LAKEPORT >> Pursuant to Ordinance 1819-01 and the provisions of Measure M, the Lakeport Fire Protection District approved, by a vote of its Board of Directors on August 9, 2024, a tax increase of $6.93 per unit of service to cover fire protection, rescue and equipment.

Measure M was passed in February 2019 by a two-thirds majority of voters and provided a special tax increase for fire protection, prevention, rescue, emergency medical services, hazardous materials handling and other quality of life services to maintain safety and property, explained William Gabe, chairman of the Fire Protection Committee. “We had it on the ballot on Tuesday (Aug. 6), but we did it as an action, but it came back to the committee because it needed a solution,” he said.

It is an annual budget requirement to increase the cost per unit of service before the end of the current fiscal year to keep pace with operating costs for the next fiscal year should the consumer price index increase, Gabe continued. Only property owners and commercial establishments pay the tax.

The fire district stretches from Highway 20 and Scotts Valley Road in the north to Route 175 in the west, Clear Lake in the east, and several miles south of Bell Hill Road in the south. A slightly larger area further west is called the fire protection district’s area of ​​influence and consists mostly of undeveloped land. The ordinance provides for a property tax, which is levied only on property located wholly or partially within the district and not within its area of ​​influence.

Rates are determined using a table that follows units of performance per assessor’s parcel. For example, for residential buildings, this includes single-family homes, mobile homes, mobile homes in parks, and duplexes with 30 units per dwelling unit. For convalescent and nursing homes, the property tax rate is 70 units; for commercial, industrial, or institutional buildings up to 999 square feet, it is 50 units; 1,000 to 4,999 square feet, it is 75 units; 5,000 to 9,999 square feet, it is 100 units, while for buildings 10,000 square feet and over, it is 150 units.

Fire Chief Patrick Reitz of the Fire Protection District noted that their costs are similar to those of most homes and businesses that have to pay for maintenance services. “We’ve seen cost of living increases of between 9% and 15% (over the past five years),” he said. “Our workers’ compensation alone increased more than 30% in FY 23/24.”

This is nothing new, he noted. Voters approved Measure M in early 2019 and implemented it for the 2019/2020 fiscal year. But the fact is that costs continue to rise, he stressed.

Captain Reitz also said that although Measure M allows for an annual increase in tax rates, the board has the option to leave the tax unchanged, increase it by a certain amount or even decrease it, but the latter is not justified under any circumstances. “We are in the fifth year of Measure M and for the first three years the tax rates remained unchanged.”

Measure M allows an increase of up to 3% in a single year. However, it is compound interest. And when operating costs require it, Measure M provides additional revenue. For the 2022/23 financial year, the interest rate increased by 2.93% and for the 2023/34 financial year, by 5.2%. For the 2024/25 financial year, the interest rate will increase by 4.2%, and in previous years, in no case have interest rates been increased to the maximum, but a middle path has been taken.

“It’s not that the board is trying to put it on the property owners,” he said. “The majority of my staff are business or property owners. It affects all of us. It’s not something we take lightly. If you were at the special meeting (Aug. 6), you would have heard the fear that was present when we debated this.”

Much of the area in the impact area is undeveloped land, he noted, but it will be reviewed as part of the master plan to see if it would be beneficial for the fire district to annex it at some point in the future.

Originally published: August 14, 2024 at 6:00 am