{"id":2294565,"date":"2024-07-14T10:55:02","date_gmt":"2024-07-14T14:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/several-clark-county-levy-bond-measures-on-fall-ballot-to-support-fire-departments-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-07-14T11:02:08","modified_gmt":"2024-07-14T15:02:08","slug":"several-clark-county-levy-bond-measures-on-fall-ballot-to-support-fire-departments-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/several-clark-county-levy-bond-measures-on-fall-ballot-to-support-fire-departments-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Several Clark County levy, bond measures on fall ballot to support fire departments &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fseveral-clark-county-levy-bond-measures-on-fall-ballot-to-support-fire-departments-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2294565&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the upcoming \u2062levy and\u2063 bond measures on the fall ballot in Clark County to\u200d support \u2062fire departments. It highlights Fire District \u200d3&#8217;s \u2062request\u2064 for a levy lid lift to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gov-greg-abbott-to-newsmax-im-going-to-do-bidens-job-on-border\/\" title=\"Gov. Greg Abbott to Newsmax: I&#039;m Going to Do Biden&#039;s Job on Border\">increase property taxes<\/a> for better funding. The article mentions the challenges faced by the \u2063<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-firefighters-rescue-woman-trapped-in-burning-car-service-before-self\/\" title=\"California Firefighters Rescue Woman Trapped in Burning Car: &#039;Service Before Self&#039;\">fire district<\/a>, including the need for additional resources due to\u2063 increasing call volumes and personnel costs. Despite a failed levy request last year, the district is hopeful for approval this time to improve emergency services.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\">\n<div class=\"tdb-search-form-inner\"><input class=\"tdb-head-search-form-input\" placeholder=\" \" type=\"text\" value name=\"s\" autocomplete=\"off\"><button class=\"wpb_button wpb_btn-inverse btn tdb-head-search-form-btn\" title=\"Search\" type=\"submit\"><span>Search<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Several Clark County levy, bond measures on fall ballot to support fire departments<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-author-name-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-author-by\">By<\/span> <a class=\"tdb-author-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/author\/carleen-johnson-the-center-square\/\">Carleen Johnson | The Center Square<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><time class=\"entry-date updated td-module-date\" datetime=\"2024-07-14T10:36:44-04:00\">July 14, 2024 10:36 am<\/time><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1701691\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) \u2013 The early summer heat shows no signs of letting up across the Pacific Northwest, and there\u2019s no rain in sight.<\/p>\n<p>That has fire managers on high alert and fire districts asking voters to do their part to help come Aug. 6, in the form of levy funding.<\/p>\n<p>In Clark County, the primary ballot has several levy and bond measures for fire districts and city fire departments, including Fire District 3, which is asking voters for a levy lid lift which would increase property taxes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWashington state fire districts are limited to 1% increases annually, without a lid lift,\u201d District 3 Fire Chief Scott Sorenson said.<\/p>\n<p>District 3 serves a large chunk of central Clark County, including Battle Ground, Brush Prairie and Hockinson. The District 3 levy lid lift request, if approved, would have the owner of a $500,000 home, paying $750 a year, an increase of $170 a year from the current rate set at $1.16 per $1,000 of assessed home value.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe ran our last lid lift in 2017 and that expired last year, so we\u2019re back down to 1%,\u201d Sorenson said.<\/p>\n<p>Sorenson didn\u2019t have the total dollar figure cost of the levy when asked about it on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not sure,\u201d he told The Center Square. \u201cI\u2019d have to go back and look at budgets, which we do in November.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite the population increase in the area, the chief says the department has not been able to hire any new personnel.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn fact, we\u2019ve lost two and have not been able to replace them, due to instability of the revenue, so we\u2019re waiting to see how this goes before we commit to hiring those position back,\u201d Sorenson told The Center Square.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe run 70% medical on our calls, and one of things we want to accomplish with this levy lift is to get another ambulance available in emergencies where there isn\u2019t one available due to system overload,\u201d Sorenson explained. \u201cThe call volume is going up about 5% every year due to growth, and we\u2019re not keeping up with that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sorenson says personnel costs are taking an increasing bite out of their budget, especially due to rising medical premiums.<\/p>\n<p>Another blow came with the recent closure of the Larch Correctional Facility, which used to provide inmate firefighters during wildfire season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDNR [Department of Natural Resources] is providing a 10-person crew for this area, and then I\u2019ve been told if it\u2019s severe, they\u2019ll bring in contract crews, but that doesn\u2019t replace the resource that we lost,\u201d Sorenson noted.<\/p>\n<p>The district ran the same levy lid request last year, and it failed, with 54% of voters rejecting the proposal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe do understand that people are struggling financially, so it\u2019s up to the citizens to decide if they want to fund this or not,\u201d said Sorenson. \u201cIf they don\u2019t, then we\u2019ll have to react to that and do our best to maintain services.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He continued: \u201cLast year we didn\u2019t have a lot of voter participation, so that was one of the factors in deciding to run it again this year with more voters weighing in on this, but we don\u2019t know how it\u2019s going to go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/death-to-the-dictator-iranians-take-to-streets-in-anti-regime-protests\/\" title=\"\u2018Death To The Dictator\u2019: Iranians Take To Streets In Anti-Regime Protests\">intense summer heat<\/a> and dry conditions weigh on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/at-least-6-dead-as-tornadoes-devastate-ala-ga\/\" title=\"At least 6 dead as tornadoes devastate Ala., Ga.\">fire chief<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUp until this heat wave, we were looking pretty good, but now it\u2019s dried things out prematurely,\u201d Sorenson said. \u201cHopefully we get some moisture between now and September, but we\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Several other Clark County cities and fire districts are also asking voters to approve or increase levy funding, including Washougal, East County Fire and Rescue, and Clark-Cowlitz Fire and Rescue.<\/p>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1701691\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1701691\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<p><\/body><\/html><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Multiple levy and bond measures are on the fall ballot in Clark County to support fire departments, including a request for a levy lid lift from Fire District 3. Fire Chief Scott Sorenson is asking voters to approve the increase in property taxes to help fund the department, which has struggled to keep up with the growing population and rising costs. Despite a failed attempt last year, Sorenson is hopeful that more voter participation this year will lead to a different outcome<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2294566,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/California-wildfire-heat-wave.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[34990,33000,18026],"class_list":["post-2294565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-bond-measures","tag-clark-county","tag-levy"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/California-wildfire-heat-wave.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2294565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2294565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2294565\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2294566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2294565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2294565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2294565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}