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Idaho County Has Little Time to Form a New Ambulance District

Brandon Macz

Nov. 15--Latah County has about six weeks to form a countywide ambulance district if it hopes to beat a state deadline to get property taxes rolling in to pay for it by 2013.

But before that happens, commissioners say they first want to engage the six ambulance providers in Latah County to determine if there is enough interest to make the 10-year-old idea a reality.

While the idea has many backers and benefits, there are serious questions about the costs.

Commissioners began the process at their own meeting Monday by talking to Moscow City Supervisor Gary Riedner.

Riedner said a tour of Kootenai County's Emergency Medical Services System showed promising results from a combined district.

It appeared to be workable, he said, "if the numbers worked and everybody was cooperative."

The Kootenai County EMS district operates with a small staff and board who develop a county budget for ambulance service. It pays for ambulances, including maintenance and fuel costs. Each ambulance service collects user fees as well.

"It seems to work out very well from what they say," Riedner said. "It's up to the commissioners to form a district or not."

Riedner cautioned that if the county did not form a district by Dec. 31 to go to the state tax commission on Jan. 1, then it wouldn't have a chance to be placed on the county's tax rolls until 2014. The city and county only recently became aware of this time constraint, he said. To form a district, commissioners only need to collect 50 signatures from county property owners and hold a public hearing -- after three weeks of advertising.

Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson said he thought the district could be formed by the end of the year, but it would take a big push. Commissioners said they wanted to obtain as much feedback from residents and members of the six ambulance services covering nine cities that would need to join an intergovernmental agreement to make the district work.

"I know they had a lot of questions about the funding, and I haven't heard any of that," said Commission Chairwoman Jennifer Barrett.

"This needs to be fully vetted," said Commissioner Dave McGraw, who serves with the Troy Volunteer Ambulance. "This is a major, major decision, and it needs to be done right."

Later Monday, McGraw joined Riedner, Moscow Fire Chief Ed Button and EMS Division Chief Dave Reynolds before the City Council's Administrative Committee to gauge interest from city councilors in joining in the process, which everyone acknowledged would have to be done fast, yet thoroughly.

Reynolds said very preliminary figures for revenue indicated $745,000 could be generated at the maximum allowable rate of $40 per $100,000 of assessed property value, while $372,000 could be generated at $20 per $100,000. Commissioners could adjust the levy rate for different types of property, such as farmland, said Riedner.

Whilie property tax revenues wouldn't allow for an increased level of personnel, Reynolds said, they would allow the county to pay and retain critical personnel. He said, for instance, that the Moscow Volunteer Ambulance -- the county's only EMS agency that provides paramedic-level service -- could hire four paramedics rather than relying on volunteers. He said retention of volunteer paramedics is difficult. After volunteers receive paramedic training -- several through funding from the city, county and Moscow Rural Fire District -- they typically are recruited into paid positions in other departments, he said.

Reynolds said other ambulance services within the county were on board in the beginning of district discussions.

"Now they're having doubts based on the expense," he said.

Councilor Walter Steed said he supported the service provided by Moscow volunteers, but was concerned about the price tag to city residents if a district is formed.

"I represent the citizens of Moscow," he said. "What are they going to get for their money that they're not getting now?"

Button said the city would be able to retain a higher level of skilled paramedics rather than depend on volunteers, whose levels tend to fluctuate.

Reynolds added there is a push in Ada County for the legislature to enact an EMS Authority Act that would legally compel Idaho counties to adopt ambulance districts, but if Latah County formed its district first, it would not be forced to adopt standards set by this potential legislation.

Councilor Dan Carscallen, a first lieutenant with Moscow's ambulance company, acknowledged his involvement and support of a county district, but said he wasn't going to pressure fellow councilors into following suit. Councilor Tim Brown also expressed his support, while Steed said it ultimately would be the commissioners facing criticism if they went ahead with the district.

"We don't have to raise the taxes, they do," he said. "We can come out in favor of mom and apple pie and let them take the heat."

Brandon Macz can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 238, or by email to bmacz@dnews.com.

Copyright 2011 - Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Moscow, Idaho

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