Fire District Merger News

NEWPORT – After a campaign to consolidate the eight fire districts in Pend Oreille County, the decision has resulted in a three-district merger between Pend Oreille Fire District Nos. 1, 3, and 7. Pend Oreille County residents living in Fire District No. 1 approved their fire district commissioners' decision to merge with Fire District No. 3 with a 75-percent approval rate, passing with a super-majority. About 107 residents voted against the measure.

The other merging district, Fire District No. 7, began a petition drive with its residents Saturday, Nov. 8 and Sunday, Nov. 9. Fire Chief Bruce Coleman said he and Commissioners Frank Phelps and Randy Miller would be the only members canvassing the district. They will continue visiting homes in the district for the next two weekends. At one of the informational meetings residents said they were concerned about confidentiality when it comes to the petition, Coleman said. To address those concerns, Coleman said the fire district assembled a single-signature petition for the 245 registered voters into blank envelopes. When Coleman, Miller and Phelps knocked on a door, explained their purpose and handed over the envelope, residents could sign or not sign the petitions without the fire district representatives knowing. Election deputy Liz Krizenesky said the forms should be in petition format, so they would go ahead and verify the signatures. The workload may be higher, Krizenesky said, but the confidentiality effort shouldn't hinder the process. Coleman said the fire district took the extra step "because several people were conscious of having their name where people could see it." Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 Fire Chief Mark Havener said the commissioners have collected about one-third of the required signatures. The Dire District No. 7 commissioners and fire chief will continue visiting fire district No. 7 voters and intend to submit the petition to the auditor's office by the end of the month.

Havener said he has heard some interest from other fire districts, but there are no plans to pursue a 2009 fire district consolidation. Pend Oreille Fire District No.4, Havener said, will not pursue consolidation in the following year because of their current administration contract. Because of the requirements that fire districts merge with adjacent fire districts, the only other eligible districts are Fire District Nos. 7 and 8. Fire District No. 8 is not pursuing a consolidation. Like the merger between fire District Nos. 1 and 3, a supermajority within Fire District No. 7 must approve the merge...
Excerpt from Article By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner

Published in the Newport Miner - November 12, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Thank You

Fire District 1 and Fire District 3 would like to thank the voters for the recent approval of the merger issue for the two districts. In the New Year, the two districts will become one force to provide high quality service to the community. Some benefits that we all can expect from the merger include-

• Increased service - more volunteers and a new fire station to serve our communities

• Increased efficiency - delivery of personnel and resources to the incident is more effective

• Increased effectiveness of tax dollar use

• Greater grant opportunities

• Expanded capabilities

• One vision

• One point of contact

• Common training

We hope that you never need to use the service that we provide. In the event that you do, we promise to deliver the highest level of service possible with professional volunteers.

Thanks again for your support!

*** *** ***

You can become a member of our winning team too and realize the satisfaction and benefits that come from being a volunteer firefighter! Please contact us through our website www.pofd3.org for more information or call us 447-5305.

Published in the Newport Miner - November 12, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Election Results

Following are the results from Pend Oreille County’s general election as of

Tuesday, Nov. 4, at 8:00 p.m.

Fire District No. 1 Merge with Fire District No. 3

Yes 321 - 75%

No 107 - 25%

As Reported by The Miner Online - November 7, 2008

» OCTOBER NEWS

Fire District No. 7 Holds Second Meeting

NEWPORT – Pend Oreille Fire District No. 7 will hold a second informational meeting Thursday, Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. at the fire station on Jermain Road to answer more questions about the coming petition drive. Fire District No. 7 Commissioner Randy Miller said the fire commissioners will try to answer all questions, including some from a flier disseminated through Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7. Miller said the fire district may wait for an election to perform the merger, depending on the feedback they hear from residents. Miller said Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 fire chief Mark Havener has been doing a lot of work toward the consolidation, and the fire commissioners should do their best to follow through “and let the residents see where their commissioners stand.” Residents who have questions about the upcoming petition may contact fire commissioner Randy Miller at 509-998-2226.

Published in the Newport Miner - October 22, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Fire District Merger Will Improve Services

To the editor:

Recently a number of residents of Pend Oreille County Fire Districts 1 and 7 presumably had an unsigned flyer taped to their mailboxes. The letter’s author is obviously very unhappy with the proposed merger with these three fire districts, and he made accusations against the respective commissioners and especially Chief Havener. The author made a number of statements, some correct and some blatantly false. The commissioners are trying to do the best for their organizations, communities and volunteers. All three organizations have limited resources, especially volunteers, and are doing an outstanding job. A combined fire/EMS department will definitely provide better protection for all three areas. I have known Chief Havener since shortly after he came to this area as a Chief of Pend Oreille County Fire District, and I was impressed by his professionalism and dedication to his department and community. It is obvious that he wishes to improve his fire fighting/EMS organization and the service to the community.

