire restoration increase with every minute a structure fire is allowed to burn.