There's a saying sometimes used to encourage people to volunteer for their local fire districts: “What if you called 911, and nobody came?”
This week I was thinking about a related idea: “What if the emergency worker who is trying to rescue you called for backup, and nobody could hear?”
In Lewis County, which has more than its share of hills, valleys, twists and turns in our remote wooded areas, that can happen as first responders use radios and gear that have a hard time reaching out from spots near Pe Ell, Packwood or the peaks of the Cascades.
It's one reason why voters who open their ballots this week will see a request to increase Lewis County’s sales tax rate by 0.2% to create a dedicated, stable funding source for Lewis County's 911 center and emergency services.
No one likes raising taxes, but in this case we know exactly where the money will go — to supporting, modernizing and keeping up our county’s first response system.
It’s a proposal worthy of support.
I had a conversation this week about the measure with Gregg Peterson. He has been a volunteer firefighters since he was 15 and has worked as a professional firefighters as well. After retirement, he has continued to volunteer for the fire district serving his home in Boistfort. He’s a self-sufficient guy who has given a lot to or community and others, saving countless lives. After 55-plus years of service to his neighbors as a firefighter, he has earned the right to be heard.
His quiet, measured request is for Lewis County voters to support this 0.2% sales tax increase.
“It’s two dimes on a $100 purchase or a penny on a $5 latte,” he said, noting that most non-prepared groceries are not subject to sales tax. It also wouldn’t affect gasoline or most prescription medications.
This proposal would also, for the first time, ensure that visitors to Lewis County — when they shop at local stores — will help pay for the services they use when things go awry during their visit.
“Sporting events and people staying in hotels and calling 911 keeps us busy, but they don’t contribute toward it,” Peterson said. “Campers don’t contribute. They call 911 when they have a heart attack or get stranded on the river ... This is all being paid for by local citizens.”
Currently the county’s 911 dispatch center is funded partly by a tax on phone service and mostly by fees charged to local emergency services departments, which they pay from the property taxes that we all pay. As those costs have increased, the ability of fire districts to pay hasn’t kept up (since taxing districts can’t increase their property tax rates more than 1% a year).
The more our local fire and police services pay for 911, the less they have to pay for the people who will respond to those calls.
Peterson told me about a first responder in Pe Ell who called for backup before she even got to the crash site. She knew that her radio wouldn’t work at that location, and she didn’t want to have to leave her patient to go back to her vehicle to call in. Better radios and more repeater antenna would address that problem.
Andy Caldwell, a military veteran and local police officer with more than 20 years of experience, said this sales tax is a way to keep our 911 system functioning well and to keep our first responders equipped.
The funds raised are dedicated to emergency communications systems and facilities, and can’t be redirected to other governmental expenses.
“It has to stay in 911,” Caldwell said, noting that this proposal has been in the works for the better part of a decade.
Modern radios and communications equipment will help protect first responders and their ability to serve their neighbors.
“The community deserves it,” Caldwell said. “They deserve he best service we can provide.”
When you vote, this is a measure that deserves support.
When we call 911, we want someone to show up with the tools they need. This tax is an important part of making sure that will keep happening in the best way our volunteer and professional first responders know how.
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Brian Mittge can be reached at brianmittge@hotmail.com.
