Mistake forces trustees to seek second fire levy

By Lauren Heaton

Last week, when the Miami Township trustees signed and sent to the Board of Elections the application to place the Township’s fire levy on the Nov. 8 ballot, they thought they were asking for a 3.8-mill replacement levy that would yield approximately $443,000 a year for the fire department.

Due to an administrative error in the application process, however, what they got instead was a 3.8-mill levy renewal that will yield about $90,000 less a year than they had intended.

In an open letter to the community, which is published on page 4, trustee president Lamar Spracklen, trustees Chris Mucher and Mark Crockett and Township clerk Margaret Silliman explained that the paperwork was filed with the word “renewal” instead of the word “replacement,” which established the levy at the correct 3.8-millage rate but was based on previous years’ property valuations to yield about $350,000 a year.

A replacement levy would have established the levy at 3.8 mills based on this year’s property valuations to yield the correct budgeted amount.

In order to make up for the budget loss, the trustees agreed at their meeting Sept. 19 to maintain the levy renewal as filed for the November ballot and to place a supplemental levy on the ballot next May.

The fall levy will be called the fire/EMS operating levy because it will provide enough funds to support the department’s current operating expenses.

The additional levy on the spring 2006 ballot will be referred to as the fire/EMS equipment levy, which will fund the capital purchases in the department’s first strategic plan, approved by the trustees in August.

Miami Township Fire-Rescue will continue to promote its strategic plan and begin implementing new programs this fall as anticipated, while the trustees temporarily supplement the fire budget with the $50,000 they have been committing annually to the equipment purchase fund and a $25,000 budget excess from the general fund.

Because funds from the supplemental levy, if passed, won’t come in until 2007, the department will still come up a bit short, but will not have to make any major cuts, Mucher said.

Though Greene County Auditor Luwanna Delaney had certified the Township’s budget with the levy increase in July, the trustees waited until the day before the Aug. 25 deadline to file with the Board of Elections because they felt that they needed more time to discuss the levy amount, Crockett said.

“We were trying to figure out to the penny what we could do to cover the plan and save the taxpayers money,” he said. “There was a lot of debate going on…and it took a while to reach something we were all comfortable with.”

By the time the trustees filed and noted the mistake, there was no time to call a special meeting to approve a new levy application.

Delaney said on Monday that she could not recertify a levy after the election filing deadline. And Silliman said during the meeting that she called the Ohio secretary of state’s office but representatives there could not extend the filing deadline or allow for a correction either.

In other Township business:
• The Road and Bridge Department anticipates purchasing 100 pounds of salt ahead of schedule to take advantage of last year’s price of $35 per ton, the road superintendent, John Finn, reported. The price of salt is expected to rise to $65 per ton in the next month. The Township may use about 120 tons of salt during a bad winter, Finn said.

• The trustees adopted a resolution declaring October domestic violence awareness month and encouraging all township residents to work to avoid interpersonal violence to solve disputes.

• The trustees approved Antioch student Zach Summit and township resident James Smith as new fire/EMS volunteers.

• Altman reported that the fire squad responded to 26 EMS calls and 21 fire calls between Sept. 5 and Sept. 19.

• The trustees paid bills in the amount of $12,442 for the period between Sept. 5 and Sept. 19.

Contact: lheaton@ysnews.com