SOUTH WHIDBEY: Board of Fire Commissioners passes fire levy lid lift resolution (SWFE)

The South Whidbey Fire/EMS District issued a press release on Mar. 19, 2024 announcing their fire levy lid lift ballot measure.

Proposition will appear on the August 6, 2024, primary election ballot

Langley, WA – The Board of Fire Commissioners passed a resolution to place a fire levy lid lift on the
August 6, 2024, primary election ballot. The lid lift would fund additional emergency personnel to
improve response times and replace aging fire engines and equipment.

Revenue from the fire district’s current fire levy is not keeping up with costs to provide emergency
services, and the fire district needs to hire more full-time personnel to respond to fire and EMS calls.
“Our fire district relies on full-time and volunteer personnel to provide emergency services,” Fire Chief
Nick Walsh said. “Our volunteers do an amazing job, and like many fire districts across the country, we
are struggling to recruit and retain new volunteers to respond to calls.”

The fire district needs to hire more full-time firefighters, in addition to volunteers, to keep up with call
volumes and reduce response times. Additionally, some of the district’s fire engines and apparatus have
reached the end of their usable lives and need to be replaced.

If approved by voters, the fire levy lid lift will fund:

• Two more firefighters per day
• Staffing at a third station in the southeast part of the district
• Firefighter training programs
• Replacement of aging engines and equipment

These improvements would reduce response times and improve service reliability across the district.
Right now, the average response time for fire and EMS calls is 15 minutes, which is a concern. Every
minute counts to improve outcomes for fire and medical emergencies. Hiring two more firefighters per
day would reduce response times to 10 minutes or less on average.

The fire district is asking voters to change the fire levy from $0.81 per $1,000 of assessed property value
to $1.20. The lid lift would cost an additional $19.50 per month for the owner of a $600,000 home.
Learn more at www.swfe.org. Fire Chief Nick Walsh also welcomes your questions at 360-321-1533 or
chief@swfe.org.

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South Whidbey Fire/EMS provides fire and life safety services to people on Whidbey Island south of
Mutiny Bay Road. SWFE serves approximately 15,000 residents and 10,000 visitors and 533 businesses
over 66 square miles. SWFE relies on full-time and volunteer emergency personnel and responds to an
average of 2,600 calls per year. SWFE firefighter/EMTs are highly trained to provide services for fire
suppression and prevention, EMS, technical rescue, hazardous material spills, vehicle accidents and
extrication, and life safety education programs. The district operates under a balanced budget and has
passed all financial and accountability audits by the state.