BY KARISSA MILLERIredell County commissioners spent nearly an hour Tuesday debating how to fairly distribute fire funding after county staff warned that growing staffing needs have outpaced available revenues. Rather than selecting a funding plan, commissioners directed county staff to seek additional feedback from the county’s 18 fire departments before making a decision later this month. County Manager Beth Milton said the county cannot fully fund every department’s fiscal year 2027 request. The remaining three options would use capital reserves to fund some or all of the departments’ staffing requests. Chairman Bert Connolly said he favors funding half of the original staffing requests along with a 2 percent increase for operational costs.