SEQUIM — Voters living in Clallam County Fire District No. 3 will be asked next month to approve a hike in the levy rate that funds the district’s general firefighting operations.
Fire district commissioners in July authorized Chief Steve Vogel to place a levy request on the all-mail primary ballot, seeking a raise from 91.5 cents to $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property valuation.
The 63 percent increase sounds like a leap, but there are factors to consider, Vogel said.
One is the escalating cost of providing services to a rapidly growing area, which is straining the department’s budget and threatens to force district officials to tap into reserve funds to stay afloat.
Clallam No. 3 is one of the state’s largest fire districts in area, spanning 135 square miles.
It has operated without an increase in general levy funding for more than 20 years, getting by on the standard 1-percent-per-year increase allowed by state law after a ballot initiative limited junior taxing districts from seeking greater rate hikes without going to voters.
The good news for voters, Vogel said, is that if approved, the levy probably will remain at its revised rate — plus the standard increase — for eight years.
“If I go for $1.25 (instead of $1.50 per $1,000), I’ll probably have to go back to the people in two years,” he said.
“I’d like to avoid that.”