John Galley, Elk
Volunteer Firefighter/EMT

Spokane County Fire District 4 and

Pend Oreille County Fire District 4

Published in the Newport Miner - October 22, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Citizen Burns Fire Districts - Illegally Posted Flier Opposes Merger Process
NEWPORT – Residents in Pend Oreille Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7 received a piece of illegal mail denouncing efforts to consolidate those fire districts with Fire District No. 3. Either stuffed in or taped to mail boxes, a flier labeled “No!!” distributed an anti-consolidation sentiment to voters facing an upcoming decision to merge their fire districts. According to United States code, “no part of a mail receptacle may be used to deliver any matter not bearing postage.” Mail carriers took down the printed fliers as they went along their mail routes. However, some residents found the fliers before they were taken down. The flier ends with the line “Brought to you by Citizens for Fairness.” The flier leaves no contact information for the Citizens for Fairness. Efforts to track the author have ended without conclusive results. The flier also recommends residents to contact The Miner newspapers “and let them know how you feel.” The Miner newspapers publisher Fred Willenbrock said his newspaper was not a part of the flier’s distribution or composition. “It wasn’t from us,” Willenbrock said. “Residents can pretty well figure out that if we wanted to send out printed material, we’d use the newspaper.” The flier references Fire District No. 3’s Web site for a newspaper clip.

Fire Chief Mark Havener of Fire District No. 3 initially proposed consolidating fire districts at a meeting in April. “He has some facts in there, but then he adds his own interpretation,” Havener said. Havener said he has heard the same points brought up at a pancake breakfast for Fire District No. 7. Havener said he may have met the flier’s author before but is not sure. Fire District No. 7 Commissioners and Fire Chief Bruce Coleman were unavailable for comment.

Residents of Fire District No. 1 will decide whether to merge their fire district with Fire District No. 3 on coming election ballots. Fire District No. 7 will conduct their merger through a signature petition. Volunteers will knock on the doors of registered voters. Havener and volunteers need more than 135 registered voters’ signatures on their petition to pass the merger. On receipt of the petition, the Pend Oreille County auditor’s office will verify each of the signatures. In its only false statement, the flier asserts “Where are the dissenting votes, all they will have are the yes signatures, which are not proven registered voters.”

One other concern the flier brings up is the leadership of a new merged fire district may not represent all the areas of the fire district. If the merger passes voters this November, merged districts cease to exist and the commissioners of each district become the same commission, resulting in nine commissioners in the first year. However, new positions would not be reelected until the resulting fire district had vacancies on its commission. Havener said in September the commission may decide to re-district the new fire district, requiring each fire commissioner to represent equal population areas.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - October 15, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Fire District Merger Not On Ballot

Volunteers to Run a Petition Door-to-Door

NEWPORT – Registered voters in the Pend Oreille Fire District No. 7, with an opinion about the proposed consolidation between their fire district and fire district No. 3, should expect a knock on the door near election day. Fire district No. 7 commissioners have chosen to pursue the merger with Fire District No. 3 with the petition process. Fire Chief Mark Havener of Pend Oreille Fire Districts Nos. 3 and 4 said the commissioners of Fire District No. 7 had a miscommunication about turning in their ballot question to the Pend Oreille County auditor’s office. Since then, the commissioners have opted to follow the petition format, which will relieve the fire district of paying election costs.

Fire District No. 4 is not a part of the merger between Fire Districts Nos. 1, 3 and 7. Fire District No. 3 voters will not see the merger on their ballot as they are receiving the new districts; Fire District No. 3 commissioners have accepted requests from fire commissioners of Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7. Fire District No. 1 voters will still see the issue on their ballots.

Washington state law allows fire districts to merge by a petition process, which requires the fire district to collect more than half the signatures of registered voters in the district to decide on the merger – instead of posting the consolidation issue on the November ballot. In both processes – merger and ballot – an approval rate of three-fifths is required. In Fire District No. 1, the Pend Oreille County auditor’s office has 503 active registered voters. More than 301 “yes” votes on the ballots are required to pass the merger for fire district No. 1. In Fire District No. 7, the auditor’s office has 226 active registered voters. More than 135 signatures must be collected on the petition to pass the merger for Fire District No. 7. It is possible for one fire district to merge with Fire District No. 3 while another rejects it. Havener said he and the volunteers will try to collect more than 160 votes to secure the approval. The county auditor’s office will validate signatures turned in.

The only negative feedback Havener has directly received has come from some citizens questioning the tax implications of a merger between smaller fire districts and the geographically larger Fire District No. 3. Havener explained that the merged fire district would operate on the same funds each district would have received in 2009 had they stayed separate. While operating budgets may increase by 1 percent, no new taxes would be assessed the first year after fire districts are merged. Taxes for residents in the merged fire district could change in 2010, when 2009 property valuations could be used for levies. Havener has estimated a proposed levy rate of 67 cents per thousand, matching the current Fire District No. 3 rate. For Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7, 67 cents per thousand would raise the levy rates. Fire District No. 1, currently at 47 cents per thousand, would see a 30 cent per thousand rise. Fire District No. 7, currently at 44 cents per thousand, would see a 23 cent per thousand rise.

Havener, currently serving as chief for Fire Districts Nos. 3 and 4, said his annual contract with Fire District No. 4 has been extended to 2009. He has explained that the merger would make him chief of the merged district, to be named South Pend Oreille Fire and Rescue, with the current chiefs of Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7 answering to him as well as the three current captains in Fire District No. 3. Havener said no new positions would be added to a merged district until 2010, when possibly management assistance would be hired.

Havener said volunteers will be visiting with registered voters in Fire District No. 7 on a certain few days. No days have been scheduled yet. Havener said the volunteers have not yet begun to collect signatures.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - October 8, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Fire Commissioners Name New District

DIAMOND LAKE – The fire commissioners from the consolidating Pend Oreille Fire District Nos. 1, 3 and 7 reached a consensus on the merged district’s name Sept. 30 at the Diamond Lake fire station. If voters in Fire District Nos. 1 and 7 approve the merger in the coming election, the emerging entity would be called the South Pend Oreille Fire and Rescue – though legally named Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3. Fire District No. 3 Chief Mark Havener said their equipment and badges would bear the name South Pend Oreille Fire and Rescue if the voters approve the merger.

