Residents filled the Tucker County Courthouse Courtroom Wednesday during the Tucker County Commission meeting. Audience members spoke for and against the proposed EMS Ordinance, which would create a mandatory EMS fee.
PARSONS – During Wednesday’s Tucker County Commission meeting about 50 residents gathered in the audience and many voiced their opinions, both for and against, on the proposed EMS Ordinance.
If the Ordinance passes, it would place a mandatory $50 fee on landowners, businesses and owners of personal property to generate funds to help subsidize the Tucker County EMS.
Commissioners said last year they had a voluntary $25 EMS fee in the county which generated a little more than $15,000. They said they met for more than 10 hours trying to find a way to generate the funds while being fair and equal to all.
Lois Arbogast said she did not get a copy of the ordinance and said she was unaware the ordinance had gotten to the second reading.
I have some questions and asked to have a one-on-one meeting with any of the commissioners,” Arbogast said. “I want to ask for a copy of the Ambulance Authority’s budget and expenditures.”
Arbogast said her other questions include Who decided the fee would be mandatory? Who decided to double the fee from $25 to $50 when it went from being voluntary to mandatory? What should we expect from year to year with the fees?
“I believe the tourism in the upper end of the county needs to somehow be taxed instead of the tax base in Tucker County paying all of the financial burden,” Arbogast said.
Commission President Lowell Moore said they hope the fee will remain $50 for five years.
“Last year we asked for a voluntary donation of $25,” Moore said. “We only had five percent of the people pay. With that, we opened up a second station on the mountain to serve the county better.”
Bill Shahan said he doesn’t think a lot of Tucker County residents will be able to pay the $50 fee.
“When my kids graduated, I told them to go to college and to leave Tucker County,” Shahan said. “It’s not that I don’t love Tucker County, it’s just there is nothing here.”
Shahan pointed out there was such a small return last year on the request for a volunteer EMS voluntary fee.
“Is that because people don’t want to give? Shahan said. “Or is that because a lot of people can’t afford to give?”
Robin McClintock read a letter of support for the EMS Ordinance from the Tucker County Planning Commission.
The third reading of the proposed EMS Ordinance will be during the next Tucker County Commission meeting at 4 p.m. June 28.
Also during Wednesday’s meeting, Commissioners voted to hire the following:
Brett Ware as the 911 Director, effective July 1.
Kevin White as the OEM Director, effective July 1.
Pat Gray as the Assistant OEM Director, effective July 1.
Commissioners hired seven summer youth including Luke Poling, Jordan Moss, Shayne Liller, Kenya Jones, Natalie Evans, Destiny Meador and Abigail Long.
