Chelan County Fire District #6 Faces Nearly $11 Million Deficit

Chelan County Fire District #6 faces a budget deficit of nearly $11 million.

The Leavenworth Echo reports the district has not raised its levy since 1955. The levy funds nearly all of its operations. Without a redesign of its fund collections, stations covering part of Cashmere, as well as Peshastin, Monitor, Dryden, and Valley Hi could lose access to Emergency Medical Services (EMS).

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The current rate is 31.5 cents per $1,000 in assessed property value for homeowners. The district relies on a budget of $425,000 a year to operate its stations.

To face the deficit, projected at $10.7 million, the district proposed two options to replace its levy rate for the August ballot.

The first would be 80 cents per $1,000 assessed value. The second would be $1.40 per $1,000 assesed value. This is, in effect, a raise on taxes to keep EMS and fire services functioning as taxpayers are used to. However, there is no guarentee services will continue even with a raise on the assesed value.

To translate, this ups the rate of about $10 per month for a resident owning a home valued at $400,000, to $27 a month under the 80-cent rate. At the $1.40 rate, homeowners would pay about $47.

Around 85 percent of calls come from the Dryden station, which has had significant repairs in recent years. The other stations have also needed repairs.

Much of the equipment the fire district utilizes is in need of replacement, and they have relied on other department gifts to counteract their aging equipment.

The district seeks public comment. In April, fire commissioners will propose the rate for the August ballot.