The fire commissioners worked to organize their districts for the coming consolidation, which included evaluating current and proposed leadership structures and budgets. The budget for 2009, Havener said, would not see a levy rate increase associated with the merger. A merger between the three districts would result in simply collecting the same revenue for each of the three districts. The 2009 revenue is based on taxes set from assessed values in 2008. The anticipated revenue for the three fire districts is $356,000, including grants. The expenditures are about $322,000, which would leave a little more than $30,000 to go toward a capital projects budget. In 2010, the combined fire district would begin a new levy, based on the revaluations and equalizations among the three areas. Havener estimated the projected levy rate to be about 67 cents per thousand – lower than the estimated 86 cents per thousand first proposed.

If voters pass the consolidation in this coming election, the leadership of the South Pend Oreille Fire and Rescue would possibly change. Havener explained that the current structure has each fire district using a fire chief for each area. In the new structure, a district fire chief – Havener – would oversee the current fire chiefs of Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 7 and three other fire captains currently in place at Fire District No. 3.

At the higher level, a consolidated fire district would start with nine commissioners at its head. However, as terms expire, the leadership would not be replaced until only three commissioners remained. In 2009, the terms expire for Fire District No. 1 Commissioner Galen Hansen and Fire District No. 3 Commissioner Leonard Pielli – both appointed – as well as Fire District No. 3 Commissioner Wes Bailey and Fire District No. 7 Commissioner Joann Pogue. In 2011, each fire district would lose one commissioner: Linda Vosahlo from Fire District No. 1, Gary Wilkey from Fire District No. 3 and Frank Phelps from Fire District No. 7. In 2012, the South Pend Oreille Fire and Rescue would hold elections for all three positions.

Because the district would be a single legal entity, commissioners could be elected from anywhere in the district without stipulations requiring them to be elected from a certain geographic area. Havener said the current fire commissioners could draw district lines to make sure future representation covers the district’s areas, similar to the county commissioners’ districts. Still, no official decisions have been made.

The nine fire commissioners also addressed the current agreement between Fire District No. 1 and Spokane Fire District No. 4. As it stands, the current agreement would give Fire District No. 1 the opportunity to request services from the Spokane Fire District through 2009 if their station and volunteer firefighting force is not operational by the end of the year. If the merger is successful, Havener said, the contract would not be renewed. Havener said the Fire District No. 1 commissioners expected the station to be standing before Dec. 1, able to house equipment and fire engines. Fire District No. 1 commissioners awarded a contract Sept. 18 to build the new fire district’s station to Diamond Lake construction company Double Diamond Construction.

At the Sept. 18 meeting, about 25 people from the fire district arrived to participate in an informational meeting. Havener explained some residents had concerns about the tax implication the larger fire district would have on residents. Residents recently saw their property valuations rise, which led to concerns that taxes would rise to match. However, Havener said, the cost would not double. Instead, taxpayers would see a continued levy through 2009, and then a possible 67 cent per thousand levy rate for 2010, depending on 2009 property valuations and the equalization with other property values in the combined district.

Havener will meet with fire district No. 7 voters and current fire commissioners Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. at the fire station on Jermaine Road to address concerns about the consolidation of Fire District No. 7 with Fire Districts Nos. 1 and 3. Any questions regarding the merger can be directed to Fire District No. 7 Commissioners Randy Miller or Frank Phelps, Fire District No. 7 Fire Chief Bruce Coleman or Fire District No. 3 Fire Chief Mark Havener.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - October 1, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

» SEPTEMBER NEWS

Fire District Hosts Merger Proposal Meeting

NEWPORT – The fire commissioners of Pend Oreille Fire District No. 7 and District No. 3 Fire Chief Mark Havener are inviting the community to an informational meeting Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. regarding the proposed merger of Fire District No. 7 with District No. 3. The meeting will be held at the fire station on Jermain Road. There will be a brief presentation outlining the plans and expected benefits to the community. There will also be a period to address any questions that the community may have regarding the merger.

The Fire District No. 7 commissioners have chosen to pursue the merger with Fire District No. 3 with the petition process. This merger process would allow the fire district to collect signatures of registered voters in the district to decide on the merger. By using the petition process, Fire District No. 7 would collect the signatures instead of posting the consolidation issue on the November ballot. Volunteers will be visiting with citizens in Fire District No. 7, collecting supportive signatures in the coming weeks.

Havener has said some of the benefits of a merger include unity of command, increased cost efficiency, the elimination of duplicate service, more effective distribution of resources, more effective dispatching and delivery, and improved special operations. The consistent delivery of services would not discriminate from one area to another. This one district concept collects revenue and delivers service across the county equally based upon need and demand, the chief said. Many of fire districts in Pend Oreille County have similar equipment and some of that equipment is redundant, he added. The elimination of duplicate efforts could lower operating costs.

