Kalispell voters reject extra taxes for EMS
Kalispell voters said no on Tuesday to higher taxes to pay for emergency medical services.
By a narrow margin, voters rejected a request from the city for an extra property-tax levy of 18.7 mills to provide funding for emergency medical services within the Kalispell Fire Department.
The levy was added to the ballot in response to the rising number of calls each year requiring emergency services in Kalispell.
Last year, the number of emergency calls increased by 11 percent. The Kalispell EMS received over 3,000 calls in 2013, but was unable to respond to 140 of these (96 of which required a patient to be transported to the hospital) because of staffing shortages or because EMS was too busy.
The levy request was determined earlier this year by a committee made up of city officials, EMS staffers and members of the International Association of Firefighters union. The panel examined a variety of factors, such as timing of calls, staffing, funding and geography of calls.
They reviewed six options for the EMS, which included combining different emergency departments, closing stations or inviting a privatized emergency-services business into the city.
The committee recommended that the City Council put forth a ballot request to give Kalispell residents an opportunity to vote on the dedicated mill levy, which would have raised the number of people per shift from approximately 9.5 people to 11, making the department less dependent on outside services and allowing the EMS to replace equipment in the city’s ambulances.
Since the levy did not pass, the committee report states the next step may be a “transition toward reducing the level of services provided as the community identifying the level of service desired.”
Passed:
Voters were asked to approve the Emergency Medical Services levy request on Tuesday’s ballot. The new levy of 18.7 mills will provide funding specifically for emergency medical services within the Kalispell Fire Department.
The extra property-tax levy will generate $736,000 each year.
The levy adds approximately $24.48 per year in property taxes on a home valued at $100,000 or $48.96 on a home valued at $200,000.
This will fund an increase in staff from approximately 9.5 people per shift to 11. In addition to making the department less dependent on outside services, the fund will allow the EMS to replace equipment inside the city’s ambulances.
The levy was added to the ballot in response to the rising number of calls each year requiring emergency services in Kalispell.
Last year, the number of emergency calls increased by 11 percent. The Kalispell EMS received over 3,000 calls in 2013, but was unable to respond to 140 of these (96 of which required a patient to be transported to the hospital) because of staffing shortages or because EMS was too busy.
They reviewed six options that included combining different emergency departments, closing stations, or inviting a privatized emergency-services business into the city.
Upon completing this report, the committee recommended that the City Council put forth a ballot to give Kalispell residents an opportunity to vote on the dedicated mill levy.
According to the report, this will “remove the general fund subsidy that is currently stressing the general fund operations, provide for capital equipment replacement, and provide an increase in staffing to reduce the amount of calls that are being covered by neighboring jurisdictions” such as Evergreen Fire Rescue or West Valley EMS.
Because money had previously been allocated to EMS operations, these funds can be reallocated to other needs, such as fire department equipment or law enforcement staffing, or could be used to reduce property taxes.
The levy has no set end date but will be re-evaluated in approximately 10 years.