||| FROM PATRICK SHEPLER |||
“Trust but Verify.” Most attribute this phrase to former President, Ronald Reagan. In fact, it was taught to Reagan by Suzanne Massie, a Russian history scholar. The real origins are attributed to Joseph Stalin and Vladimir Lenin. One of Lenin’s quotes reads: “Put no faith in words; subject everything to the closest scrutiny.”
So, let us look at some of the numbers provided publicly by OIFR and see what they tell us.
The oldest Orcas Island Fire & Rescue (OIFR) budget available online is 2017; well after the existing levy was passed and in place. Let’s compare the 2017 OIFR budget with their current budget for 2023. Both documents are available on the Orcasfire.org website.
Line Item 2017 actual 2023 budget Increase/Decrease
Tax Revenue $2,089,183.83 $2,383,992.59 +14.1%
Other Revenue* $390,722.77 $165,825.00 -57.6%
Total Revenue $2,479,906.60 $2,549,817.59 +2.8%
(*Largely from federal grants which have since expired)
Operating Expenses $2,233,660.53 $2,847,683.43 27.5%
Capital Expense $2,317.76 $230,000.00
Total Expense $2,236,253.70 $3,077,683.43 37.6%
Contribution To Cash Reserves $243,652.90
Depletion Of Cash Reserves $527,865.84
Cash Balance at Beginning of 2023: $1,152,768.00
Projected Ending Cash Balance at End of 2023: $624,902.16
These numbers tell a simple story. For at least the last six years, expenses have been growing far faster than revenues. During this six-year period, the fire department went from generating an annual cash surplus, contributing to reserves, to a substantial depletion of reserves.
The department projects that they will spend 45.8% of remaining cash reserves in 2023, leaving a balance of $624,902.16. At this rate, the department risks insolvency at some point in 2024-2025 without action.
The new Interim Fire Chief and largely unelected BOFC seem determined to solve their problems with money, YOUR money, without much evidence of reflection towards how the department got into this predicament.
But wait – Quoting from the May 2023 Financial Report at the BOFC meeting:
“We spent 2% less than what we Budgeted for in 2022 which is $74,632.64. This means that our Starting Balance will be $1,384,806.42 which is $232,037.79 more than our predicted starting Balance of $1,152.768.63. The $1,384,806.42 will be used for the 2023 Financial Reporting and will be made official when we do a Budget Adjustment later in 2023.”
There are several questions here…
- Where is the 2023 budget amendment? Why is this not available prior to the levy vote?
- In the quote above, they seem to grow a $74,632.64 expense reduction into an additional cash reserve of $232,037.79. How is this possible?
- Why did the monthly financial reporting to the BOFC stop in May? Is it related to the Finance Manager leaving the island and OIFR? Has the new finance manager been hired? Does this not seem relevant to the levy request?
Setting that all aside, let’s take this at face value and assume that the cash reserves at year-end will be slightly higher than projected. This is good news…It will give a newly elected BOFC in January 2024, and as Commissioners Elect later this year, time to sort things out at OIFR.
The current BOFC Chairman, Tim Fuller, the suddenly resigned fire chief, Scott Williams, and no less than seven previous OIFR Fire Commissioners have had at least six years to plan for continuous financial stability. They have not.
Now, they are floating a levy with little to no public input, on unacceptably short notice. Remember, of the five commissioners putting this proposition forward, only Fuller was elected by the public.
Over the last five years, the public has asked reasonable questions of the Board. At least three of the last four Commissioners, led by Commissioner Tim Fuller, have ignored the voting public, to the point of disrespect.
And when these public questions went unanswered, the public filed Public Records Requests. The Public Records Act (PRA) has strict requirements for timely response. This has not happened. When the requested records finally show up, months after their due date, they are often nearly black with redactions; many of which have been a real stretch. This only adds salt to the wounds of disrespect from our former BOFC, still led by Fuller.
We are beyond, “Trust but verify”. There is no ‘trust”. We need to grab the steering wheel and help our fire department avoid the so-called Levy Cliff.
Voting NO now is the only opportunity to co-create a Levy that represents what we need, and at what price. Let’s elect a new board in November, chosen by the public first. This new board will then operate with a mandate from the public to inclusively design a ballot for the voters in early 2024.
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Well said! Vote NO on the levy proposal. Further, we need to have elected officials design the future of Orcas Fire and Rescue.
Good job, Patrick. Thank you for putting on your green eye shade and sharing.
Another well written letter.
I hope everyone reads your analysis, Patrick. Thank you for making it so clear why we need to vote NO on the levy proposal!
Inflation since 2017… 24.1%. When you consider that with numbers provided above, what do you conclude?
4 of the 5 Fire Commissioners have been appointed, not elected. I could never vote for a tax levy that originated with unelected officials. Let’s elect Fire Commissioners before voting yes on a tax levy that, as proposed, is poorly designed for the future needs of an important institution.
Responding respectfully to anthony Simpson :
I could point out that the commissioners had literally years to see this coming.
But since we have quoted Latin, my reply is:
res ipsa loquitor.
Well penned and explained, Patrick Shepler! I hope everyone shares the link to your letter far and wide, as I will. When citizens asking legitimate questions get repeatedly shamed and slapped down for asking what is their right under the Open Meetings and Public Records Act to know, then I can’t in good conscience vote for any levy made by unelected commissioners, and any commissioner, elected or not, who subscribes to these tactics of blame and shaming.
Thank you for speaking so eloquently in this letter, and for showing the numbers, and the questions that they generate. I did not have words or knowledge to articulate what you have shown and said here, but agree 100% that in order to build trust, we are going to have to start again from the ground up with elected commissioners whose first priority is to listen and be transparent – and put the needs of EMTs and firefighters and the condition of our equipment first.
The candidates’ forum was revealing. Listening carefully to the responses told me all I needed to know about where I should put my vote – both with the levy and the candidates. For me, the most shocking and revealing thing I heard in the forum was that the needed and mandated replacement of fire engines, under a strict State timeline, was not met. Rather, a fly car (not needed at that time) was purchased. Financial mismanagement needs to be factored-in when weighing how we got to the point of “needing” this levy or a bailout from where things now are.
There are creative ways to raise funds until a new levy can be written that is collaborative and fits needs first and foremost.
I did not appreciate the scolding and shaming – even bullying – of members of the public who dared to ask questions. Been here before – and I ask that members of the Public stay involved and hold your ground when it comes to asking questions that deserve transparency and answers.
Sadie,
Well put. Thank you for staying involved and paying attention to the process. Despite what a paid captain in our fire department wrote, those of us pointing out the facts/flaws of this levy are hardly “trailer trash”.
This vote will indeed tell if the public is willing to bow to the “shaming & bullying” that this administration has endorsed by their silence —along with a wink and a nod.
Trailer trash? I need a property tax adjustment!