Rose Township Supervisor gives the facts on upcoming fire/EMS millage

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Rose Township Supervisor, Alis...

On August 3, 2010, Rose Township voters will be asked to decide whether to fund fire department services in the township.  Currently those services are provided by the North Oakland County Fire Authority (NOCFA).  NOCFA’s service area includes both Holly and Rose Townships.  NOCFA was created in 1984, and although the number of communities contributing funds to the authority has decreased since then, the services delivered to our residents by NOCFA have increased. NOCFA delivers critical, life-saving services for less money than many other local fire departments.  

•    The department provides numerous services including: Fire suppression and prevention, medical emergency response and ALS and BLS ambulance transport, explosion response, motor vehicle accident and rescue response, search and rescue response, extrications, trench and confined space rescue, water and ice rescue, gas and oil leak response, hazardous materials incident response, disaster and severe weather response, carbon monoxide response, burning regulation enforcement, smoke and odor investigations, home smoke detector installations, reflective address sign installments and other less visible services.  

•    Before NOCFA added ambulance transport to its services and after Holly Volunteer Ambulance closed, response times for private ambulances were 30-50 minutes. 

•    NOCFA has been awarded more than one million dollars in grants in the last 5 years which has enabled the department to purchase equipment and enhance services.   

Rose Township Proposal #1 is a renewal of the 1.3585 mils that were levied in 2009.  Interestingly, in 1999 Rose Township was levying 1.33 mils for fire department services so the amount has not changed significantly over the last 10 years.  In 2004, the Village of Holly made a decision to withdraw from the authority, resulting in Rose and Holly townships having to pay a larger share of the operating costs.  The loss of the village’s contribution changed the community contribution amount and now, Rose Township must propose a slight increase (.75 mils) in the tax rate.  The increase is Rose Township Proposal #2.  This is the first request for an increase in over 20 years.  BOTH PROPOSALS MUST PASS TO CONTINUE THE QUALITY SERVICES ROSE TOWNSHIP RESIDENTS CURRENTLY ENJOY.  To estimate the amount you would pay in 2010 if both proposals are approved, divide the taxable value that appears on your 2010 assessment notice by 1,000 and then multiply the result by 2.1085 or call 248-634-6889 for assistance with calculating the tax amount.

Before you vote, please consider this information. If you would like to learn more about NOCFA please visit the Web site at www.nocfa.org.