The Board of Fire Commissioners for Benton County Fire District 4 is
holding a public hearing to discuss a resolution calling for a Fire Levy lid
lift to hire more emergency personnel. If approved, voters could see the
measure on the August 4 Primary Election ballot. The meeting will be Thursday, March
19 at 6:00 p.m. at 2604 Bombing Range Road in West Richland (99353).
Community
members who are unable to attend the meeting, but would like to provide comment,
are encouraged to contact Acting Chief Paul Carlyle. He can be reached at pcarlyle@bcfd4.org, or by mailing to the meeting
address. All communication is welcome and becomes part of the public record.
Call
volumes have increased 78.3 percent for the Fire District since 2010 due to growth
and an aging population that relies more on emergency services. The Fire
District has a plan to meet this increase in demand for service in a way that
minimizes impacts to taxpayers.
For example, it asked the community to fund a new fire
station, which was approved in 2018. Building
and equipping a new station can take two or three years. The next step is to hire
additional personnel to meet the increase in demand for service throughout the
District. Finding the right people – interviewing, testing and background
checks – can take almost a year and would need to be funded through a lid lift.
If approved by voters, the lid lift would take effect in 2021.
“We have been strategic in how we do this,” said Acting
Chief Paul Carlyle. “The goal is to ask for what is needed, as it’s needed. At
the point revenue comes in, it would go right out again to fund emergency
personnel and reduce response times.”
Voters
last approved a Fire Levy of $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value in
2014. That levy rate has fallen to $1.35/ $1,000 in 2020. Levy rates fall as
property values rise to limit the Fire District to roughly the same amount of
revenue per year. Lid lifts help an agency keep up with rising costs and the
increase in demand for emergency services.
The
lid lift resolution asks voters to return the Fire Levy to the previously
approved amount of $1.50/$1,000. The additional cost would be approximately
$3.75 per month for the owner of a $300,000 home. More information can be found
on the Fire District’s website at www.bcfd4.org.
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