MIFFLIN TOWNSHIP — Trustee John Jaholnycky said costs of fire department equipment have increased about 60 percent over the past 15 years.
To pay for turnout gear, salaries and general operating expenses in their fire department, Mifflin Township trustees have placed a 3.5-mill additional property tax levy on the May 2 primary ballot.
The last continuous levy passed in 2006 and is collected based on property values from that year.
This additional, continuous levy would cost $123 annually for each $100,000 of property value.
“The levy is desperately needed, quite honestly, just to keep the fire department running without taking away from the general fund or other departments like the road crew,” Jaholnycky said.
“We rely mostly on taxpayers to fund township services. We don’t really have a bunch of new business revenue,” he said.
The fire department has eight full-time employees and 18 part-time firefighters. It has four fire trucks, three ambulances, one grass truck and one utility truck.
The newest equipment the department has is a 2012 fire truck.
If approved, collection of the levy would begin in 2024. It is expected to generate $293,000 annually for fire department equipment, maintenance and salaries.
Jaholnycky said the money would likely go mostly toward salary expenses and trustees would determine exact allocations later.
“Right now, we’re paying almost a million dollars in salaries,” he said. “We used to rely on part-time medics. But there’s a shortage of them right now, so we’re looking into grants that help us fund payroll costs.”
A new tool on the Richland County Auditor’s website allows voters more clarity about what this property tax would cost if approved. To use the levy estimator tool, visit the auditor’s website at https://richlandcountyoh.gov/departments/auditor. Click ‘property search,’ enter your address and click “levies” on the top right corner of the page.
