HomeMy WebLinkAbout09(360) 379-5047 (email: citycouncil@cityofpt.us) www.cityofpt.us September 2011
City of Port Townsend
FIRE SERVICE CONSOLIDATION AND LEVY by David King, City Councilor
To pay the City’s fair share for fire and emergency services and to address the current
imbalance between the City and Fire District 1 in funding our joint fire and emergency
service operation, the City Council has placed a property tax fire service levy measure
on the November ballot.
The City and Fire District Have Benefited from Consolidated Service Over the Years.
The Fire District (which comprises the area in the County roughly adjacent to the City, in-
cluding Cape George, Kala Point, Chimacum, Beaver Valley, Center Valley, and Marrowstone)
and the City of Port Townsend have been gradually merging for nearly the past ten years, and
currently jointly operate as East Jefferson Fire Rescue (EJFR). In this we are part of a trend of
consolidation throughout Washington as voters merge fire districts with each other or fire districts
with city fire departments in order to control their costs for emergency services. Sixty-one cities
and towns in Washington are annexed to fire districts. Five cities voted for annexation between
2008 and 2010.
At this point in the process we are operating under a “Contractual Consolidation” governed
by an agreement executed in 2006. Most of the work of consolidation is complete. The Fire Dis-
trict owns the assets, hires all the personnel and manages all operations. Service levels are well
established and protected by contract and statute. For the firefighters and emergency medical
responders (EMTs and paramedics) at EJFR there is no border between the City and the rest of
the Fire District.
There are two differences remaining between our contract arrangement with the Fire Dis-
trict and being fully annexed into the Fire District: governance and finance.
EJFR is governed by a joint board consisting of three Fire District Commissioners elected
by voters in the Fire District and three members of City Council appointed by the mayor. Due to
state law, there are some aspects of the Fire District’s operations that cannot be delegated to a
joint board and have to remain solely under the authority of the elected Commissioners. In these
areas, including personnel, budgeting and ballot initiatives, the City Council members act in an
advisory capacity.
The Final Step – Annexation - Would Complete the Consolidation to Date But Needs to be
Deferred for Tax Equalization to Occur.
The Fire District Commissioners and the City Council have unanimously declared that an-
nexation (which will require voter approval by citizens in the City and Fire District in separate elec-
tions) should occur to complete the consolidation of the City and the Fire District. Annexation
would provide for tax equalization for fire service between the residents of the City and Fire Dis-
trict, and further, would address the imbalance of representation by providing for direct election of
the commissioners by all the voters they serve. However, there is a timing issue with significant
tax impacts if annexation goes forward at this time. Properties in the Fire District are currently be-
ing revalued by the assessor. Properties in the City won’t be re-valued until 2013. If annexation
occurs before both jurisdictions are re-valued, a tax imbalance results. Based on this, the City
and Fire District determined to postpone annexation until there was uniform valuation.
The Proposed Special Levy Measure Addresses the Current Funding Imbalance that Exists
between the City and the Fire District.
The 2006 agreement established a contribution from the City’s general fund based on the
City’s assessed value relative to the property tax already collected from Fire District voters. The re-
sult was that property owners in the City funded EJFR through their property tax payments to the City
at the “rate” of $0.57 per $1,000 dollars of assessed property value.
In April 2010, Fire District voters approved an increase of $0.43, raising the levy for emergen-
cy services to a total of $1.00/$1,000 assessed value. In August, 2010, City voters did not approve a
new $1.00/$1,000 assessed value for fire service only. The $1.00 if approved would have provided a
dedicated funding source for fire service, and would have freed up the $0.57 currently devoted to fire
service for transportation projects. In April, 2010, City and Fire District voters both approved a $0.50/
$1,000 assessed value levy for emergency medical services (EMS).
Without the additional levy, there is a growing disparity – about $625,000 a year - between
what City and Fire District taxpayers pay for emergency services. City residents are getting full fire
and emergency medical services, but are not contributing at the same rate as the residents in the
Fire District. The difference is this $0.43/$1,000 assessed value. Residents in the Fire District are
paying $1.00/$1,000 assessed value; while City residents pay $0.57 cents per $1,000 assessed val-
ue. This translates into the $625,000 annual shortfall. Highlighting the funding imbalance is the fact
that more than half of the calls for service (about 60% of the total) occur within the City. In effect, the
Fire District is subsidizing City emergency services.
