Midway Fire lacks financial foresight

This article is the result of several sleepless nights and much prayer. As a resident living in the Midway Fire District, I feel compelled to verbalize my opinion concerning the upcoming vote. I would like to preface my opinions with the knowledge that as the wife of a firefighter, I wholeheartedly support the fire services and see the value and merit in their role within a community. In addition, I commend the individuals, both career and volunteer, who have dedicated their lives to the protection and service of their communities. In no way is my personal opinion intended to harm the fire district, nor the community which they serve. My goal rather is to provide an alternative solution and food for thought.

Recently, the Midway Fire District has been in the news a great deal. My understanding is that some of the information publicized may or may not have been entirely factual. With that being said, I encourage each resident to give this situation a great measure of thought and research before voting.

Personally, I will be voting "no." My decision to do so is not a spiteful one, nor is it intended to harm the community in which I work and live. I propose that there are other viable options to retain a quality fire service in this community without the financial burden that this tax increase would impose. Our community has been in a state of financial devastation since 2004-2005. The local economy has not rebounded from the impact of hurricanes Ivan and Dennis. Furthermore, our local economic issues are impacted by trends in the U.S. economy that are placing our country on the brink of a recession. Personally, I don't feel that it is appropriate for one entity within a community to impose an increasing burden on all members without first demonstrating some internal constraints and attempting to rectify their own financial dishevel.

As mentioned above, economic trends have been shifting for a number of years now. Unfortunately, the Midway Fire District has either been unaware or unconcerned by these trends. In the years following Hurricanes Ivan and Dennis, we have all been impacted by the increasing cost of living. Increases in home owners insurance, taxes, and gas have forced each family to tighten their personal budget and work extra hours to meet their financial responsibilities. During this same time period, the Midway Department has increased their staff, purchased new equipment, and sent firefighters to elaborate and nonessential training courses. In addition, they have proposed to increase their empire by opening an additional fire station and taking over EMS services for the entire Santa Rosa County. I am well aware of that some of the training and equipment has been funded through matching grants. However, even matching grants require a financial outlay from the institution receiving them.

In addition, Midway Fire District hired a number of the firefighter through funds provided by diminishing grants (grants that pay a portion of the firefighter's salary annually with the percentage decreasing each year.) Now the district has no financial means to retain these employees. Unfortunately, lack of foresight and excessive expenditures combined with the decrease growth rate have created a financial disaster for the fire district.

So, here we are today with a dilemma on our hands. The community has already approved a millage increase from 0.9 to 1.4 in 2005. Now we are faced with a second increase that, if approved, can be increased every year, for the next five years, without public consent. Personally, I am a little leery about relinquishing my veto power for the next five years to a Chief and a Board of Commissioners that has failed to acknowledge their role in this financial disaster. I am, however, willing to consider other options to preserve the essential services of our fire department and ensure that firefighters are not released from their jobs due to a lack of funds. The salaries of these fire fighter s constitutes only about a third of the Midway's projected budge. With this in mind, there must be other costs that could be reduced or eliminated before assuming such drastic measures as releasing 17 firefighters from service. As an act of good faith, would like to see the Midway Fire Department sell or terminate the lease on some of their nonessential equipment, including the new ladder truck, the command center bus, the smoke house, and the automated CPR machines, just to mention a few. I understand that the equipment is state of the art and nice to have; however, it is not essential in providing quality service.

More importantly, no piece of equipment should be perceived as more important than the individual operating it. Numerous other fire districts have had to plan and postpone purchasing state of the art equipment to operate within their budget. Why does the Midway Fire District feel a need to have everything now? I would rather see the land purchased for the next fire station sold than see firefighters lose their jobs. I feel confident that if the Midway Fire District would acknowledge their role in this unfortunate situation and make some internal concessions, the community would be willing to come to their aid. I propose Midway establish an account at a local bank and allow residents, who are financially able, to contribute to an immediate relief fund. Then after a year, when Midway has had an opportunity to trim back some of the fat, the community can revisit the proposed tax increase.

Editor's Note: The increases are not limited to five years, rather they are automatic in the future based on the increase in Florida personal income for the past five years.