Boca Raton Reaches New Contract With Firefighters, Approves Salary Increase

Boca Raton Fire-Rescue Station 3. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

Boca Raton officials have reached a single-year pact with the city’s Fire-Rescue employees, providing a salary increase for current employees and a health insurance refund for certain retirees.

The agreement between the city and International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1560 covers the period from Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2027. This week, the city council unanimously approved both the contract and a related ordinance amending the police and firefighters’ pension plan to reflect the new terms of the agreement. The union ratified the deal earlier in August. The estimated cost to the city is $1.87 million in fiscal 2026-27, an amount already included in the city’s annual operating budget for the coming year.

Under the new agreement, every step in the pay scale for firefighter through battalion and division chief rises 3.6 percent. A starting firefighter’s annual pay moves to about $74,706, while a top-step firefighter reaches about $114,117. Drivers, lieutenants, captains, inspectors and chiefs received corresponding increases. Certification pay for paramedics (who earn 17 percent over base pay), EMTs (who earn 3 percent over base) and other specialties such as hazardous-materials technician or technical rescue will also rise by the same percentage. Longevity payments remain $600 after five years, $800 after 10 years and $1,000 after 15 years.

The contract continues the city’s 3 percent contribution to the firefighters’ retiree health insurance trust, known by its acronym VEBA. The city’s monthly payment into the union-run medical plan will rise 3 percent to $1,407 per employee, plus the same dental and vision amounts the city pays for other workers. Employees cover any remaining premium costs.

Boca Raton Fire-Rescue equipment. (File Photo)

A key new pension provision addresses firefighters who bought up to five years of prior military or other fire-service credit before April 14, 2015. That date is when a dollar cap on annual benefits took effect. According to a memorandum from city leadership, the cap was not built into the original purchase price, so some members were effectively overcharged. Five current employees who have not yet retired may receive a full or partial refund, without interest, when they retire or enter a deferred retirement program. The refund equals the portion of the original purchase that lost value because of the cap. The change is projected to raise the pension plan’s unfunded liability by $56,922 and the city’s annual contribution by $4,337.

The same pension provision also raises a monthly lifetime retirement supplement from $10.50 to $50 per year of service for members still working on or after Sept. 21, 2023, and confirms cancer-presumption benefits required by state law.

The remainder of the contract largely continued existing practices on overtime, leave, promotions, physical-fitness standards and a ban on tobacco use for employees hired after 1990. The city retains management rights over staffing, assignments and operations. The contract expires Sept. 30, 2027, unless both sides agree to extend it.