A Senate committee has delayed voting on a bill that could force townships to merge with the Indianapolis Fire Department.

The Senate Committee on Pensions and Labor is considering Senate Bill 54, which would allow the Indianapolis City-County Council and Mayor Joe Hogsett to wrap the Decatur, Pike and Wayne township fire departments into the Indianapolis Fire Department.

The city did not ask for the legislation and is not currently considering such mergers, but township officials are wary of what might happen in the future should the bill become law.

Wayne Township is considering merging on its own terms, but the leaders of Decatur and Pike townships said their residents don’t want a merger. All three leaders oppose SB 54, and have said they want any such merger decisions to begin at their level of government.

The bill’s author, Sen. Scott Baldwin, R-Noblesville, said he worked with members of the Professional Firefighters Union of Indiana to craft the bill. Joining IFD could put township firefighters in line for pay raises and promotions.

Baldwin also said merging the departments would better manage the fire resources available to Indianapolis residents while saving taxpayers $40 million. He and the union say that’s how much money taxpayers would save combined annually, because IFD has lower tax rates than the townships.

“As I listened to those public policy reasons, they seem to outweigh the public policy of leaving local control to locals,” Baldwin told the committee.

Some residents and township officials have questioned why a senator who represents Noblesville filed the bill.

Baldwin said union officials sought him out to introduce the bill because he was outside of Marion County and was outside of the political ramifications that such a decision would bring.

“I think it’s sort of a political hot potato, and I think somebody who’s not from Marion County can bring it with a straight face and not be politically injured,” he said.

Professional Firefighters Union President Tony Murray, a Noblesville firefighter and paramedic, said the bill would begin the conversation about modernizing how Indianapolis deals with emergency response.

“This is a conversation about how fire and emergency services are delivered to meet the mission of the modern fire service delivery model in a major metropolitan city while undoing what could be perceived as the antiquated siloing model of emergency services delivery.”

Pike, Decatur township residents oppose bill

Wayne Township officials are considering merging with IFD because they’re in dire financial straits. But the story is different in Pike and Decatur townships, which have well-regarded fire departments with ample resources.

Pike and Decatur township residents who spoke at the hearing said the bill is not needed, as current law allows a township that wants to merge to do so voluntarily.

Residents also told the committee that they are fine with paying more taxes for emergency services than those in the Indianapolis Fire Department service area, because they like the services they receive now. In fact, they think they have a life-saving edge in emergency response. One resident said some might even be willing to pay more to keep their emergency services local.

“If it’s accurate that consolidation saves us tax dollars, while the gesture is appreciated, why can’t we make that decision?” asked Pike Township Residents Association President Susan Blair.

Another concern is response time. Township leaders said they were concerned a forced merger would increase the time it takes firefighters and emergency services to respond.

The Indianapolis Fire Department has said it receives about 160,000 calls a year, averaging to about 438 calls a day.

Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, who represents the west side, is against the bill. He said the westside fire departments likely would be helping the Indianapolis Fire Department more than it helps them. For instance, Young said Decatur Township responded to the IFD service area 585 times while IFD came to Decatur only 157 times.

Indianapolis Fire Department Chief Ernest Malone told the committee that his department is capable of sending units to the southwest side of town, but because of the reduced number of calls fielded by the townships it is often faster to send their emergency services to respond.

“Because that Decatur Township ladder is sitting there, it can get there faster,” Malone testified. “In an effort to provide the best public service, we allow them to come in. Same for Pike, Wayne and Speedway.”

Malone did not take a position on the bill.

The Senate Committee on Pensions and Labor is set to vote on the bill at its next meeting, which could happen Jan. 24.

Mirror Indy reporter Enrique Saenz covers west Indianapolis. Contact him at 317-983-4203 or enrique.saenz@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @heyEnriqueSaenz.