Municipal equipment financing and leasing for state & local agencies.

It is an installment purchase structured as a lease. The agency takes possession and use of the equipment on day one, makes payments from appropriated annual funds across budget years, and owns the equipment outright for $1 at the end of the term. Because the interest is exempt from federal income tax for the funder, the rate is lower than comparable commercial financing.

The agreement can be terminated at the end of any fiscal year if the governing body does not appropriate funds for the next year's payments, with the equipment returned and no further obligation. That clause is what makes the agreement a lease rather than long-term debt in most states, which is why it does not require a bond issue or a voter referendum. Agencies certify that they will make a good-faith request for the funds in each budget.

Generally no. Because payments are subject to annual appropriation, a lease-purchase is not treated as long-term debt under most state constitutions and statutes, so agencies can acquire fire apparatus, police vehicles, public works equipment, or school technology on the current budget cycle without the time and cost of a bond issue or a referendum. Your counsel confirms the treatment in your state.

Fire apparatus and EMS equipment, police vehicles and public safety gear, public works and heavy equipment, school buses and district technology, water and wastewater equipment, parks and grounds equipment, IT, radio and communications, and energy and facility upgrades. New and used equipment both qualify, from a $15,000 usual minimum to $5 million and above.

On the agency, not on a personal credit score: budget history, the essential-use nature of the equipment, the agency's payment record, and audited financial statements or the adopted budget. Essential-use equipment such as fire apparatus and public works machinery is the easiest to approve because it is the last thing an agency would fail to appropriate for.

A first response typically within 1 to 2 business hours, with approvals in days on complete files. The documentation, an agreement with the non-appropriation clause, an essential-use letter, an incumbency certificate, and where required an opinion of counsel, is prepared by Five West and reviewed by your finance office and counsel, and it fits inside a normal purchasing cycle rather than a bond calendar.

Yes. A fire truck is essential-use equipment, which makes it one of the easiest things for an agency to get approved. The city, county, fire department or fire district takes delivery, pays from appropriated funds across budget years on a term of up to 84 months, and owns the truck for $1 at the end. Because the payments are subject to annual appropriation, most states don't treat it as long-term debt, so it usually doesn't need a bond issue or a voter referendum. New and used apparatus both qualify, and the same structure works for ambulances, rescue units and SCBA.

Sometimes. Under Section 150(e) of the Internal Revenue Code, a qualified volunteer fire department's financing for a fire truck or firehouse is treated like a local government's, so it can be tax-exempt. To qualify, the department has to be set up to provide firefighting or emergency medical services to an area that has no other firefighting service, and have a written agreement in which the city, county or district requires it to provide firefighting in that area. If your department doesn't meet that test, it can still look at regular non-profit equipment financing. Your counsel confirms which one applies.

Terms run up to 84 months. Pick a term that fits what the agency can appropriate each year and ends well inside the equipment's service life. Long-lived equipment such as fire apparatus, a wheel loader or a water plant pump can take the full term, while laptops, tablets and other IT usually suit a shorter one. Deals start at a usual minimum of about $15,000 and run to $5 million and above.

Send the equipment quote and the agency's adopted budget or most recent audit to support@fivewestfinancial.com, or run an estimate in the Quote Builder first. A dedicated funding professional prepares the lease-purchase documents for your finance office and counsel and manages the transaction through funding.