Budget cuts are already underway at the Bath Township Fire Department after its proposed 2.5-mill levy increase — the first in nearly two decades — failed by 43 votes in November.
Richard Parrish | The Lima News
BATH TOWNSHIP — Bath Township residents will see two proposed levy increases on the ballot this March to stave off major budget cuts at the township fire and road departments.
Budget cuts are already underway at the Bath Township Fire Department after its proposed 2.5-mill levy increase — the first in nearly two decades — failed by 43 votes in November.
The proposed levy increase will come before voters for a second time in March alongside a separate 1-mill levy increase for the roads department.
Those levy increases would generate an estimated $746,000 in new revenue for the fire department and $300,000 for the roads department each year if approved by voters.
Without those funds, Fire Chief Joseph Kitchen said the fire department won’t be able to provide the level of service that residents now expect.
Already, Kitchen said the fire department has eliminated two full-time firefighter-paramedic positions, cut community outreach and prevention programs, reduced part-time staffing hours and slashed its capital budget to $0 since the levy increase failed last November.
The roads department could be in a similar situation soon without new funds.
Bath Township Trustee Brad Baxter said the departments are experiencing financial trouble because the township for years has opted to reduce services rather than ask residents for smaller tax increases, while the cost of labor and materials increased.
“You get to a point where you don’t have enough money to support the absolute minimum that you are operating,” Baxter said.
The roads department cut jobs several years ago and now “barely has enough money” for stone and chip repair, Baxter said.
Those job cuts create safety concerns: The roads department no longer has anyone available to direct traffic during construction, while the fire department can only respond to one emergency call at a time due to staffing constraints, Baxter said.
Fewer firefighter-paramedics on duty — minimum staffing levels were recently lowered from four to two per shift — also limits the ability of paramedics to provide advanced life support without calling a neighboring fire department for help, Baxter said.
Residents with questions about either proposed levy increase may meet with Kitchen or the township trustees, Baxter said.
