Bath Township Fire Department Seeks Support from Voters for Additional Funding
Bath Township Fire Department Seeks Support from Voters for Additional Funding
The Bath Township Board of Trustees have unanimously voted (Resolution # 12-5-23-6)
to ask Bath Township residents to take a second look at the 2.5 mill levy increase which narrowly failed last November. The fire department came up short by only 43 votes and are hopeful that voters will reconsider this vital funding request.
The additional funding is needed to fill vacant positions which have been cut and allow the department to be staffed at a minimum of four Fire/EMS personnel twenty-four hours a day.
The department reminds voters that no new funding has been approved by township residents for twenty years. Also, the amount of funding has declined due to changes by the state legislature specific to business and industry. The fire department also cites the rising costs of wages, employee benefits, equipment, apparatus, and general operating expenses over the past two decades as reasons why the additional funding is a necessity.
The fire department has made deep cuts due to the November levy failure which Chief Joseph Kitchen says is unsustainable. “The fire department cannot provide the level of service which our residents have become accustomed to without additional funding. We are in desperate need of the community’s support at the ballot box on Tuesday, March 19, 2024,” said Chief Kitchen.
The Allen County Auditor estimates that the levy will collect $746,000 annually, at a rate not exceeding 2.5 mills for each $1 of taxable value, which amounts to $88 for each $100,000 of the county auditor’s appraised value, for 5 years, commencing in 2024, first due in calendar year 2025.
Joseph L. Kitchen, Bath Twp. Fire Chief: 419-221-0550
Brad Baxter, Chmn. Bath Twp. Board of Trustees: 419-221-1797
Bath Township Fire Department Seeks Support from Voters for Additional Funding
The Bath Township Board of Trustees have unanimously voted (Resolution # 12-5-23-6)
to ask Bath Township residents to take a second look at the 2.5 mill levy increase which narrowly failed last November. The fire department came up short by only 43 votes and are hopeful that voters will reconsider this vital funding request.
The additional funding is needed to fill vacant positions which have been cut and allow the department to be staffed at a minimum of four Fire/EMS personnel twenty-four hours a day.
The department reminds voters that no new funding has been approved by township residents for twenty years. Also, the amount of funding has declined due to changes by the state legislature specific to business and industry. The fire department also cites the rising costs of wages, employee benefits, equipment, apparatus, and general operating expenses over the past two decades as reasons why the additional funding is a necessity.
The fire department has made deep cuts due to the November levy failure which Chief Joseph Kitchen says is unsustainable. “The fire department cannot provide the level of service which our residents have become accustomed to without additional funding. We are in desperate need of the community’s support at the ballot box on Tuesday, March 19, 2024,” said Chief Kitchen.
The Allen County Auditor estimates that the levy will collect $746,000 annually, at a rate not exceeding 2.5 mills for each $1 of taxable value, which amounts to $88 for each $100,000 of the county auditor's appraised value, for 5 years, commencing in 2024, first due in calendar year 2025.
Joseph L. Kitchen, Bath Twp. Fire Chief: 419-221-0550
Brad Baxter, Chmn. Bath Twp. Board of Trustees: 419-221-1797