Letter to Editor | Vote YES on fire levy

…But stay engaged to ensure strong fiscal management

||| FROM PATTY MILLER |||

Vote Yes on the Orcas Fire Levy OIFR serves one of the most essential roles in our community and we as voters have a responsibility to provide appropriate funding to support the financial health of the organization.

When the last levies were presented, I was surprised there were no capital reserves for equipment or building replacements.  For a variety of reasons, the operational costs had consumed all of the funds, including those originally earmarked for capital replacements.   The proposed levy had no provision for ensuring the funds were dedicated to both operations and capital.   I did not want to see history repeat itself.

Even though I still have a lot of questions that have not been addressed, I plan to vote yes on the new levy because it is a starting point toward financial health.  It will provide the necessary funding for operational and maintenance needs.  I know that the commission will be asking for more funding for capital replacement.  If it supported by an intelligent capital management plan that ensures the funds will be dedicated to its execution, they will also likely get my vote.

Please Vote Yes and encourage this organization to move forward.  Let’s put the years of in-fighting and strained relationships between the commissioners and staff behind us.   They have made great progress on resolving the turmoil within the organization and I believe this board can work to find enough common ground to govern competently.   I plan to stay engaged to see them make similar strides in improving transparency and providing stronger financial oversight to minimize the need for additional increases in the future.