Some residents have opposed the merger between fire districts because they are concerned it would create a possible imbalance where fire district resources would be distributed. Upon merging, one fire district ceases to legally exist, and its resources are to distribute as the unified agency decides. Further, fire districts with levies set lower than the proposed tax levy for the merged fire district, residents could see an effective rise in their levy taxes. Havener proposed a countywide merger budget, which would have a levy rate of 86 cents per thousand. The proposed levy rate for the merger between fire districts Nos. 1, 3 and 7 has not been announced. Fire District No. 7 has a levy rate of 44 cents per thousand. Fire district No. 3 has a general levy rate of 67 cents per thousand aside from its special levy rate of 30 cents per thousand and the highest assessed value of the eight districts: more than $267 million. The third member of the merger, Fire District No. 1, has a levy rate of 47 cents per thousand and a special levy with a rate of 25 cents per thousand. The assessed value in Fire District No. 1 is about $32 million. The merger would not alter special levies, which means residents of Fire District No. 3 should see an increase of 19 cents per thousand after the merger, to reflect the general levy rate, if the new levy rate is 86 cents.

Any questions regarding the merger can be directed to Fire District No. 7 Commissioners Randy Miller or Frank Phelps, Fire District No. 7 Fire Chief Bruce Coleman or Fire District No. 3 Fire Chief Mark Havener.

Published in the Newport Miner - September 24, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

» JULY NEWS ARTICLES

District Accepts Merging Petition

DIAMOND LAKE – The fire commissioners of Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 accepted petitions from two other fire district Monday, July 28, to merge with District 3. Fire chief Mark Havener of District 3 said the next step for fire district Nos. 1 and 7 is to send ballot language to the Pend Oreille County auditor’s office by Aug. 12. The submitted ballot language will be the question posed to voters in each fire district in the November election.

Havener and the merging fire districts are waiting for clarification on how to state the levy equalization that state law requires in a fire district merger. Currently, District 3 pays 86 cents per thousand on a general levy. Fire district No. 7 pays 46 cents per thousand on its general levy. Fire district No. 1 pays 44 cents per thousand on a general levy and 25 cents per thousand on a special levy due to expire in 2010. The special levy would not be equalized to the rest of the districts in the merger. The state requires that the new district have a levy rate equal between the original districts. Havener said the projected budget for the merging districts uses a 75-cent per thousand budget. Havener said the commissioners of fire districts Nos. 1, 3 and 7 will begin meeting to establish plans in the event the voters in each district approve the merger. The fire district merger requires a greater than 60-percent approval vote in each district, except for fire district No. 3, which just accepted the petitions Monday.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - July 30, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Fire Districts Seek Merger at Election

SACHEEN LAKE – Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 will host two informational meetings for public input on the merger of three south county fire districts. The first meeting will be held July 14 at 7 p.m. at Fire District No. 3’s station 31 on Highway 2 near Diamond Lake. The second meeting will be held July 28 at 7 p.m. at Sacheen Lake fire station No. 32 on Highway 211.

The public meetings will be held to answer questions from the fire commissioners and the public. District No. 3 Fire chief Mark Havener has invited the commissioners, leaders and community of fire district Nos. 1, 3 and 7 to attend.
Each meeting will include a discussion of ongoing consolidation efforts. Paperwork for the merger will be presented for the boards’ review. The paperwork includes an environmental impact statement and a petition for merger. Fire District No. 3 commissioners are expected to review the documents and then rule on those documents July 28.

Proponents of consolidating all the fire districts of Pend Oreille County cite benefits including improved levels of service, eliminating unnecessary duplicated efforts, increased effectiveness of resource deployment, improved grant opportunities, seamless operations and providing one point of contact for fire service delivery. This consolidation’s goal is to deliver consistent emergency service to every part of the south county. Early efforts to consolidate fire districts initially examined south Pend Oreille County as a target area. For more details, call the Fire District No. 3 fire station 31 at 509-447-5305.

Published in the Newport Miner - July 9, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

Two Districts Move to Merge

NEWPORT – Discussion of an idea to consolidate Pend Oreille County’s eight fire districts have moved two fire districts to begin the process of merging with Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3. Commissioners for fire districts No. 1 and No. 7 have begun drawing legal petitions to start the consolidation process. Fire chief Mark Havener of fire district No. 3 has continued to meet fire commissioners about the process and benefits of consolidating fire districts.

Miner map - This map approximates the boundaries between each of the county’s eight fire districts and areas without fire protection. If 60 percent of voters in fire districts No. 1 and No. 7 approve the merger, fire districts No. 1, No. 3 and No. 7 will be one district in south Pend Oreille County.

The fire commissioners for fire districts No. 1 and No. 7 will draw a petition to fire district No. 3, requesting the merger. Once fire district No. 3 approves the petition, each district will begin phrasing the question for the ballots in November. Fire district consolidations require 60 percent approval among the registered voters in an affected district.

Fire district No. 7 chief Bruce Coleman said his fire commissioners are filling out the information. Coleman said the greatest benefit to them is the increased coverage. Fire district No. 7 has nine volunteers, including Coleman. At times, the fire station has two volunteers available while the rest work jobs, leaving the district sometimes vulnerable. “If the residents get all the information, and they don’t see just the tax raise, it will pass,” Coleman said, adding that fire district No. 7 residents often wait for service from other fire districts during daytime hours. Coleman estimated residents currently pay $40 to $120 for their annual fire taxes. Consolidating may raise those numbers by 50 percent, Coleman said, but those funds will continue to cover the area within the fire district.

