NEW SALES TAX FOR SCOTT CITY?

SCOTT CITY -- Voters in August may be asked to increase Scott City's sales tax to finance improvements to the fire department.

At the April 20 City Council meeting, Scott City Fire Chief Les Crump asked council members to consider putting a quarter-cent sales-tax initiative on the ballot. If passed, revenue from the tax would be earmarked for the purchase of a new fire engine and additional fire equipment.

A similar quarter-cent sales tax passed for a five-year period by voters in 1992. It raised money for the purchase of the city's newest fire engine four years ago. The tax expired at the end of March, leaving the city without the means of buying a new truck.

In addition to the 4-year-old truck, the city owns two other pumpers, one 20-year-old and one 31-year-old truck. Crump told the council the 20-year-old fire engine was in the shop for replacement of two pistons.

Although the 20-year-old truck has since been repaired, Crump said this week that it is only a matter of time before something major breaks on it again or on the 31-year-old truck. If the oldest fire engine breaks down, it won't be as easy to repair, Crump said.

"There's the possibility of not being able to repair it at all," he said, pointing out that the company that made the truck no longer is in business.

"Most vehicles we drive are for personal use, so if they break down it doesn't affect many people," he said. "But if a fire engine breaks down, the consequences can be grave."

Crump seems to be gaining support for putting the issue before Scott City voters. Mayor Jerry Cummins said this week that one of the city's fire engines needs to be replaced. "Things get old and wear out," Cummins said. "Safety is the main thing for the town."

He said he was in favor of letting voters decide if they wanted the sales tax to pay for the new engine.

Newly elected council member Glendella May echoed the mayor's sentiment of letting voters decide, saying she personally would like to see the fire department updated. "If my house was on fire, I'd want a newer truck," she said.

"Les (Crump) is a responsible fire chief. He wouldn't bring it up if it wasn't necessary," she said.

Crump pointed out that the purchase of a new truck could also affect the rates homeowners pay for insurance because one factor insurance companies use in determining premiums is the city's ISO rating.

The ISO, Insurance Services Office, grades a city's fire suppression capabilities and issues a rating based on three factors -- dispatch facilities, or how well a city receives and handles emergency calls; the city's water supply and whether it is sufficient to handle fires in the city; and the fire department. The evaluation of the department is the most important in the determining of the ISO rating.

Chris Guidette, director of corporate communications for ISO, said Thursday that a number of factors are examined in evaluating a fire department, including the location and quality of fire stations, the number and training of firefighters and the fire truck's pumping capacity and equipment.

Scott City's current ISO rating of 6 on a 10-point scale, with 10 being the worst rating, is based in part on the department's ability to pump 3,000 gallons of water per minute. The city's newest truck can pump 1,500 gallons per minute. Both older trucks pump 750 gpm.

The city is capable of pumping 3,000 gallons of water per minute only when all three of its trucks are fully operational. But when one of the trucks is inoperable, as the one recently was, the ability to pump water is decreased.

If the city purchased a new truck with the capability of pumping water at 1,500 gmp, the 20-year old truck could be used as a reserve, and the 31-year-old truck could be retired completely, to be used only in parades. The increase in pumping capacity to 3,750 gpm could result in a lower ISO rating, Crump said.

Still, Guidette said that although improvements in the city's equipment could mean a better ISO rating, there is no guarantee that upgrading the equipment would necessarily translate into lower insurance premiums. Certainly, homeowners would not see an immediate reduction in insurance rates, he said.

Even if the sales tax initiative passes on the August ballot, the city might not see a new fire truck before 2000. The tax itself would not go into effect until October at the earliest. Then it might be another year before the city had enough funds to enter into a lease-purchase plan for the truck. Once ordered, the truck would take an additional six months to a year before it could be built.

Crump estimates that the cost of the new truck would be at least $200,000 with the price increasing every year.

May said, "It'll be expensive, but if it lasts another 25 to 30 years it will be worth the expense."

Currently, Scott City has a one-and-a-half cent city sales tax. A half cent goes for street repair and is considered a transportation tax. Eighty-three percent of the remaining 1 cent goes into the city's general revenue fund and 17 percent goes for parks. Scott City voters could authorize up to an additional half-cent sales tax for capital improvements such as for the purchase of new equipment for the fire department.

The recently expired quarter-cent sales tax, which voters approved for the purchase of a fire truck and additional equipment, generated $321,385.83 in a five-year period. City Collector Aleene Warden estimates that additional tax revenue will be forthcoming from merchants who were late in filing their quarterly taxes.