### Meeting Overview The Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee met on November 17, 2025, with council members including Skip Williams and Michael Lilliquist. The committee reviewed two key items: an interlocal agreement for paramedic training funding for 2026 and the adoption of the city's updated comprehensive emergency management plan. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Interlocal Agreement (ILA):** A formal contract between two or more local government jurisdictions to share costs, services, or resources for mutual benefit. **Preceptor:** An experienced paramedic who serves as a mentor and evaluator for paramedic students throughout their training program, providing one-on-one guidance and assessment on every call. **Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CMP):** A state-required document that outlines how the city will coordinate emergency response, from daily incidents to major disasters, covering mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery. **Emergency Operations Center (EOC):** A central command facility that coordinates emergency response activities across multiple departments and jurisdictions during major incidents or disasters. **All Hazards Approach:** Emergency planning that prepares for any type of disaster or emergency scenario, regardless of the specific cause or nature of the event. **Minimum Staffing:** The required number of qualified personnel needed to safely operate emergency services at any given time. **Backfill Costs:** Expenses for hiring temporary or overtime staff to cover the duties of employees who are in training programs. **Annexes:** Detailed operational sections of the emergency management plan that provide specific procedures for different types of emergency functions and scenarios. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Skip Williams | Council Member, Committee Chair | | Michael Lilliquist | Council Member | | Assistant Chief Pathik | Bellingham Fire Department | | Chief Huitt | Bellingham Fire Department | | Jonas Stinson | Emergency Management Plans Coordinator, Bellingham Fire Department Office of Emergency Management | ### Background Context The paramedic training program represents a crucial investment in Bellingham's emergency medical services capacity. The city operates this program in partnership with Whatcom County under a multi-year contract, training current firefighters and EMTs to become paramedics through an apprenticeship-style program that combines classroom learning with hands-on field experience. This training is essential for maintaining adequate paramedic staffing levels as the community grows. The comprehensive emergency management plan update reflects lessons learned from recent emergencies, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic, which required the city to operate an emergency operations center for over a year. The plan incorporates new federal and state guidance, updated census data for translation needs, and expanded procedures for scenarios like evacuation and donation management. With Whatcom County experiencing over 10 federally declared emergencies in the past decade, having an updated emergency plan is critical for protecting residents and coordinating with state and federal resources. ### What Happened — The Short Version The committee unanimously approved both agenda items. For the paramedic training agreement, council members learned that the four students in the 2026 cohort will work full-time in the program for 14 months, spending time both in classrooms and riding on ambulances with experienced paramedic preceptors. The training follows an apprenticeship model where students gradually take on more responsibility throughout the program. For the emergency management plan, Emergency Management Coordinator Jonas Stinson explained that the updated plan replaces the 2018 version and incorporates pandemic lessons learned, new state and federal requirements, and updated census data. The plan covers three main areas: population protection (including mass care and evacuation), logistics and resource support, and critical infrastructure. Both items will move forward to the full city council for final approval. ### What to Watch Next • Final city council approval of both the paramedic training agreement and emergency management plan • Implementation of the emergency management plan across all city departments starting in January 2026 • Development of the 2026 natural hazards mitigation plan, which must incorporate elements from the new emergency management plan ---