Supervisor Don Hickman of Longswamp Township and Topton Fire Chief Jason Robinson attended the Hereford Township Board of Supervisors' meeting on Tuesday, December 5 to present a report on the township's position on the defunding of the Seisholtzville Fire Company for this year.

            Fire company officials from Seisholtzville had attended the Hereford board's second November meeting and had informed the supervisors at that time that they were not going to receive funding for 2023 from Longswamp. At that time, they were aware that an unsigned contract was at the crux of the matter.

            Longswamp supervisor Hickman, however, stated that although the contract was the tipping point, he and his fellow board members had numerous concerns about the company's operations.  He cited inadequate financial record-keeping and that Longswamp had received no audits from the company, which they expected from organizations they funded. 

            He said, "We can't commit to give them any money if we don't know what's going on." He further stated that they can't continue to use taxpayer money to fund a social club.  The company receives nearly $16,000 annually from Longswamp. Hickman said that his township did pay Seisholtzville's workman's comp for this year.

            The funds allotted for Seisholtzville were shifted to Topton.

            Furthermore, the company frequently failed to respond to emergency calls during daylight hours Monday through Friday. Topton chief Robinson said the company had a 35 to 40 percent "scratch rate" on calls and that he had been adding a Hereford Fire Company truck to their calls to ensure adequate coverage.

            Robinson also said that Seisholtzville never attended any of Longswamp's joint public safety meetings and added that Topton has no difficulty getting to calls promptly in the section of Longswamp that is closer to Seisholtzville. He said that the company had lost seven or eight members to Topton because of the lack of training opportunities.

            Hickman said that he had made seven different attempts to get the contract signed by Seisholtzville officials but was unable to make contact. Mail and email had gone unanswered. The contract was supposed to have been signed in April 2023 and the Longswamp board gave them some leeway until July. When the company still did not respond, the board declared the contract null and void.

            Hereford board chair John Membrino said, "The former chief really let things go."  The contract, however, was nothing new to the current leadership at Seisholtzville.

            "Their presence in the community is very important," Membrino added. Hickman said that if the situation improves, they would be eligible for funding in 2024.

            Under unfinished business, the supervisors authorized the purchase of a new Tiger mower for $103,816 from Stephenson Equipment.

            Township secretary Hannah Edwards announced that dog tags for 2024 are now available in the township office.