Commissioners create Ambulance Service District

March 21, 2012

About 40 people gathered in the main courtroom at the Boundary County Courthouse Tuesday evening as county commissioners re-convened public hearing to consider the formation of a county-wide ambulance taxing district, which, by a vote of two to one, was approved. While no additional public testimony was taken at the hearing, having received numerous letters and having heard considerable testimony when the meeting was initially convened February 28 (to read details of that hearing, click here), commissioners did explain their positions. "We heard a lot of comment, a slight majority of which was against forming a district," chairman Ron Smith said. "As a county commission, we are responsible to provide ambulance service. We received a request from Boundary Volunteer Ambulance with enough signatures to require that we consider this. It was apparent, he said, that while not everyone favored creating a taxing district, nearly everyone supported Boundary Volunteer Ambulance, and he said it was clear that they needed help. He recommended creating a taxing district, to show the county's support, but not immediately funding it. "By Idaho Code, we have 15 months from the time the district is created to determine the funding," Smith said. "Over the next 15 months, I propose we work with the BVA Board and EMTs, hospital staff to take a close look at all the issues and determine exactly what we need and what it will cost. We might find out that there's a way to give the ambulance association what it needs without the need for a district, and if that's the case, we can call a public hearing and abandon the taxing district." Commissioner Dan Dinning agreed that BVA needs help, but said it was a complex issue that commissioners didn't yet know enough about. "We have a lot to learn to develop a plan," he said. "The majority of comments were not opposed to improving the ambulance service, but accountability was a key issue." He said he was not in favor of forming a taxing district now, "not until we have a plan we can present," he said. "I'm not against a district, but to me, this is like going to a banker, signing all the mortgage papers, and then leaving it up to the banker to fill in the numbers." His proposal was to hold off on forming a taxing district, forming a committee to look into exactly what will be needed, putting the information out to the public and only then making the decision to form a taxing district, if needed. Commissioner Walt Kirby said both approaches were valid, but that he was convinced that the county needed to help the ambulance association. "Boundary Voluneer Ambulance does an excellent job and I support them 100-percent," he said. "I'm inclined to go along with the chairman. The state says we have to have an ambulance service, and the only way we can assure that is to form an ambulance taxing district. But we need to approach it gently to ensure we are making the best use of taxpayer money before we set a levy amount. Right now, we don't know where we are or where we're going, and we need to assess the needs and determine how best to do it. Doing this now casts the die, and assure's were going to do something in a reasonable amount of time." Under Idaho Code, counties are obligated to assure that ambulance service is available to its citizens, but there are a number of ways counties can do that. Currently, the county gives BVA $8,000 annually, and could, without forming a taxing district, increase that amount to not more than .02-percent of property value. With a formal taxing district, the maximum that could be assessed is .04-percent. At the end, Kirby made motion to form a county-wide ambulance taxing district without establishing a levy amount, Smith stepped down and seconded, and the motion carried.