by Brian Keaney

The head of the Firefighters Union and the Chief of the Department appeared before the Finance Committee last month to oppose a plan by Town Administrator Bill Keegan to remove the chief’s position from the strictures of civil service.  Keegan called the process “archaic and arcane,” and said removing the position from civil service would open up the widest possible pool of candidates.

Fire Chief Jim Driscoll, who is retiring, told the Committee that he was strongly opposed to the move, and that Town Meeting had overwhelmingly rejected similar proposals three times over the last 30 years.  He said that by taking the position out of civil service a chief would be dependant on the Town Administrator for his job.

“The fire chief’s position should be free from all political influences,” Driscoll said.

Driscoll said that over his time on the force businesses coming into town were no longer run by local businessmen, but by big conglomerates who don’t want to do anything more than the minimum required.  Saying he had a difficult time working with some of them, he added that the chief should be free to push them to improve safety without outside pressure. 

“I don’t feel it is fair to the next person who has this job, I don’t feel it is fair to the Department, and I don’t feel it is fair to the people of Dedham,” Driscoll said. 

For his part, Keegan said the Fire Chief was the only department head that he did not have complete freedom in who he could appoint.  Under civil service laws Keegan must select one of the top three scorers on the exam, and only those who have been a deputy chief in Dedham for at least a year were invited to take the exam.

“I take the appointment of Town department heads very seriously,” Keegan said.  “I think I’ve adequately demonstrated over the years that I’ve appointed very high quality candidates to the positions and I intended to do so for the fire chief’s as well.”

Keegan said that while he would be open to appointing an internal candidate, the only way for him to know if he had the best candidate is to open up the process to all.  Keegan, under the current rules, could also opt for an “open exam” in which any Massachusetts deputy chief could take the exam and apply for the position.  A chief appointed under an open exam would still receive civil service protections.

Fred Loewen, head of the firefighters union, appeared alongside Driscoll to oppose the change.  He said that while the union would like to see the chief’s job go to an internal candidate, that they would not be opposed to an open exam.  However, he said, they do not want to see the position removed from civil service. 

Two deputy chiefs also spoke out against the proposal.  All four took the exam, but only two are reportedly interested in taking the top position. 

Saying he was “pretty disappointed in the way the town handled this whole issue,” Deputy Chief John Fontaine said it would not be fair to remove the position after all four deputies had spent thousands of dollars and hours studying for the exam.  Fontaine said he did not know that Keegan intended to remove the position from civil service until he read about it on myDedhamNews two weeks before the exam.

Keegan replied by saying that he was very open about his intentions, and that he had told Driscoll of his plans months before. 

Fontaine added that he was not only speaking as a deputy chief, but as a resident and taxpayer as well.  “My vested interest is the town, and it is the Fire Department,” he said.  Chiefs who are not protected by civil service can be removed more easily from the position, he said, which is bad for morale and makes it more difficult to get things accomplished.

Keegan said he would assemble a panel of experts to help him select a new chief and may hire a professional to help evaluate candidates.  He emphasized that the best choice may be an internal candidate, as has been the case with the Police Department.  Since the chief of police was removed from civil service in the 1990’s both men appointed to the position have been Dedham officers.

Keegan said he could not know for sure that someone from the Department was most qualified, however, if the position was only open to the four deputy chiefs. 

“I have an obligation when considering candidates for all… positions,” Keegan said.  “The best way for me to evaluate the best candidate for that job is to look beyond the borders of Dedham.”

Article 37 will be debated at Town Meeting on May 18.