TROTWOOD — Trotwood City Council is getting ready to vote on the 2026 budget that could impact the number of firefighters working in the city.
The city lost federal money used to pay for nine temporary firefighting positions.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
In 2021, the Trotwood Fire Department was awarded the FEMA SAFER Grant to hire nine employees.
That money lasted for three years.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Coroner IDs 57-year-old man killed in head-on crash at busy Dayton intersection
- Ohio man dies after crash involving farm vehicle in Indiana
- Former Ohio police officer accused of voyeurism
Of those nine grant employees, five are still at the department.
In February, that grant money expired.
“FEMA made changes to the retention portion of the grant program nationwide, making Trotwood ineligible to renew it,” the city said in a statement.
The city paid for the five grant positions for the rest of 2025.
In the proposed 2026 budget city council is voting on Monday night, it does not include those five grant positions, meaning those firefighters will lose their jobs at the department.
The city said fire and EMS services will not be impacted.
Trotwood Fire Union’s President Seth Haley does not agree with that.
“We don’t know why we’re losing them now, and we need them more than ever now,” Haley said. “Tonight I hope maybe city council votes to reject the proposed budget, and however we can come to some kind of agreement or solution to keep these guys on the fire department.”
We will continue to follow this story.
[SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
