GRAHAM FIRE & RESCUE BENEFIT CHARGE: MAINTAIN FIRE & MEDIC - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

GRAHAM FIRE & RESCUE

BENEFIT CHARGE: MAINTAIN FIRE & MEDIC ONE PAT DALE | FIRE CHIEF July 14, 2020

TONIGHT’S FOCUS: OUR FUNDING FUTURE

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• A more sustainable and stable funding future for Graham

Fire & Rescue.

• The “Benefit Charge.”

Our mission is to serve the community with these values in mind:

PROFESSIONALISM ACCOUNTABILITY CARING

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YOUR FIRE DEPARTMENT

• Covers 70 square miles
• Serves nearly 67,000 residents
• 5 staffed stations, 1 volunteer station
• 7,323 emergency calls (2019)
• Our team:
• 97 Firefighters/Paramedics
• 16 Volunteer firefighters
• 12 Admin & Support staff
• 8 Support services volunteers

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3 FIREHOUSE GOATS

DRIP FRANKIE TORCH

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THANK YOU, CITIZENS!

In 2018, voters passed a Maintenance and Operations (M&O) Excess Levy for 2019 – 2022, that:

Hired 18 Firefighters Purchased a New Water Tender Trained 14 Volunteers

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The M&O Levy currently supports about 15% of our

• perating

budget each year

WSRB RATING

• Washington State Surveying and Rating Bureau

(WSRB).

• Improved from a Protection Class 4 to a Class 3.
• Puts Graham Fire & Rescue in the top 10% of fire

departments in the state as it relates to property fire protection.

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The accomplishment ensures our residents and business should see reductions in their insurance premiums.

HOW ARE WE CURRENTLY FUNDED?

• Regular Tax Levy: Fire Protection Districts have the authority to levy up to $1.50 per

thousand dollars of assessed value.

• EMS Levy: Fire Protection Districts also have the authority to levy up an additional

$0.50 per thousand dollars of assessed value to provide emergency medical services.

• M&O Levy: Temporary levy that exceeds the $1.50 regular tax levy limit and expires in

2022 if voters do not renew it or agree to an alternative funding source.

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2020 Graham Fire & Rescue Property Tax Rates Fire Levy: $1.45 per $1,000 of assessed value (max rate = $1.50) EMS Levy: $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed value (max rate = $0.50) Excess Levy: $ 0.53 per $1,000 of assessed value Total: $2.48 per $1,000 of assessed value All levies are voter approved.

WHAT IS A BENEFIT CHARGE?

A Benefit Charge is a fee based on structure size, use, required firefighting resources and other risk factors.

• Larger structures which require a more complex fire

response generally pay more.

• The Benefit Charge is built around different categories
• f structures:
• Residential
• Commercial
• Manufactured homes in mobile home parks
• Multi-family

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EXEMPTIONS

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• Religious institutional facilities
• Nonprofits and public housing for seniors, low income

residents and persons with disabilities

• Vacant land and/or parcels with structures under 400 sq. ft.
• Public schools
• Publicly owned properties

WHY IS GRAHAM FIRE & RESCUE PROPOSING A BENEFIT CHARGE?

• Maintains existing service as community and demand for service

grows: 40% increase since 2010.

• More fairly shifts costs to structures for which it costs more to

provide fire service. For example, complex structures with on-site hazards pay more than simple, non-hazardous structures of the same size and property value.

• Provides financial sustainability and stability by diversifying

revenues to include both property taxes and the benefit charge, especially in a recession or period of high inflation.

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HOW WILL A BENEFIT CHARGE IMPACT HOW MUCH I PAY FOR FIRE & EMS?

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$2.48 per $1,000 A.V. property tax

• Fire Levy
• EMS Levy
• M&O Levy
• Fire Levy
• EMS Levy

(reduced max. of $1.50 per $1,000 A.V.) and

• Benefit Charge

Current Funding Funding under Proposed BC

REVENUE COST SHIFT TO STRUCTURES REQUIRING MORE FIREFIGHTING RESOURCE

• 6.00%
• 4.00%
• 2.00%

0.00% 2.00% 4.00% 6.00%

Residential Mobile Home Commercial Multi Family

• 5.89%
• 0.21%

1.15% 5.37% As compared to an equivalent amount of property tax revenue, the benefit charge will collect less from residential and mobile home properties

Revenue Collected with Benefit Charge 13

HOW IS A BENEFIT CHARGE APPROVED?

Implementing a Benefit Charge requires:

• 60% voter approval, initially.
• The initial term of the BC, if approved, is 6 years.
• Reauthorization of the BC beyond 6 years requires

another vote.

• A simple majority of voters must approve a 6-or 10-year

extension of the BC.

• If a permanent extension is requested, 60% of voters

must approve.

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WHAT HAPPENS IF A BENEFIT CHARGE IS NOT APPROVED BY VOTERS?

• The combined fire levy authorization will remain at $1.50

per $1,000 of assessed value

• EMS levy authorization remains unchanged ($0.50 max

per $1,000 of assessed value)

• The M&O levy will remain in place for its full term

through 2022.

• As demand for service and operation costs rise, Graham

Fire & Rescue will have to address budget gaps by seeking additional property taxes and/or changing how services are delivered.

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HAVE OTHERS APPROVED A BENEFIT CHARGE?

Voters approved Benefit Charges for seven other fire agencies in the Puget Sound:

• Puget Sound Regional Fire Authority (Kent)
• Valley Regional Fire Authority (Auburn)
• Renton Regional Fire Authority
• Central Pierce Fire & Rescue
• King County Fire District 40
• Duvall-King County Fire District 45
• Woodinville Fire & Rescue

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NEXT STEPS

• The Board will consider a resolution requesting Pierce County place the benefit

charge measure on the November 2020 ballot.

• If proposed, ongoing public education and outreach regarding the Benefit Charge

will take place until the election.

• If 60% of the voters approve the Benefit Charge, residents will receive notice of

their individual property 2021 Benefit Charge in November.

• Property owners may appeal their benefit charge in December
• Each property owner subject to the Benefit Charge will get a bill from the County

Assessor for payment of the charge in 2021.

• For more information, please visit www.GrahamFire.org or email

BenefitCharge@GrahamFire.org

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Thank You!

YOUR SAFETY IS OUR PRIORITY

Pat Dale, Fire Chief Graham Fire & Rescue pdale@grahamfire.org (253) 847-8811 Follow Us: facebook.com/grahamfire twitter.com/grahamfirewa instagram/graham_fire_rescue

For more information visit www.grahamfire.org