This proposition is the result of a petition the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 3082 circulated in the fall of 2025. Bill Clifton, Secretary of this organization, presented it to the City Council in November. This organization indicated that the petition is a response to a report on a study that the City of Round Rock itself commissioned in 2024 to examine the performance of its emergency responders. The report recommended that the city establish performance objectives and improve staff deployment practices. The petition called for an amendment to Round Rock’s City Charter to include specific standards for the City’s Fire Department.
The City verified that the petition had enough signatures from eligible voters in Round Rock to require that the City Council place the proposed amendment on the ballot in May 2026, and the Council voted to do so in January 2026.
Shall the Home Rule Charter of the City of Round Rock, Texas, be amended to add Article XVI to require the City of Round Rock Fire Department to implement the NFPA 1710 minimum staffing levels and performance objectives for alarm answering, alarm processing, turnout, and travel times; require phased deadlines between 2027 and 2037 for compliance; require a biennial analysis for compliance to be conducted by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF); and require the waiver of sovereign immunity by the city for any enforcement suits for non-compliance?
This proposed Charter amendment calls for placing specific staffing levels and performance standards for the Fire Department into the City’s Charter, to be phased in over the next ten years. The proposed standards are based directly on NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) 1710, a nationally recognized set of standards for fire protection. This code of standards defines staffing requirements for different types of fire emergency responses. It also includes benchmarks for departmental performance, expressed in maximum response times for emergency calls. The City of Round Rock already uses these standards as a reference for its administration of the Fire Department, but they are not currently encoded in the City’s ordinances or in the Charter.
To enforce these standards, the Charter amendment would require a performance review by the IAFF every two years. The amended Charter would also include a limited waiver of the City’s sovereign immunity status. The goal of this waiver would be to allow lawsuits against the City by citizens, employees, or employee organizations to enforce compliance.
If Proposition B passes:
The City would be required to implement practices to meet these nationally recognized standards. The Proposition’s sponsors think these standards would improve the safety of the City’s emergency personnel and its citizens.
These standards could not be changed, updated, or adjusted by Council action or changes in administrative policy; only another Charter Amendment passed by voters could make changes.
If meeting these standards required more money than already included in the city’s current and projected budgets for the department, the city would have to seek tax increases from the voters, reduce the funding of other city services (most of whose requirements are not mandated by Charter-embedded specifications), and/or face the possibility of civil liability and litigation expenses.
If Proposition B fails:
The City of Round Rock could continue its current practices for allocating staff and monitoring/improving the performance of its firefighters. The City would have the option of adopting formal staffing and performance standards in administrative policies and/or by implementing them in ordinances. Public pressure or recommendations brought to the City through Meet and Confer negotiations between employee organizations and the City could also influence the City to focus on improved standards. Finally, citizens could use the initiative process (rather than a petition for a Charter amendment) to establish such standards.
For more information, see the IAFF Local 3082’s endorsement of Proposition B (www.roundrockfirefighters.org/round-rock-safety) and the City of Round Rock’s information on Proposition B (www.roundrocktexas.gov/city-departments/administration/prop-b-fire-staffing-and-performance-objectives/).
This proposition is the result of a petition the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 3082 circulated in the fall of 2025. Bill Clifton, Secretary of this organization, presented it to the City Council in November. This organization indicated that the petition is a response to a report on a study that the City of Round Rock itself commissioned in 2024 to examine the performance of its emergency responders. The report recommended that the city establish performance objectives and improve staff deployment practices. The petition called for an amendment to Round Rock’s City Charter to include specific standards for the City’s Fire Department.
The City verified that the petition had enough signatures from eligible voters in Round Rock to require that the City Council place the proposed amendment on the ballot in May 2026, and the Council voted to do so in January 2026.
Shall the Home Rule Charter of the City of Round Rock, Texas, be amended to add Article XVI to require the City of Round Rock Fire Department to implement the NFPA 1710 minimum staffing levels and performance objectives for alarm answering, alarm processing, turnout, and travel times; require phased deadlines between 2027 and 2037 for compliance; require a biennial analysis for compliance to be conducted by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF); and require the waiver of sovereign immunity by the city for any enforcement suits for non-compliance?
This proposed Charter amendment calls for placing specific staffing levels and performance standards for the Fire Department into the City’s Charter, to be phased in over the next ten years. The proposed standards are based directly on NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) 1710, a nationally recognized set of standards for fire protection. This code of standards defines staffing requirements for different types of fire emergency responses. It also includes benchmarks for departmental performance, expressed in maximum response times for emergency calls. The City of Round Rock already uses these standards as a reference for its administration of the Fire Department, but they are not currently encoded in the City’s ordinances or in the Charter.
To enforce these standards, the Charter amendment would require a performance review by the IAFF every two years. The amended Charter would also include a limited waiver of the City’s sovereign immunity status. The goal of this waiver would be to allow lawsuits against the City by citizens, employees, or employee organizations to enforce compliance.
If Proposition B passes:
The City would be required to implement practices to meet these nationally recognized standards. The Proposition’s sponsors think these standards would improve the safety of the City’s emergency personnel and its citizens.
These standards could not be changed, updated, or adjusted by Council action or changes in administrative policy; only another Charter Amendment passed by voters could make changes.
If meeting these standards required more money than already included in the city’s current and projected budgets for the department, the city would have to seek tax increases from the voters, reduce the funding of other city services (most of whose requirements are not mandated by Charter-embedded specifications), and/or face the possibility of civil liability and litigation expenses.
If Proposition B fails:
The City of Round Rock could continue its current practices for allocating staff and monitoring/improving the performance of its firefighters. The City would have the option of adopting formal staffing and performance standards in administrative policies and/or by implementing them in ordinances. Public pressure or recommendations brought to the City through Meet and Confer negotiations between employee organizations and the City could also influence the City to focus on improved standards. Finally, citizens could use the initiative process (rather than a petition for a Charter amendment) to establish such standards.
For more information, see the IAFF Local 3082’s endorsement of Proposition B (www.roundrockfirefighters.org/round-rock-safety) and the City of Round Rock’s information on Proposition B (www.roundrocktexas.gov/city-departments/administration/prop-b-fire-staffing-and-performance-objectives/).
