Measure to raise property tax by 15 cents will be on Aug. 5 ballot
By Tim Schmidt Record Managing Editor The Warrenton Fire Protection District is asking voters to approve a 15-cent property tax increase to fund 24-hour coverage as well as equipment upgrades. The ballot measure, known as Proposition F, will be decided on the Aug. 5 ballot. The district’s last tax hike was in 2001. Since that time, the district’s call volume has increased by 77 percent and the population has gone up 35 percent, officials noted. Fire Chief Mike Owenby said the proposed tax hike would to be used to meet current needs, as well as into the future. The district covers 124 square miles with a staff of eight paid employees, including six firefighters, one chief and an administrative assistant. The district also has around 30 active volunteer firefighters, Owenby said. “We are completely and totally tax supported,” Owenby said. “If you have a fire at your house, you don’t get a bill from us. Your insurance company does not get a bill from us. We are very limited in how we can generate revenue.” Currently, the paid firefighters work beginning 8 p.m. on Sunday through 8 p.m. on Friday. The weekends are covered by volunteers. The district plans to hire three more firefighters to have paid staff on-call 24 hours a day, as well as an assistant chief-fire marshal to perform building inspections and oversee state and federal mandates. In addition, the proposed tax would help fund maintenance and upkeep of existing facilities and equipment, provide enhanced training and updated training facilities, acquire updated rescue/firefighting equipment. These improvements should help the district lower its ISO rating, which would result in lower insurance premiums for property owners, officials said. By having 24-hour coverage, that should reduce response time to a call by three to four minutes, Owenby said. The fire district averages 580 calls per year. In 2001, the number of calls the district responded to was 319. So far this year, the amount of calls responded to are 25 percent higher compared to this time last year. “We do what we can with what we have,” said Matt Dabbs, a paid firefighter. “Somebody had a good slogan the other day, ‘Help those that help you in a time of crisis.’ We are always there helping everybody else. Now we need help.” If passed, the fire district will begin receiving the additional funds generated from the increase at the end of 2014, Owenby said. He said that was one of the reasons the fire district decided to proceed with placing Proposition F on the Aug. 5 election, rather than wait until later in the year. For a resident within the Warrenton Fire Protection District boundaries with a $100,000 home, the tax increase would cost an additional $2.38 per month; a $150,000 home would be $3.56. The fire district will be holding a series of town hall meetings to inform voters about Proposition F. The meetings will be held Thursday, July 10, and Tuesday, July 29, all beginning at 7 p.m. At the meetings, district officials will be able to provide each property owner with how much the proposed tax increase will cost them annually. “We want the public’s input and we want them to come ask questions,” Dabbs said. The decision to place the tax increase on the Aug. 5 ballot comes on the heels of a Warrenton volunteer firefighter being charged with stealing money from the Explorer program’s bank account. The firefighter is accused of writing checks to herself in the amount of $6,170 to pay personal bills. The money received by the Explorers is from donations, fund-raisers and grants. The firefighter was charged with felony stealing and remains suspended pending further action from the fire board. Owenby acknowledged the district is concerned with the public’s reaction to the incident, but said procedures have been implemented to prevent a similar event in the future. “The district itself had no oversight at the point in time that it was happening; I do now,” Owenby said. “We have put those necessary protocols in place now. The oversight will be happening.”
Warrenton fire district seeking tax increase
