By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorWarrenton Fire Protection District officials say a tax increase is needed to improve services, such as providing 24-hour coverage with paid personnel and upgrading equipment.If the measure is not approved, the district will have to continue to rely upon volunteer firefighters during the weekends and will be cash-strapped to fund future improvements.The fire district is asking voters to approve a 15-cent property tax increase, known as Proposition F, 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. The district, however, remains limited in how it can generate revenue and a tax increase is needed to meet current and future needs, officials say.“We have cut and cut and cut and managed our money and watched things very closely with what we have and managed to increase services,” Fire Chief Mike Owenby said. “Now we are at a point where there is not much left to cut. If (residents) want the improved coverage on the weekend, if they feel it’s necessary, this is where we are at.”The tax measure also has been met with opposition from a committee formed to fight the proposed increase. Committee spokesperson Mary Jo Fahrni said residents are already being taxed too much and added that voters need to be aware that the tax hike has no sunset provision.“The voters need to consider both sides,” Fahrni said. “We have proven some of their numbers were inaccurate and we have tried to put forth for the voters the other side of the story. I think the voters need to be very careful with their votes.”The district covers 124 square miles, of which a small pocket lies in Lincoln County, 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.Currently, the paid firefighters work from 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, and acquire updated rescue/firefighting equipment.For a resident of the fire district with a $100,000 home, the tax increase would cost an additional $2.38 per month; a $150,000 home would be $3.56.In 2001, the number of emergency calls the district responded to was 319. In 2013, the district had 566 incidents and is projected to run 715 calls this year.Though the call volume and expenses continue to increase, Owenby said the district’s budget has remained flat in recent years.The amount of income received from real estate and personal property taxes in the 2013-2014 fiscal year, which runs from November to October, is $1,087,452.15. The district collected $1,090,425.07 in 2012-2013, $1,072,291.80 in 2011-2012 and $1,056,204.87 in 2010-2011.Those figures do not include miscellaneous income the district receives, such as permit and rental fees.Committee members opposing the tax measure have been critical of the campaign materials used by supporters to inform voters about the need. Initial literature that was distributed stated that district’s assessed valuation had decreased by $17 million in recent years. In fact, the district’s assessed valuation, in Warren County, has risen by over $96 million from 2001 to 2014, according to figures from the Warren County assessor’s office.Opponents also said the district showed a lack of oversight when a volunteer firefighter was caught stealing approximately $6,170 from the Explorer program’s bank account and was subsequently charged with felony stealing.“Members of the committee are truly concerned that if they don’t watch the checkbook any closer than that, do they deserve any more money? Business in general requires oversight,” Fahrni said. “When you talking about tax dollars, it should have greater oversight.”Owenby regretted that the error was not caught before the information was presented to the public. While the district’s assessed valuation has increased, the tax rate can only go as high as the Hancock Amendment allows.“We made a major, major mistake there,” he commented. “I will take responsibility for that. I did not verify that those numbers were correct. We have tried to find where that $17 million came from, but I don’t know. It got put out there and we all ran with it.”If the tax measure is passed, the district will begin receiving the additional funds from the increase at the end of 2014. Owenby said that was one of the reasons the fire district decided to proceed with placing Proposition F on the Aug. 5 ballot, rather than waiting until next year.Owenby said the new paid positions created by the tax measure, if approved, would likely be filled by the first part of November when the district begins its new fiscal year.Warrenton Fire Protection District