This truth we hold to be self-evident: No one likes paying taxes, levies or any other charge that takes money out of their household budget. There’s also a hard truth we must collectively face. Some levies are an absolute necessity to promote and protect public safety. The Poulsbo Fire Department’s emergency medical services (EMS) levy is this necessity.
Poulsbo Fire Chief Jim Shields, the front man for the levy, has been knocking on doors, meeting with public service groups and talking with anyone who will listen. He and his fire commissioners have the arduous task of convincing taxpayers the levy is a good thing. On Monday evening, they spoke with the Herald’s editorial board. These are the facts as he presented them.
The current six-year levy passed in 2002 is set to expire on Dec. 31. The current levy makes up about 22 percent of the department’s budget, or roughly $1.1 million in 2008.
The current levy — the all-mail ballot for which votes must be postmarked by May 20 —
The levy under vote right now entails property owners paying 50 cents per thousand of assessed property value.
Simply put, if your home is worth $300,000, then your share of the levy will be $60 more than the current rate annually.
The department’s other sources of revenue include the 2007 operations levy (it’s a separate venture from the current EMS levy), miscellaneous fees and medical billing. The 2007 operations levy provides a bulk of the department’s budget at 61 percent. Billing for services makes up about 12 percent of the budget, while miscellaneous items — fire permits and such — round out the funds.
While Shields didn’t want to discuss possible scenarios that could occur if the levy did not pass, a levy failure would ensure a decrease in services of some sort.
The truth of the matter is that Poulsbo and its surrounding communities served by the fire district have a steadily increasing population. The number of calls the fire district receives increased by 16 percent in 2006 over the previous year. About 67 percent of the 3,900 calls received each year are medical emergencies.
The fire department, it should be noted, has been a good steward of its resources. It uses about 20 volunteers and has cooperative agreements with other local fire agencies throughout Kitsap.
Supporting the EMS levy is just the right thing to do.
