By Carole Gilbert Brown
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Copyright 2006 P.G. Publishing Co.
The Carnegie Volunteer Fire and Rescue Bureau routinely extends a helping hand in accidents, emergencies and illnesses, but members say it’s now their turn for assistance.
Reeling from losses associated with the 2004 flood, frustrated by lackluster fund-raising results and faced with increasing federal regulations, the organization wants Carnegie officials to authorize a 2-mill fire protection tax to fund its operation. The borough’s current tax rate is 6.2 mills.
“It’s just impossible to collect money or do fund-raisers,” Chief John Kandracs said at the workshop session before the start of Monday’s regular council meeting.
He said the fire bureau had done three community mailings to solicit funds, but that response had dwindled to a low of 8 percent. At the same time, grants have been cut and expenses are increasing. The cost to outfit a fireman is nearly $6,000, he said.
“I guess people are just maxed out,” council member Dorothy Kelly replied soberly.
“Not when they need you,” Chief Kandracs countered.
Borough Manager Stephen Vincenti said Tuesday that Carnegie, which has its own fiscal constraints, was a long way from including the fire bureau in its annual budget, though he is looking into the borough’s spending plans for the next two years.
“There’s a lot of work that has to be done to see how this would be accomplished. We have too much to look at and quite a bit of homework to do,” Mr. Vincenti said, adding enactment of a dedicated tax would require a publicly advertised ordinance and hearing, as well as possible audit requirements.
According to the fire bureau’s presentation to council members, the borough could stop paying the bureau $108,000 from its general fund, money that is paid for expenditures, including gasoline for emergency medical services vehicles, loan payments for fire trucks and other items. Instead, the borough would collect the revenue from the new fire tax and pass the money — $498,000 a year — to the bureau. One mill of taxation brings in about $249,000 a year.
The bureau’s expenditures for 2005 were $404,045, but fundraising and subscription drives for 2004 and 2005 only totaled $120,478.
When Chief Kandracs suggested that the tax wouldn’t have to be a permanent levy, Mrs. Kelly pointed out that taxes don’t seem to go away.
“We’re still paying for the [1898] Spanish-American War in our phone taxes and the [1936] Johnstown Flood in liquor license taxes,” she said.
She said another tax could be too much for some people.
Chief Kandracs understood, but stood firm in his position.
“It’s only fair to the people that everybody pays, just like with taxes,” he said.
The bureau began as a volunteer unit in 1972 and started a volunteer emergency medical service in 1974.
Today, the EMS pays 13 people while 35 firefighters are volunteers.
Firefighters responded to 352 calls and the EMS answered 2,800 calls last year. Firefighters had answered 93 calls and the EMS, 1,054 this year up to the end of last month.
Carole Gilbert Brown is a freelance writer.