West Manatee Fire Rescue commissioners issued a recommendation April 20 on how to move forward with preliminary planning for their 2017-18 fiscal year budget.
By June 1, the board of commissioners must agree on a maximum preliminary assessment rate for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.
The planned assessment rate can be lowered but not raised between June and the finalization of the 2017-18 budget in September.
Commissioners agreed to move forward, for now, with Chief Tom Sousa’s recommendations.
Sousa recommended increasing the assessment rate 2 percent for private properties, from $0.1063 per square foot to $0.1084, and a 4 percent hike for commercial properties, from $0.1841 per square foot to $0.1915 per square foot.
Commissioners Al Robinson and David Bishop questioned the necessity for the rate hikes in light of anticipated grants and plans to sell the administrative building.
However, Sousa said the rate hikes would give the board the ability to prepare for the “worst case scenario” of not selling the building or receiving grants, or it could eliminate the need for any rate hikes in the 2018-19 fiscal year.
The rate hikes would provide WMFR with $148,849 in additional revenue, enough to cover an expected $140,000 increase in firefighter pensions for the 2017-18 fiscal year.
In the past year, Sousa said, WMFR’s service improvements have included adding a fourth person to the rotation on Station 3 in Holmes Beach, which improves the response time for structural fires on the island.
In addition, the budget was constructed to take into account ALS services, which Sousa expects WMFR to provide in the coming year.
“Bottom line is, we’re adding value to the service we provide to the people,” the chief said.
In other news, Sousa told the board the Manatee County Board of County Commissioners was to hold a first hearing on an ordinance granting WMFR the ability to provide advanced life support services Tuesday, April 25, after The Islander went to press.
Sousa said a lot of work went into drafting the ordinance. The WMFR spent much of 2016 in negotiations to offer ALS services.
Currently, only Manatee County EMS can provide ALS in the district. However, up to three in four calls the WMFR receives are EMS calls, and Sousa says the district will benefit from ALS service provided by the team that first appears on the scene.
The next commission meeting will be 6 p.m. Thursday, May 18, at the WMFR administrative building, 6417 Third Ave. W., Bradenton.