GATE CITY — The Scott County Board of Supervisors will continue discussion on a new tax to guarantee a stable floor of funding for the county’s fire and emergency medical services departments.
The proposed fire tax, which dominated Monday’s board budget workshop, stems from a recommendation by public finance consultancy firm Davenport in an April 14 letter to acting County Administrator Bill Dingus and Accounting Manager Bart Shelton.
Davenport analyst Harit Patel wrote that the potential $1.8 million deficit facing the county in the 2025-26 fiscal year could be reduced by approximately $1 million through the levy of a four cent tax dedicated to funding fire and EMS agencies in the county.
Dingus and Shelton gave more detailed estimates at the workshop of what the fire tax would bring in revenue if enacted.
With the tax — an additional four cents added to the current real estate tax rate of 77 cents per $100 of assessed value — Shelton said the total real estate tax rate could bring a projected $12.832 million to the general fund with $634,000 of that earmarked for distribution to the nine fire departments and rescue squads.
Collection of a fire tax could be done as part of the real estate tax collection process based on research of state law and other localities’ experience, county Commissioner of Revenue Tammy Tiller told the board. She said it could be possible to list the amount of a fire tax on property owners’ tax tickets.
The fire tax estimate is also based on a projected 98% collection rate for real estate taxes, Shelton said.
Under the current county budget, the county general fund provided $598,000 overall to fire departments and $626,000 to EMS, Dingus told the board. County spending on fire and EMS is expected to rise from this fiscal year’s $1.13 million to a projected $1.22 million in the upcoming budget year, he added.
“To be honest, that’s not enough,” said Board Chair Chris Maness, “but that’s what we think the people can bear.
The $1.13 million line item for fire and EMS is paid directly from the general fund, Maness said, but a fire tax would guarantee a portion of that revenue.
Duffield Fire and Rescue Chief Roger Carter and Nickelsville Assistant Fire Chief Wendell Burke — representing the county Fire Association — recommended that any revenue from a fire tax be divided equally among the departments.
“We don’t want to say one community is less important than another,” Burke said.
“We’re all backups for one another,” Carter said, adding later that funding paid fire departments would mean raising real estate tax rates by 40 to 45%.
Carter said that current county funding levels could not cover the full cost for needed fire engine replacement for all departments, with a basic fire engine costing between $600,000 and $800,000. Ambulance costs also have risen in recent years, he added, and the cost of equipping a firefighter with turnout gear runs around $4,200.
Asked how long a set of firefighter’s equipment will last, Carter said 10 years — as long as the gear itself is not damaged in a fire or contaminated by bloodborne pathogens.
District 3 Supervisor Eddie Skeen said he favored the fire tax but preferred to allocate that revenue by each department’s need. Supervisor-at-large Stephanie Addington said Carter’s comments on all departments providing mutual aid accounted for each community’s need.
District 3 Supervisor Michele Glover said she wanted time to look at the fire tax issue although she was not against it.
The board agreed to reconvene the workshop at the board’s May 7, 9 a.m. regular meeting. Board members also voted to meet in closed session within the next 15 days at an unspecified date and location to interview candidates for the county administrator’s position. County Attorney Sally Kegley said the undated meeting is authorized under Code of Virginia section 2.2-3712.
Former county administrator Freda Starnes gave her resignation at the March board meeting effective March 30, although Dingus has been acting administrator since mid-March.