Voters in Clark County Fire District 10 will decide in the election on April 25 whether they want to pay for 24-hour emergency staffing around the district.
The fire district, with the only item on the April election’s ballot, is proposing increasing its property tax levy rate from 68 cents to $1 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
That increase, according to Fire Chief Sam Arola, will pay for 24-hour, all-week coverage for the district by hiring a full-time firefighter-medic and perhaps two more.
The district now maintains dedicated coverage from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.
“The rest is picked up by volunteers,” Arola said, making staffing less consistent.
The district has about 48 volunteers. Arola works half time. Battalion Chief Gordon Brooks works full time.
According to the district, volunteers responded to 728 service calls last year and 731 in 2015. Home to more than 8,000 people, the district encompasses 64 square miles in some of the northernmost parts of the county.
Funds raised by the tax increase will go toward paying for up to three more full-time employees, Arola said, with the salaries based on how much the levy raises.
“It’s important that we get the point across to our taxpayers that the levy lift is dedicated to those positions,” he said.
Last time the district proposed a levy increase was during the depths of the Great Recession, and voters rejected it.
“I understood that defeat, absolutely,” Arola said.
Earlier, the district said it estimates it misses 1 percent to 1.5 percent of calls every year, which comes out to about seven to 10 calls. With annual call volume increasing regularly, Arola said, it has been apparent the district needs more consistent staffing.
At the current levy rate, owners of a $300,000 home in the district pay about $204 in property taxes annually. Should voters agree to the levy increase, they’d pay about another $96 per year in the same house.
Arola said he thinks the levy has a good chance to pass.
“I think we’re probably sitting in a pretty good place,” he said. There are 5,570 registered voters in the district, according to the county auditor’s office.
“We’re going to be the only item on the ballot, so it’s important when people get their ballot, to read it and vote their conscience,” he said.
Anyone with questions about the levy can call the district’s main station at 360-247-5233 during business hours.
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Correction appended: The vote does not have a validation requirement.