Fire District No. 1 commissioner Linda Vosahlo is also optimistic that residents in her fire district will vote the merger in. Vosahlo said fire district No. 1 commissioners have endorsed the consolidation plans. Fire commissioner Galen Hansen, the primary contact between Havener and fire district No. 1, was unavailable for comment before deadline.

The laws dictating how fire districts consolidate require the merging districts be adjacent, primarily through common borders. Havener said commissioners from fire district No. 4, between districts No. 3 and 6, indicated they will wait a year to observe the process before joining the merger. Logistically, this rule disqualifies fire district No. 6 from the merger by default, as it lacks a common boundary with fire district No. 3. Fire district No. 2, vocal in supporting the mergers, is also ineligible from the merger, as it only shares a boundary with fire district No. 5.

Havener will be holding a pair of open, public meetings for residents and fire commissioners to voice concerns. The first meeting is scheduled July 14 at 7 p.m. at the Diamond Lake Fire Station, and the second is scheduled July 28 at 7 p.m. at the Sacheen Lake Fire Station.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - June 11, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

» JUNE NEWS ARTICLES

June 4 - Chief Aims for Ballots - Chief to Meet with Fire Commissioners

NEWPORT – After holding the first presentation in April, chief Mark Havener of Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 and No. 4, continues to meet with fire district commissioners to discuss consolidating the county’s eight districts and some city fire departments into a countywide fire district.

Havener said he’s continuing to send information to districts about the benefits of consolidating the fire districts. He and volunteers have begun circulating fliers to educate citizens, who may possibly vote on the issue. In Havener’s talks to commissioners, he has said he would like to have all of the commissioners in agreement before the end of the summer. That would give the commissioners time to submit the issue to the voters in this year’s general election. The deadline to submit a ballot issue is Aug. 27. Some of the fire districts’ commissioners have expressed their full support of consolidating the districts, Havener said. He has also received support from residents in the districts.

Fire commissioner Rick Stone of district No. 2 endorsed the idea at Havener’s original presentation. Fire district No. 2 recently constructed a station near Tiger. The district has seen fire insurance rates drop for residents because a new station is within a certain number of miles. With a single fire district, the county representatives would communicate with only one fire chief and one board of fire district commissioners. This would also give residents a single point of contact for their fire district.

During his first presentation, Havener shared a story he said happens too often in the county. With a volunteer firefighting force, many of the firefighters are working during the day. One call came in at 9 a.m., and no volunteers were available. Dispatch has to wait five minutes before calling a fire district with a mutual aid agreement to respond. Havener said it was a false alarm, but if it had been real, residents would have suffered an extra five minutes of waiting. Having a single district would necessitate the hiring of a full-time maintenance person to perform upkeep of the fire engines and equipment in all stations.

One limitation to smaller districts is the limits on borrowing money by issuing bonds. By state law, fire districts are only able to issue bonds worth up to 0.75 of a percent of their district’s assessed value. For example, fire district No. 3, with the highest assessed value of $267,477,070, could only issue a bond for about $2 million. If the existing eight districts merged, they could write a larger bond of $6.37 million.

Havener explained in his April presentation the process of merging the fire districts as laid in law by the state. One district, fire district No. 3, would be the “merged” district while the rest would be “merging” districts. As each district’s residents vote by super-majority to merge their district to fire district No. 3, each district’s commissioners and full-time, paid employees would retain a place in the new fire district.

With eight fire districts having three commissioners each, the newly merged district would have 24 commissioners. However, after two years, a third of those commissioners would not be able to run for reelection, leaving 16. Then, in another two years, the commissioner base would drop by a third again. Then, six years after the original merging decision was made, a completely new board of three or five commissioners would be sworn in. The former districts would not exist as a voting base. Rather, the commissioners would represent a third or fifth of the new fire district’s population.

The next steps would be for the districts to decide to pursue the merger, and each board of commissioners would write resolutions. Finally, the ballots would pose the question to Pend Oreille County residents in November.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - June 4 2008 RETURN TO TOP

June 2 - How Does the Proposed Fire District Merger Really Affect Taxes?

This past week, Dave Fredley wrote a letter to the editor that warned the voters in our fire districts of the increase of property taxes as a result of any Fire District merger approval. I appreciate Dave bringing up the issue of what a fire district merger will cost. Dave had many true statements in the letter, but I felt it was necessary to provide some clarification as to the true impact on property taxes.

Fire districts in the State of Washington rely almost completely on property taxes to generate funds to provide for the operation of fire and EMS service delivery. Those taxes are set at rates as approved by the voters in those districts. Those rates do vary greatly depending on the level of need that the fire district demonstrates and asks the voters to approve.

The projected budget that I developed used a rate of .86/ $1000 as an example for what the consolidated district might expect to expend on an annual basis on a line item budget. This budget included additional part-time and full time staff to effectively maintain, manage and deliver service to the community. The budget also was an attempt to demonstrate the efficiencies that would be realized as a result of the merger.

Dave mentioned that property taxes would increase. In some districts this increase could be 3 times the current rate. That is correct. Why the increase? What does that increase really represent?

The consolidated fire district would seek an increase (the amount of the levy has not been established) as required by law. This allows for each property owner to pay the “fair share” of the operational costs regardless of location. In turn they all would receive the same level of service through the consolidated fire district.

The actual cost and the associated increase to the taxpayer is an increase only on the fire district tax. This increase doesn’t increase any other portion of your annual property tax liability.

