How to Appeal Wenatchee Fire Benefit Tax Assessment

Property owners protected by the Wenatchee Valley Fire Department can appeal the Fire Benefit charge shown on their property tax statement.

Chief Brian Brett says the Fire Benefit charge appears in the "Miscellaneous" box on tax statements and a petition for adjustment will be handled by the Wenatchee Valley Fire Department.

"If you have any questions regarding that particular charge, the county assessor and treasurer offices do not have access to the data used to compute the amount for your property and we're more than happy to respond to emails, take phone calls and walk anybody through that charge and explain what it consists of" -- Chief Brian Brett

Chief Brett wants property owners to report any discrepancies.

"We want to make sure the charge is right, do we have the right square footage for your house, if your home is sprinklered, do we have your sprinkler (system) reduction in there so we encourage people to reach out to us if they have any questions at all"

An appeal must be filed with a petition found at WenatcheeValleyFire.org by March 19th. Appeals will be heard in late March so taxpayers can prepare for the 1st half property tax payment deadline in April.

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Petitions for Appeal are due by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, March 19, 2025

The form can be submitted by Email: appeals@wvfire.org or mailed to the department at the address WVFD, PO Box 2106, Wenatchee, WA 98807  Petitions may also be hand delivered at 731 N. Wenatchee Avenue, Wenatchee

The fire benefit charge was approved by voters last summer and is based on building size and the cost to battle a fire which is lower for smaller buildings or single family homes compared to large commercial property.

Under the new taxing formula approved last year, property tax for fire protection was reduced by a third and replaced with a Fire Benefit charge.