The Pride of the Southeast Thurston Fire Authority Fleet
Photo courtesy: Southeast Thurston Fire Authority

– “SE Thurston fire vote about keeping staff up, insurance rates low”
* The proposition would raise the property tax rate from $1.47 to $1.50 per $1,000 valuation
* Reserves kept the fire authority from laying off firefighters during the recession
* If the measure fails, the fire authority’s insurance rating is likely to go up
“Voters in Rainier, Yelm, and the surrounding areas will decide whether to raise taxes and restore pre-recession funding to the Southeast Thurston County Fire Authority in the Aug. 2 primary.

Fire district officials say the increased funding would allow the fire authority to maintain its current fire response times and personnel.”

“There has been a 17 percent increase in emergency calls within the district in recent years, and the city of Yelm is the biggest growth area, Fire Chief Mark King said.

The authority’s reserve account was drained during the recession to keep the authority staffed and running. It managed to keep all of its firefighters, but had to lay off other personnel. The increased tax would maintain the 19 uniformed firefighters and the current response times of about 6 minutes inside of the cities of Rainier and Yelm, King said,” quoting Rhiannon Berg, The Olympian.
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The Yelm Community Blog supports the SE Thurston Fire Authority Levy Lid Lift