As an example, FD 3 currently has an approved tax rate of .86/ $1000 of assessed property value. As a result of property value increases and the limitations set by state law, our collected rate in 2008 is .67/$1000. This year, in FD 3, a property with a value of $100,000 pays $5.58 per month for fire and EMS service. I have examined different rates of taxation to fund the consolidated district and have determined that we will likely request a levy rate of .75 to .80 ¢. At a rate of .80/ $1000 the same taxpayer will pay $6.66 / month, an increase of only $1.08 per month! That is an annual increase of only $12.96! Pretty cost effective when you have an emergent need and want the Big Red Fire Truck with a full compliment of trained firefighters or a fully trained and licensed ambulance to arrive at your door!

Let’s also look at one of the fire districts where we might experience a larger increase.

Pend Oreille Fire District No. 8 currently collects .45/$1000 of taxes on assessed value. A $100,000 property pays $3.75 per month for fire service. They have an approved rate of .75 ¢. Under the consolidated district, those same property owners, at a rate of .80/ $1000 would pay the same $6.66 as FD 3 and have an increase of only $2.91 per month or $35.00 per year. That’s less than many of us pay for phone, electric or TV service monthly. Still, quite possibly the best bargain in public service in the county!

The increases in taxes that come with the merger of the fire districts bring the assurance of an increase in service delivery and efficient use of the tax payers dollar. The consolidated district will provide a higher level of service to the area, and deliver that service in a more efficient manner.

Efficiency is not only measured with dollars and cents. In efficiency studies we examine the best delivery of service, using the closest resource, not the one that lies inside a political boundary. We also examine delivery statistics for response time, dollars saved and cost of delivery. All of these elements are expected to improve over the current fragmented system.

I welcome additional inquires into the merger process and all that is included as we travel down that path. I can be reached at FD 3; 447-5305, or at FD 4; 447-2476. We have prepared an informational brochure that will provide additional information on the consolidation that is available through the fire district. The Pend Oreille Fire District No. 3 website, www.pofd3.org, provides information on the consolidation as well. Thanks for caring, Mark Havener

Letter to the Editor Response by Chief Mark Havener - Fire Districts 3 and 4
June 2, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

» MAY NEWS ARTICLES

May 14 - Fire District Consolidation Will Cause Increased Taxes

To the editor:

Your editorial in the May 7 issue of the Miner requires additional information that the public needs to know. The unification of the fire districts in Pend Oreille County will have substantial cost increases to the taxpayer. State law requires that fire districts included in unification have equalized tax levy rates. Under the plan proposed by the fire chief of district No. 3, the levy rates in all fire districts except for district No. 4 will increase to match those in district No. 3. And these increases will be significant.

For fire districts No. 2 and 3, the levy will go up approximately 25 percent; for district No. 6 the levy will increase 42 percent; for districts 1, 7, and 8, the levy will almost double; and for district No. 5 the levy will almost triple! This is real money and we will pay it forever.

The question needs to be asked, if this plan makes the unified fire districts so efficient, why will the cost be so high?

Your editorial also suggests that full-time management; for all districts is a reason to merge. This suggests that volunteer fire chiefs are less than "full time." This is not the case. Many of these unpaid chiefs work more--much more--than 40 hours a week in that position.

Letter to the Editor: David Fredley - Newport
Published in the Newport Miner - May 14, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

May 7 - OUR OPINION: County Fire District Worth Study

Last week, Pend Oreille County fire district officials started discussing the pros and cons of forming a countywide district and eliminating the patchwork of eight small fire districts. We believe the idea has merit and should be aggressively reviewed during the next few months. Property owners should take a close and open-minded look at the proposal.

Mark Havener, the full-time paid fire chief for districts No. 3 and 4, has been an excellent leader of his district. He has taken the initiative to advance this district far above and beyond his duties. Havener has carefully thought this proposal through and is taking the lead to explain the advantages and disadvantages. He is the right person for this and everyone should take the time to listen.

There are obvious reasons to merge - standardized training and equipment maintenance are just a few. Full time management for all districts is another. there are also some things that would have to be worked out; but so far none seem to be deal breakers.

We believe that this must also be the time to work out coverage of the areas now not covered by any fire department; under any merger they should be covered.

This won't be an easy undertaking; small volunteer fire districts are important to each community they serve and won't go away without a better program to replace it. That is the way it should be and so far this might be it. --FJW

Published in the Newport Miner - May 7, 2008 RETURN TO TOP

May 7 - Sheriff Mentions Dispatch Contracts

NEWPORT - Pend Oreille County officials are at least thinking about the possibility that fire districts may be asked to pay for their dispatch services in the future. However, they emphasized recently that no formal discussions have begun and no plans have been made.

Pend Oreille County sheriff Jerry Weeks discussed the issue briefly with the county commissioners at their March 24 meeting. Weeks recommended the commissioners talk to the fire district commissioners.

Weeks told the Miner no plans have been made and no bilateral talks have begun. Instead, Weeks said, he made the comment to pose the hypothetical situation before county budget plans were made.

Currently, property tax dollars and state assistance pay for the operation of the fire district's service. The state of Washington's Military Department Emergency Management Division 9-1-1 section pays for about 50 percent of the county dispatch service costs which includes, law enforcement and fire and medical, chief of communications Steve West said. The other half of the cost is paid from Pend Oreille County's current expense fund.

