Ted Wood
From Ballotpedia
Ted Wood is a member of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District in California, representing Division 4. He assumed office in 2013. His current term ends on December 1, 2028.
Wood ran for re-election to the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District to represent Division 4 in California. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Wood completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Ted Wood was born in Los Angeles, California. He earned a bachelor's degree from California State University, Northridge in 1993 and a law degree from University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1997. His career experience includes working as an attorney at law.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Municipal elections in Sacramento County, California (2024)
General election
General election for Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District Division 4
Incumbent Ted Wood defeated Lee Miller in the general election for Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District Division 4 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ted Wood (Nonpartisan)  | 70.6 | 18,726 |
| Lee Miller (Nonpartisan) | 29.4 | 7,800 | ||
| Total votes: 26,526 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Wood in this election.
2020
See also: Municipal elections in Sacramento County, California (2020)
General election
The general election was canceled. Ted Wood (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ted Wood completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Wood's responses.
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I have lived in the Sacramento area since 1993, and in Rancho Cordova since 2008. I have spent most of my professional career in insurance defense litigation and now am a deputy county counsel. When my children were younger, I coached their little league teams. For the last two years, my wife and I have organized the Holiday Parade in Sunridge Park. I have deep roots in my community and have been honored to represent the citizens of Division 4 on the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District.
I joined the Metro Fire Board in 2013 with the goal of getting Station 68 in Rancho Cordova re-opened after it was closed in 2011. It is my
mission to ensure that when a member of the community calls 911, they are met by medics and firefighters who are properly trained, properly equipped and professionally fulfilled. I have spent the last 11 years on the Metro Fire Board working to guarantee that Metro Fire delivers the highest level of service to the public. My actions on the Board demonstrate my commitment to the long-term success of the District.- I have delivered improved service for the citizens of the District. After Station 68 was browned out in 2011, I joined the Board of Directors with the goal of getting it reopened to serve the growing southeast Rancho Cordova communities. We reopened Station 68 in 2015 and moved it out of the temporary structure in which it had been housed and into a permanent station in 2022. The new station was constructed using development impact fees, which had been collected in connection with the new construction in the area.
- My actions show support for this community: I have volunteered at the annual Kids' Camp, where kids from our community have the opportunity to learn what life as a firefighter is like; I have served on the Finance and Audit Committee, overseeing the Finance Department, which has won multiple industry awards for clear financial reports and for transparency in financial reporting; I am working to ensure the long-term success of Metro Fire through long-term planning and the exploration of alternative service delivery methods, such as the Mobile Integrated Health service which responds with services that divert non-emergency calls from the ER system; and I have volunteered for the last 8 years with the Firefighters Burn Institute.
- Financing a $350+million Fire District is serious business. Under my tenure, the District has received clear audited financial reports for the last 7+ years and has been nationally recognized for its financial transparency. Recently, the Fire District accepted a grant from FEMA’s Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant Program in the amount of $11,805,297! This grant is the result of countless hours of hard work put in by our Economic Development team. This grant will fund the hiring of 21 firefighters to increase service provided to our communities. I support the long-standing and continued work of our finance and community development divisions in their efforts to bring more grant money to the District.
My primary policy goal is the long-term financial stability of the District to provide service to our communities. As discussed above, my work on the Board shows the action behind that goal. Through the work with all stakeholders, the District has delivered balanced budgets in each of the last 11 years I have been on the Board, while also maintaining operating reserves.
Integrity is one of the primary characteristics an elected official should have. For the past 11 years, I have delivered truth for the citizens of Division 4. All of the financial information for the District is available online in its full and condensed forms. I have been candid about honoring the successes of the District and holding it accountable for shortcomings. My actions as a Director are always made with the best interests of the community in mind. Every vote has been to satisfy my goal of making sure that when a member of the community dials 911, the medics and firefighters that respond are the best in their fields.
As stated herein, I have been a tireless advocate for truth and transparency at the District, the results of which have been our clear audited CAFRs and the transparency certificate. I am also not prone to hyperbole and making unsupported claims. In my profession, each claim must be supported by facts, not accusations. The claim that the District is not "focusing on fire protection and prevention" and is "distracted by outside income opportunities" is wholly without foundation. Under my tenure, we have delivered two new alternative service delivery methods, Mobile Integrated Health (MIH)and Squads. The MIH program was created to help relieve stresses on the 911 and emergency department systems though the identification of non-emergency calls that could be treated in the field and diverted from the emergency department. This program was successfully implemented through grants from health care systems and local, state, and federal grant funds. The Squad program puts two firefighter paramedics in a small utility vehicle to respond to medic only calls in high use areas, rather than have an engine or truck respond. The Squad team is able to provide medical care and work with the ambulance crew in the event transportation to the hospital is necessary. This frees up fire suppression personnel and apparatus for other uses. My 11 years on the Board have been a repeated demonstration of my focus on fire protection. And, yes, we were successful at obtaining "outside income" for the District to support these programs. This allows the District to provide additional services to the Community without further cost to the Community.
This office demands someone who is committed to mission and operation of the District. It is not enough to stand on the sidelines and toss out complaints based on fabricated or misunderstood information. A Director must educate themselves on the operations of the District. They must learn what it takes to build and staff a firehouse. They must learn how the District is funded and how the District is restricted on the use of its funds. I have proven myself committed to the Citizens in Division 4 by attending Board Meetings and Committee Meetings fully prepared and engaged. I have taken time to meet with the members of the District in the firehouses and in the offices to learn what our employees do so that I can then work to improve what we do and how we do it. For someone who wants to take on this position, I would expect them to attend Board meetings, to engage the employees, and to educate themselves on the District operations. My opponent has done none of that.
When my service on the Board of Directors is over, I want to be remembered as one who worked for the betterment of the District and our Communities. There is a balance that must be had between the operating needs and desires of the District and the responsibility of being a steward of the public's funds. I want to be known, and I am confident that I will be, as one who successfully walked that line and maintained that integrity.
When I was 13 I started mowing the lawn at the church my family attended. I was paid $25.00 per month for mowing and edging the lawn every Saturday. This job taught me professional responsibility. I was expected to have the grounds clean and looking manicured for the Sunday service each week. I was responsible for getting there on my bike or by having my parents take me and pick me up. If I could not make it one week, I had to make arrangements for alternative coverage. I worked there until I was 16.
Sacramento Area Firefighters have endorsed my campaign. In addition, I have the endorsement of Gay Jones and former Sheriff Captain, Jim Barnes.
Financial transparency and government accountability are essential to the successful operation of a Special District. We operate to serve the public and hold the awesome responsibility of being stewards of the public's money. Under my tenure, Sac Metro Fire has received years of clear audits of its Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports and has recently been nationally recognized for the transparency of its finances.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2020
Ted Wood did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 30, 2024
