After more than half a century, the Town of Montgomery Volunteer Ambulance Corps may be closing its doors for good.

“Our ambulance corps is in dire need of help. At the rate we are going, I would give it another—and I’m pushing it—year before I have to close our doors,” said Kyle Shorette, president of the Town of Montgomery Volunteer Ambulance Corps (TOMAC).

Shorette made an appeal for support to the Montgomery Town Board last week with his brother Eric, acting captain, and Treasurer Diane Savage, along with other members of the ambulance corps. Together they painted a stark picture: they are not only penniless, but currently running at a deficit of $10,000.

“We’re kind of robbing Peter to pay Paul right now, just to keep the ambulance corps afloat,” said Shorette.

Shorette explained that they’ve cut back on everything that they can, running on minimal supplies, buying only refurbished equipment and haven’t even considered purchasing a new ambulance—which would cost at least $190,000. Their oldest ambulance is ten years old.

The mileage accumulates quickly on all three of their ambulances as they respond to 2,200 calls each year, across an area of 51 square miles.

They have 30 volunteers, but in order to serve the community they need to fund 24 paid staff, vehicle maintenance, fuel, insurance, medications and other essential supplies. They set a budget for about $560,000 this year—the same as last year—but the costs keep going up.

Shorette explained that at the same time, the funds coming in are falling far short and insurance companies are hurting them, looking to stop paying for transport altogether or setting high deductibles that rest on the taxpayers.

In January, TOMAC received a statement showing that approximately $240,000 in bills for service went unpaid in 2018. As they do not send taxpayers to collections, that becomes a substantial hit to their budget. While they noted that they do receive donations and some payments, it is not enough to cover their expenses.

Adding to the struggle is having to contract with commercial agencies like Mobile Life for backup and Advanced Life Support (ALS) services. In 2018 they paid $65,000 to Mobile Life.

If the town decides to support the agency, TOMAC intends to pursue approval to become an ALS provider and hopefully alleviate some of that cost.

The ambulance corps is asking the town for $300,000 to make up the gap in unpaid services. If they should receive over an agreed upon amount through billing or donations, they would return any excess funds to the town.

Shorette stated that every agency in Orange County—with a couple exceptions—follows the same model.

When asked if they were looking to form a taxing district, they shied away from the idea, stating that it would cost taxpayers more, in the area of $800,000. If they were a taxing district, they would no longer be able to bill.

The Montgomery Town Board intends to discuss the proposal as they work on next year’s budget. Their first budget workshop will take place on Oct. 3 at 6 p.m.

Supervisor Rodney Winchell spoke briefly about the tentative budget, explaining his goal was to keep taxes the same and do more.

While he did not provide the public with any specific numbers, he stated he was “not over-budgeting expenses or under-estimating revenue, analyzing employee overtime” and that a “lack of segregation of duties” led him to add six new departments to the budget.

Meanwhile, Bill Trainor, a CPA with Nugent & Haeussler, said the town is “very stable” and “under no threat of fiscal stress.”

Trainor presented the firm’s draft financial report on Thursday, following a lengthy executive session with the town board and their attorney, William Frank. Frank said the session was simply for the board to confer with counsel about the report.

The town’s budget for 2020 will include a new 5-year contract with the Walden Humane Society, which was approved unanimously by the board that same evening.

The non-profit agency, which found homes for more than 600 cats and dogs last year, will receive $51,000, with a $1,000 increase each year for the next four years.

Attorney for the town, William Frank, noted that the contract could be for five years, but only if there was a cancellation option so as “not to bind future boards,” which he added to the contract.

In addition, the board approved a new rental lease for the Town of Montgomery Food Pantry at a rate of $250 per month. The rate has remained the same since 1995.

“That’s fine with me,” said Councilman Dan Dempsey. “I think they provide a great service.”

The first budget workshop with department heads is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Oct. 3.