Barry County voters pass ambulance district tax
April 8, 2015
Charlea Mills
The voters of Barry County passed a new 1/2-cent sales tax to secure the future of the South Barry County Ambulance District (SBCAD). The property tax rollback passed with a a significant margin, according to the unofficial election results.
Of the 13 precincts voting on the SBCAD sales tax issue, 2,058 votes were cast and 65.79 percent voted in favor of the sales tax. The final tally was 1,354 votes in favor and 704 votes against. The new sales tax is expected to generate between $560,00 and $615,000 annually for the district, a significant jump from the approximate $220,000 collected from the present property tax levy.
Ken Cieslinkski, chairman of the SBCAD Board, said, “We would like to thank the voters of South Barry County for their support and taking time to come out and vote on such an important issue. It is truly a blessing to live in such wonderful country that uses a great system for the voice of the people to be heard. They have spoken, and we, as a board for South Barry County Ambulance District, will continue to do our best to serve the people.”
The SBCAD Board decided to ask for the tax when their budget struggled to keep up with the demands of the community in the ambulance district. The SBCAD is responsible for the upkeep of the two ambulance facilities located in Cassville and Shell Knob, the ambulances and much of the equipment on the ambulances, like the cots and Cardiac Monitors.
CoxHealth EMS runs the ambulance service and provides all of the medical supplies on the ambulances, the fuel and maintenance on the vehicles, and the salaries and benefits of the 16 full-time EMTs and Paramedics, two PRN EMTs and one PRN Paramedic.
Now that the sales tax has passed, property owners in the SBCAD will see a rollback on their real and personal property taxes. The tax should begin being collected in October, but the District will continue to operate on property tax levy funds for 2015. According to State statute 321.554.2RSMo, both property and sales taxes must be collected until August 2016 when the property tax rollback will begin. In 2017, the district will then have a full 100 percent reduction in ambulance property taxes.
If the District feels that the revenue being generated by the tax is not necessary, the board can reduce the amount of the sales tax in coming years.
Charlea Mills
The voters of Barry County passed a new 1/2-cent sales tax to secure the future of the South Barry County Ambulance District (SBCAD). The property tax rollback passed with a a significant margin, according to the unofficial election results.
Of the 13 precincts voting on the SBCAD sales tax issue, 2,058 votes were cast and 65.79 percent voted in favor of the sales tax. The final tally was 1,354 votes in favor and 704 votes against. The new sales tax is expected to generate between $560,00 and $615,000 annually for the district, a significant jump from the approximate $220,000 collected from the present property tax levy.
Ken Cieslinkski, chairman of the SBCAD Board, said, “We would like to thank the voters of South Barry County for their support and taking time to come out and vote on such an important issue. It is truly a blessing to live in such wonderful country that uses a great system for the voice of the people to be heard. They have spoken, and we, as a board for South Barry County Ambulance District, will continue to do our best to serve the people.”
The SBCAD Board decided to ask for the tax when their budget struggled to keep up with the demands of the community in the ambulance district. The SBCAD is responsible for the upkeep of the two ambulance facilities located in Cassville and Shell Knob, the ambulances and much of the equipment on the ambulances, like the cots and Cardiac Monitors.
CoxHealth EMS runs the ambulance service and provides all of the medical supplies on the ambulances, the fuel and maintenance on the vehicles, and the salaries and benefits of the 16 full-time EMTs and Paramedics, two PRN EMTs and one PRN Paramedic.
Now that the sales tax has passed, property owners in the SBCAD will see a rollback on their real and personal property taxes. The tax should begin being collected in October, but the District will continue to operate on property tax levy funds for 2015. According to State statute 321.554.2RSMo, both property and sales taxes must be collected until August 2016 when the property tax rollback will begin. In 2017, the district will then have a full 100 percent reduction in ambulance property taxes.
If the District feels that the revenue being generated by the tax is not necessary, the board can reduce the amount of the sales tax in coming years.