Rural fire chiefs voice concerns about EMS levy

Could Yakima's proposed EMS levy cause the failure of the county's existing levy of the same name when it expires in 2012? Rural fire chiefs are afraid it could.

The potential for voter confusion over the twin tax measures has led to mixed feelings for Gleed fire Chief Jim Kohl, whose tiny force of 25 volunteers stands to lose $40,000 for equipment and training if the county levy fails.

"It's kind of an awkward situation, really," he said Satur-
day. "We want to be good neigh-bors with folks in Yakima ... but it would be a real impact on us."

At issue is Yakima's proposed Emergency Medical Services levy, which is slated for a city-only vote-by-mail special election Feb. 3. Ballots went out last week.

If approved, the levy will add 25 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value. That works out to $3 to $4 a month for the average homeowner in Yakima.

Yakima has by far the smallest fire department for a city its size in Washington, and fire Chief Charlie Hines says he needs the extra $1.3 million in tax revenue to hire more firefighters.

The measure has not been a slam-dunk for Hines, whose plan to hire paramedics has led to accusations the city will be unneccesarily duplicating services already being provided at no cost to taxpayers by two private ambulance companies based in Yakima.

Another criticism is that the city's levy will undercut the existing countywide EMS levy.

The county's levy has been around for close to 20 years. Unlike the city's proposed levy, which has no sunset clause, the county's levy must be renewed every 10 years or it expires.

That's coming up in three years, which doesn't seem like a long time away to Kohl, an orchardist who, like most of his volunteers, has a regular day job.

The bulk of the Gleed fire department's budget, about $175,000, comes from a districtwide tax base. It goes to paying off new equipment and other expenses, such as a fire station on North Gleed Road that was built in 1996 and will be paid off this year.

The additional $40,000 he gets every year from the county EMS levy is invaluable for making ends meet, Kohl says.

"We're just worried that we might have a hard time in a couple years getting people to vote for it again, especially folks in Yakima," he said.

Kohl's concerns are echoed by Selah fire Chief Jerry Davis, whose agency also covers the greater Selah and Wenas area known as District 2.

Selah gets about $150,000 every year from the county EMS levy. Davis says he's worried that Yakima voters could get confused about the county levy so soon on the heels of the city's levy -- or worse.

"We don't want them to say, 'Well, we're paying into the Yakima one, why should we pay the county one too?'" he said.

Hines says he under-stands the fears the "rurals" have. That's because nobody gets a bigger chunk of the county's EMS levy -- close to $1 million -- than his own agency.

"If the county levy doesn't pass in 2012, I've got to lay off eight of my own guys," he said. "If it fails, I'm practically back to where I started."

As a result, he has promised publicly to promote the county levy. He said he's confident voters will understand the necessity of the two levies and vote accordingly.

"If we had foresaw it as a major obstacle, we wouldn't have pushed this thing," he said, adding, "Bottom line is we're in it together. We're all on the same team."

Of course, the confusion between the two levies will be diminished if the Yakima levy fails next month. So are any of the rural chiefs telling their friends to vote against the city's levy?

"I'm not saying either way," replied Davis, the
Selah chief. "I just don't want people to be confused."

* Chris Bristol can be reached at 577-7748 or at cbristol@yakimaherald.com.

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