Some of the funding gap (about $160,000 for 2011, from sales tax revenues) has been closed
with the City’s contribution to cover the Fire District’s debt service for capital improvement and vehi-
cle replacement costs.
The Proposed Special Levy Measure Addresses the Future Funding Imbalance as the Recom-
mended Method.
Because it would take effect prior to the assessor’s revaluation of city property, the November,
2011 special purpose lid lift measure raising the City's property tax levy $0.43 per $1,000 of as-
sessed value for fire services would match the levy increase approved in the Fire District. Approval
of the lid lift ballot measure will cancel the City’s support of the Fire District’s capital program. In the
event of a future annexation, the $0.43/$1,000 assessed value automatically sunsets, and City resi-
dents become voting members of the Fire District.
For a house and property assessed at $300,000, the increase of $0.43 cent/$1,000 assessed
value is $129 per year ($43/$100,000 X 3), or about $10/month. You can contact the assessor’s of-
fice (385-9105) with questions about how assessments would apply.
The City Council has looked at meeting the $625,000 funding shortfall with service cuts in po-
lice, public works, parks, and other programs. However, at town meetings and in City Council meet-
ings, the City Council has heard strong support for maintaining services, and for not cutting services
without public input and process. Therefore, the City Council has determined that to maintain exist-
ing services, and to pay the City’s fair share for fire service, the voters should be requested to vote
on the $0.43/$1,000 assessed value. If the measure fails, then reductions in other (non-fire/
emergency) services by up to $625,000 would need to occur to make up the shortfall in funding for
fire service.
EJFR Operates with Less Revenue and Expense Than Comparable Fire Districts.
As a City Council member of the joint fire service board (along with Laurie Medlicott and
Mark Welch), and with a background in financial management and operations for a private com-
pany, I compared the cost of our fire and emergency services with other similar jurisdictions that
offer similar services - combining rural and urban areas, and volunteer and professional personnel.
2011201120112011Notes
DistrictEJFRSilverdale
(CKFR)
North Kitsap
(NKFR)
Gig Harbor
Jefferson 1Kitsap 1Kitsap 10Pierce 5
Population23,000 72,000 19,000 54,000
Geographical Area
(sq. mi.)
791154856
TransportBLS, ALSBLS, ALSBLS, ALSBLS, ALS Basic Life
Support,
Advanced Life
Support
Calls
Call Volume Fire59 159 61 106
Call Volume EMS2,649 5,095 1,586 3,731
Call Volume Other777 1,622 833 739
Total Call Volume3,485 6,876 2,480 4,576
Wages
Chief High93,043$ 110,488$ 161,830$
Chief Low134,966$ 77,342$
FF/EMT High68,921$ 79,125$ 73,013$ 81,600$
FF/EMT Low41,363$ 55,388$ 43,808$
Finance
Tax Revenues2,769,500.00$ 14,027,019.00$ 5,792,284.00$ 15,052,232.00$
Revenues from
Other Sources
2,986,785.00$ 1,694,661.00$ 556,391.00$ 1,564,741.00$ Includes PT City
Contribution for
EJFR
Total Revenue5,756,285.00$ 15,721,680.00$ 6,348,675.00$ 16,616,973.00$
Budget
Operating
Budget/Expenses
4,856,308.00$ 15,724,511.00$ 5,774,628.00$ 15,475,989.00$
Capital Outlay549,742.00$ 373,590.00$ 208,510.00$ 2,195,560.00$
Total Expenditures5,406,050.00$ 16,098,101.00$ 5,983,138.00$ 17,671,549.00$
Calculations
Revenues Per
Capita
250.27$ 218.36$ 334.14$ 307.72$
Expenditures Per
Capita
211.14$ 218.40$ 303.93$ 286.59$
Calls Per Capita0.15 0.10 0.13 0.08
Primarily I wanted to review the cost and scope of these services on a per-capita basis, since rates
based on property tax assessments are subject to factors unrelated to fire and EMS services.
These per capita calculations are on the bottom three lines of the table.
