Getting to a number for EMS and Fire service

To the editor:

The Hillsboro mayor has said Hillsboro residents were paying between $130 to $150 per person toward the Fire & EMS service.

The deputy law director said when they checked the records of the top 20 employers in the city, 3,445 people from outside the city were employees; while 807 residents of the city were employees. These are people actually paying income tax to the city.

If this number is true as stated, and would seem to be a pretty good sample of in-city and outside-city employees paying into the income tax.

The city has said they cannot get the exact number, so this being the best number we can get. Let's be generous and say the Hillsboro residents are paying 30 percent of the income tax collected.

Take the $833,000 figure the safety and service director said the city puts toward the Fire & EMS, times 30 percent, which equals $249,900. This is approximately what the residents of Hillsboro are paying to Fire & EMS.

Divide this by the 6,605 population of Hillsboro (2010 census) and Hillsboro residents are actually paying approximately $37.83 per resident. This is a big difference from the $130 to $150 the mayor has said they are paying.

Fire and EMS incidents the first three months of 2012 are 385 inside the city and 125 to the four townships negotiating with the city. Considering the amount of incidents in the city and the townships, the township offer of $30 per resident seems more than fair because of the amount of use.

It has been stated that not everyone in the townships pays to the Fire and EMS. Every township resident who either pays rent or owns their home pays directly or indirectly to Fire and EMS with the property tax.

As far as cost per incident inside the city, take the $249,900 divided by 4 to get the first three months, which equals $62,475, divided by 385 calls inside the city is $162.27 per call city residents are paying, plus whatever insurance is collected.

In the townships, take $152,680 (22 x 6,904 residents of the four townships under contract) divided by 4, equals $38,170, then divide by the number of township calls (125) equals $305.36 plus whatever insurance is collected.

Thus, we have $305.36 per township resident vs. $162.27 per city resident per call/incident. Now, keep in mind, this is with the $22 per-person contract.

The townships are now offering $30. So ask yourself, who is subsidizing who?

These numbers are all from the first three months of 2012.

Now, if we work with the new budget of $1,250,000 since the layoffs as stated by the safety and service director, 30 percent of $985,000 equals $295,500 (Hillsboro residents' part), divided by 4 equals $73,875, divided by 385 incidents in the city, equals $191.88 per run. Meanwhile, townships are still paying $305.36 per run.

With the new contract offer of $30 per person, the townships would be paying about $414 per run plus any insurance collected.

As you can see, the township residents are paying more for the use of the service than the city residents.

Sincerely,
The trustees of New Market
and Washington Townships