(The Center Square) – Primary election day is Aug. 6, meaning Yakima County voters have one week to cast their ballots.
Like the rest of the state, voters will decide on a new governor, state and federal representatives, senators, county commissioners and local tax measures. From fire services to pools, residents have the chance to determine where their tax dollars go.
Three of Yakima County’s 13 fire districts are asking voters to pass property tax levies to continue funding regular operations. The plea comes as the Rimrock Retreat Fire ravages through areas southeast of Naches, having burned around 29,500 acres as of this morning.
Yakima County Fire Protection District No. 1, which is assisting around 500 personnel in fighting the flames near Naches, is one of the three asking voters to approve its levy. If approved, residents within the district would pay $1 for every $1,000 of assessed property value.
Per state law, District No. 1 could increase that rate by 1% annually and use the maximum amount at the end of the five-year period as the base for the following levy. If approved, the revenue would also go toward emergency medical services.
Fire Protection District No. 4 is also asking voters to approve its levy, except its initial rate starts at $1.42 per $1,000 of assessed value and increases by 1% annually for the five years after. Like the other levy, it would also go toward EMS and financing fire protection services.
The district currently levies at $1.25 per $1,000 of assessed value but wants to return to collecting the prior 2018 rate next year; however, doing so would surpass the 1% annual limit allowable by state law, requiring voter approval this time around.
Returning to the 2018 rate would keep the district under the $1.50 maximum that it’s allowed to levy with voter approval, but it still represents a 13.5% year-over-year increase from 2024.
Fire District No. 12 is asking for the most significant tax increase, from $0.89 per $1,000 of assessed value to $1.14. If approved, this would represent a 28% year-over-year hike.
The district’s officials cited the tax hike as necessary to maintain staffing levels, which account for 56% of annual funding. The revenue would also enhance training opportunities and improve infrastructure, such as repairing fire engines and replacing ventilators and other equipment.
“The increase of $0.25 cents per [$1,000 of assessed value] will cost the owner of a property valued at $400,000 about $8.34 a month or $100 per year,” according to a press release on the levy. “This is based on the need to fund fire protection services and taking into consideration the needs of our residents who face the same inflation factors as the Fire District.”
The last tax measure on the ballots would go toward funding the Selah Aquatic Center/Pool at a rate of “$0.07 or less per $1,000 of assessed valuation for each of six consecutive years.”
Voters have until Aug. 6 to cast their ballots before the results are posted sometime after 8 p.m. on election night.
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