With the exception of Silverdale, EJFR operates with less revenue and expense per person
than the other fire districts I reviewed. Silverdale, at nearly three times the population is more cost-
effective, which is what you would expect, and illustrates the economies of scale that drive fire ser-
vice consolidations generally.
The information comes from the annual Wage and Benefit Survey report that is produced by
the Washington Fire Commissioners Association. Copies of the complete report are available from
Loni at EJFR (385-2626).
The call volume statistics are from 2010. The financial figures are from the 2011 budgets.
Note that across the board calls for emergency medical services far outnumber fire calls. There is
a statutory limit of $0.50 per $1,000 assessed value that can be levied for EMS services so much
of what is authorized by fire levies is in fact used to support emergency medical services.
The joint board has determined that the rising costs for fire and emergency services are the
basis for needing additional revenues. Besides increasing call volume (which has increased by
6.5% annually over the last five years), the joint board identified that increased revenue is needed
to meet firefighter/EMT staffing needs, rising insurance costs, mandated increases in training re-
quirements, and capital equipment needs, including replacement of out-of-date equipment.
(These increasing costs for fire service will be addressed in a future newsletter.)
Hopefully, this information will prove useful to you in evaluating the November ballot for a
fire service levy increase.
Ballots for the November 8, 2011 election will be mailed out October 19.
To be counted in the election, your ballot must be postmarked by November 8 or
received by 8 p.m. November 8 in one of the following locations:
the County Library in Port Hadlock,
the County Auditors office in the Courthouse,
or, the drop box located in the back parking lot of the Courthouse.
INVEST LOCALLY THROUGH THE MAIN STREET TAX CREDIT INCENTIVE
PROGRAM
Businesses who make a contribution to the nonprofit Port Townsend Main Street
Program before December 31 will receive 75% of the donation back in the form of
state B&O Tax Credits in 2012.
For more information, please call the Port Townsend Main Street office at (360) 385-7911 or
email director@ptmainstreet.org. You may also contact Tiffany Volkman at the Department of
Revenue at (360) 902-7126 or email tiffanyv@dor.wa.gov.
The Port Townsend Public Library is here to help with school,
continuing education and transitioning back to work.
There’s homework help for kids including Encyclopedia Britannica for Kids and
the Global Road Warrior databases plus a number of helpful online resources.
For teens, there are general quick fact finders to help with homework, or more extensive data-
bases, applications and websites for help in geography, current events and social issues, math,
history, government, english and language arts. There are also resources to help with research
and writing those term papers. For adults, check out the extensive Maritime collection to get
ready for the Wooden Boat Festival.
The ongoing Transition Yourself workshop series will be held September 13, 14, 20 and 21 from
7-9 p.m. Register for the workshop series by email: swilson@cityofpt.us. This program helps job
seekers learn to use current strategies to market themselves.
Don’t forget to pledge to help maintain and expand these great resources with more space, new
collections and added computers. Please donate through the Library Foundation’s website at
http://ptpubliclibrary.org/SupportYourLIbrary/LibraryFoundation.html, or mail your pledge card and
check to the PT Carnegie Capital Campaign, P.O. Box 857, Port Townsend 98368. Checks
should be made out to the Port Townsend Library Foundation. Donations are tax deductible to
the extent allowed by law.
Property Tax Exemption for Senior Citizens and Disabled Persons
If you are a senior citizen or disabled, Washington has programs that may help you pay
your property taxes and/or special assessments. To be eligible you must meet the age
or disability, ownership, residency, and income requirements. The County Assessor ad-
ministers this program and is responsible for determining if you meet the qualifications. Contact
the Assessor’s Office at 385-9105 or jtrafton@co.jefferson.wa.us for more information.
Let’s Clean Up Our Watershed on National Public Lands Day, Sat., Sept. 24
Please join high school students from the Port Townsend 4-H Stewardship Program to
clean up the Quilcene area watershed that supplies Port Townsend’s drinking water.
For further information contact Sue Hay at shay@jefferson.wsu.edu or call 379-5610.
The Monroe Street Sanitary Sewer Replacement Project will continue through September 22. The
Construction Notice and other city information is available at www.cityofpt.us/publicnotices.htm