After the creation of a fire district failed by 15 votes, South Jacksonville officials are weighing a fee increase and other funding options.
Ben Singson/Journal-Courier
A vote during the March 17 elections that shot down a bid to establish a fire district for South Jacksonville Fire Department has Chief Rich Evans Jr. making plans to help ensure the department remains funded.
The proposed fire district, which would have covered South Jacksonville and portions of rural Morgan County and impose a property tax to fund the department, fell short by 15 votes, Evans said.
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“Right now we are determining what our next steps are, deciding if we want to try to do it again,” Evans said.
They realized after the election that many people didn’t know much about the proposed district, despite a social media outreach and public forums, Evans said.
“We tried to get the information out there,” he said. “If we do this again, we need more education to those people — who it pertains to, why we need to do this and the benefit of doing it.”
Evans has maintained that establishing the district is the best way to ensure fire department funding and coverage in cases of emergencies.
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Funds generated would have been used to update aging equipment and to staff the department part time during the day when the department’s volunteers are not as readily available because of their own work obligations.
Evans asked the board and village attorney during April’s village board meeting to begin looking at a new ordinance that would increase the fire service subscription fee that covers those outside of village limits but in the department’s coverage area.
The subscriptions are voluntary, Evans said, so there is no guarantee for additional funding from them.
The subscription now is $100 a year, and Evans is looking to increase that, likely to $150 a year, he said.
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“The $100 fee has been in place for several years and, with the cost of operations increasing, we feel the need to raise the amount,” Evans said.
The village had 234 responses from residents in the department’s coverage area during the most recent subscription renewal period, village President Dick Samples said.
Both the current fee and the proposed increase are less than what other department’s charge, he said.
Those in the coverage area without a subscription still get service but are billed for any calls to their homes, Evans said.
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Evans would rather have everyone covered through the district and not have to rely on subscriptions, but he recognizes at this point that a district is not happening, he said.
“We are happy to cover these areas,” he said. “The issue is that we need to have the support in place to do it.”
He doesn’t know what the department’s next steps are but he intends to continue discussing it with the fire department’s and the village’s leadership, he said.
Evans is proud the vote passed in the village, showing the support it has from residents, he said.
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The vote faltered in more rural areas of the proposed district.
Though questions about problems with some ballots were raised, they were only able to confirm six incorrect ballots, Evans said, noting that would not have changed the vote’s outcome.
“I was contacted by a couple of people and we found that there were six where the (fire district creation) resolution was not on the ballot, and there is no solution for it,” Evans said. “They can’t go back and vote.”