Emergency management director JoAnn Boggs explained a referendum passed in 1996 allowed Pend Oreille County to construct and install a dispatch center for the county. Boggs said discussion about charging user fees to the fire districts began even when the center was going up. However, Boggs said elected officials chose not to pursue it. The independent, fire districts have smaller tax bases with little ability to produce funds for dispatch services.

At a meeting Thursday, April 24, where fire commissioners and county residents gathered to discuss the possibility of consolidating the county's eight districts, the possibility of paying user fees to the dispatchers was considered.

"We realize nothing's free," fire chief Mark Havener said April 4. Havener serves both Pend Oreille fire districts No. 3 and No. 4.

Havener said he discussed the possibility of contracting dispatch services with other members of the county. A unified fire district could negotiate a competitive price and the possibility of having a better chance at competitive grants would reduce the overall cost of fire service in the county. A rough draft of the merged district's budget included paying $20,000 for dispatch fees.

Havener pointed out if fire districts stand separately, the dispatch service would need to decide on a fair formula to charge for service.

Any discussion to unify the fire districts to a single district also includes keeping stations open and maintaining the volunteer force. Volunteers save the fire districts millions of dollars in wages. Property tax payers would still support the fire as they picked up the contracts. Havener said, possibly through levies. Havener said contracting with the county for dispatch services would make the fire districts a stakeholder in the county's dispatch services, a revenue source for the county.

Weeks said he hadn't discussed the possibility of contracting fire dispatch services with Havener. "There isn't anything happening and no decisions have been made." Weeks said, adding that if any discussions began, they would discuss the cost formula then. However, Weeks stressed there are no active efforts to form contracts with the fire districts to purchase dispatch services from the junior taxing districts.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - May 7 2008 RETURN TO TOP

» APRIL NEWS ARTICLES

April 30 - Fire Chief Shares Vision at Meeting with County Residents

SACHEEN LAKE – Pend Oreille County residents gathered at the Sacheen Lake fire station to hear a presentation meant to answer this question: What if Pend Oreille County had one fire district instead of eight?

Fire chief Mark Havener from Pend Oreille Fire District Nos. 3 and 4 presented the concept of consolidating the county’s eight fire districts to a crowd of about 40. The audience included two county commissioners and a majority of the fire district commissioners.

Havener’s presentation addressed reasons, logistics and fears of consolidation, ending with a question-and-answer session.

One reason to hold the presentation now was to acquaint the commissioners in different parts of Pend Oreille County with the possibility. Another was to capture the timing: as 2008 is an election year and the merger can only occur with a vote of the people, the consolidation could happen this year. Aug. 27 is the deadline to submit an issue to be placed on the county ballots.

Havener’s 90-minute presentation described a vision of one fire district serving Pend Oreille County to acquaint meeting attendees with the whys and hows of consolidation. The audience listened to the entire presentation with only a few questions interrupting.

Havener shared many benefits of the consolidation, which he explained was not his commissioners’ vision, though they support his efforts. “Some people have accused me of building a kingdom. I don’t need a kingdom,” Havener said. “I already have the best job in Pend Oreille County and work with the best firefighters.”

Benefits of Unity
With a single fire district, the county representatives would only need to deal with one fire chief and one board of fire district commissioners. Havener said many chiefs think differently, which can slow down communication between county commissioners and the fire chief. This would also give residents a single point of contact for their fire district.

A merging of fire districts would also eliminate the duplication of service and make more effective dispatching of resources to incidents.

Havener shared a story he said happens too often in the county. With a volunteer firefighting force, many of the force are working during the day. One call came in at 9 a.m., and no volunteers were available. The dispatch has to wait five minutes before calling a fire district with a mutual aid agreement to respond. Havener said it was a false alarm, but if it had been real, residents would have suffered an extra five minutes “on the worst day of their lives.”

Havener later told The Miner a merged district could not reduce coverage in one area to serve another, except in the case of a catastrophic event, like a major wilderness fire. Havener said he would rely on the cooperation and integration of the Ione, Metaline and Metaline Falls fire departments to support volunteer needs in the north county to prevent south county volunteers from having to drive to a fire in the north county.

A single district would improve the cost efficiency by spreading the costs through the district and allow more effective distribution of trucks, apparatus and utilities firefighters need. It could also improve the district’s ability to build fire stations.
Fire commissioner Rick Stone of fire district No. 2 endorsed the idea. Fire district No. 2 recently constructed a station near Tiger. The district has seen fire insurance rates drop for residents because a new station is within a certain number of miles.

“We have folks who’ve realized a 50-percent decrease in insurance,” Stone said, adding that a consolidated district would be able to put more stations closer to those expanding neighborhoods.

Having a single district would necessitate the hiring of a full-time maintenance person to perform upkeep of the fire engines and equipment. This benefit would spread throughout the county as the maintenance performed would assist all of the stations.

One limitation to smaller districts is the limits on borrowing money by issuing bonds. By state law, fire districts are only able issue bonds worth up to 0.75 of a percent of their district’s assessed value. For example, fire district No. 3, with the highest assessed value of $267,477,070, could only issue a bond for about $2 million.

If the existing eight districts merged, they could write a larger bond of $6.37 million.

Other Options
Early in the presentation, Havener covered three other options available to the county.

