Agenda

Return

C. 17

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	Greg Baer, Director of Airports
Date:	April 4, 2023

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Approval of an Agreement with Dallas/Fort Worth Fire Training Research Center

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 04/04/2023

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Diane Burgis, District III Supervisor

ABSENT:

Ken Carlson, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Greg Baer, 925-681-4200

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: April 4, 2023
Monica Nino, County Administrator

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Director of Airports, or designee, to enter into an Agreement with the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport Fire Training Research Center (FTRC), for staff training that is required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for airports such as Buchanan Field and other similarly certified airports.

FISCAL IMPACT:

There is no impact on the County General Fund. The approximate registration costs for the 40 hour and eight-hour courses are $1,450 and $900 respectively. The training sessions needed this year are included in the Airports’ Enterprise Fund budget for FY22-23, and future training needs will be included in the annual budget process.

BACKGROUND:

The County maintains and operates the Buchanan Field Airport as a commercial service airport, or commonly referenced as a FAA Part 139 airport. The most significant operational aspect of a Part 139 airport is the requirement to provide adequate equipment and trained personnel for Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) services. The FAA requires 40 hours of initial training and 8 hours of annual recurrent training thereafter. The Dallas/Fort Worth Fire Training Research Center (DFW-FTRC) offers both training opportunities.

The FTRC’s compliance training meets or exceeds the requirements mandated by the FAA for annual and initial Part 139 compliance training. At a minimum, recurrent training must occur for all ARFF personnel at least once every 12 consecutive calendar months, or they will be unable to provide adequate shift coverage. The DFW-FTRC has been the ideal training facility due to the fact they use the same Aircraft Rescue Firefighting apparatus that is used at Buchanan Field. Because the Airports Division needs to acquire such training for new Operations staff, and for recurrent training, the agreement term is indefinite where it will renew annually until terminated by either party.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

If the agreement is not approved, the Airports Division may be unable to maintain its compliance as a FAA Part 139 airport, until an alternative training option is identified.