A functional consolidation between districts could be achieved with contracts and mutual aid agreements. As one example of a functional consolidation, fire districts No. 3 and No. 4 currently share a fire chief through a contract. A partial consolidation among the fire districts would involve special services being performed jointly, as in the educational efforts performed by the Pend Oreille Fire and Life Safety Cooperative. The cooperative educates students at high schools during fire safety months.

Havener also pointed out fire districts could maintain the status quo: some agencies thriving and some struggling.

After outlining the benefits, Havener discussed potential issues to consolidating the fire districts. Many of those issues, Havener pointed out, were personal issues rather than logistical ones: a lack of trust, a loss of identity, a fear of loss of control, lack of communications, a fear of making mistakes, concerns about representation and a fear of change.

Havener explained the representation question by referring to the process of merging the fire districts as laid in law by the state. One district, fire district No. 3, would be the “merged” district while the rest would be “merging” districts. As each district’s residents vote by super-majority to merge their district to fire district No. 3, each district’s commissioners and full-time, paid employees would retain a place in the new fire district.

The former districts would not exist as a voting base. Rather, the commissioners would represent a third or fifth of the new fire district’s population.

A Taxing Union
Another concern Havener said would involve tax changes that would occur with the merger.

Havener said a budget would come first, followed by the tax structure.
Havener presented a revenue sheet for the present Pend Oreille County fire districts, showing each district’s assessed values, levy rate and estimated income. Estimating with the maximum levy cost of 86 cents per thousand of assessed value, Havener drew up a rough draft of a budget to show what residents might expect.

The budget would pay for total estimated expenses of $699,000. A merged district, based on the same assessed values of each district, could receive revenue of $828,579. That would provide the fire district with $129,319.64 in surplus revenue.

Capital improvements to fire stations and new fire engines would require a special levy or else be paid for from the surplus. Special levies for fire districts must pass a 60-percent voter approval.

Havener said the consolidation of the county’s fire districts could create other opportunities. One possible addition to the department he mentioned was providing ambulance services. If demand increased beyond what Newport Ambulance, the present private company running ambulances in Pend Oreille County, could handle, the consolidated fire district could fill the void. However, the consolidating plans do not include those adjustments.

Possible Rate Changes
If the merger between the districts includes a levy rate of 86 cents per thousand, fire district No. 4 would be the only district to drop its levy rate. Presently, fire district No. 4 pays the highest levy rate of a dollar per thousand. The other seven districts would raise their levy rates by as little as 16 cents for fire district No. 2 or as much as 56 cents for fire district No. 5.

Fire district No. 1 has a levy rate of 47 cents per thousand and a special levy with a rate of 25 cents per thousand. The assessed value in fire district No. 1 is about $32 million.

Fire district No. 2, with an assessed value for the north county of more than $133 million, has a levy rate of 70 cents per thousand.

Fire district No. 3 has a general levy rate of 67 cents per thousand aside from its special levy rate of 30 cents per thousand. Fire district No. 3, which services Diamond Lake, also has the highest assessed value of the eight districts: more than $267 million.

The merger would not alter special levies, which means residents of fire district No. 3 should see an increase of 19 cents per thousand after the merger, to reflect the general levy rate, if the new levy rate is 86 cents

Fire district No. 4, with the second highest assessed value at $225 million, has the highest levy rate of $1 per thousand of assessed value. Fire district No. 4 serves the Ponderay Newsprint plant and is projected to bring in the highest tax revenue of the county: $225,785.92.

Fire district No. 5 has one of the lowest levy rates among the fire districts of 30 cents per thousand.

Fire district No. 6 has a levy rate of 60 cents per thousand with an assessed value of more than $108 million.

Fire district No. 7 has a levy rate of 44 cents per thousand, matching fire district No. 8’s levy rate. However, fire district No. 7 has an assessed value of just more than $20 million while fire district No. 8 has an assessed value of more than $31 million.

The estimated rate of 86 cents per thousand is almost double what four districts out of eight currently have.

By law, all of the new district would fall under the same levy rate. Havener stressed 86 cents per thousand is an estimation.

Going Forward
The next steps would be for each attendee and resident to conduct their own research and try to build agreement with other residents. Then, the districts could decide to pursue the merger, and each board of commissioners would write resolutions. Finally, the ballots would pose the question to Pend Oreille County residents in November.

Only two fire districts lacked commissioner representation: No. 5 and No. 1. Fire commissioner Galen Hansen from fire district No. 1 said he would attend but a family emergency prevented him. Havener said he would notify each group and deliver the presentation for smaller groups that requested it.

Havener said a homeowner with property valued about $100,000 could expect to pay about $86 for the year for fire coverage.

“For coverage on the worst day of your life, that’s a bargain,” Havener said.
County commissioner Dean Cummings asked whether the consolidation of these districts would spread coverage to currently unprotected areas, often called “no man’s lands.” Havener said it would not, but they could be merged at a later date.

Fire district No. 6 chief Duane Mauro endorsed the idea.
“I came from a district that went through this process,” Mauro said. “We consolidated with a neighboring district. Of course, we went through some growing pains. But two years later, it worked out smooth. It was a benefit to the people who picked up the phone dialing 9-1-1.”

Mauro came from the Black Diamond Fire District in King County. Havener mentioned other successful fire district mergers, including one of the first in Tualatin, Ore. East Jefferson Fire and Rescue in the city of Port Townsend, Wash., merged two fire districts and the city’s fire department.

By Youssef Sleiman of The Miner
Published in the Newport Miner - April 30 2008 RETURN TO TOP