- By Dan Veaner
- News
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George Gesslein
Even when the tax rate doesn't rise, your taxes can be higher if the valuation of your property goes up. But Gesslein says that won't happen for most Lansing residents this year. "The assessed valuation is $1,096,273,707," he says. "Believe it or not that is only about a million dollars more than it was last year."
Gesslein also says the prospect for keeping the tax rate at $1.02 is good until 2011 unless capital projects are approved. At that point he estimates that the tax rate will go up to $1.04 and stay at that rate until 2014, when it will reach $1.06. These figures come from a projected budget plan that covers the next 20 years, calculating expected department needs along with the projected increase in the tax base. Capital projects are separate from this budget, but the projection makes it easy to see what impact projected capital costs will have on the budget in any given year.
The Lansing Fire District actually has two capital projects in the planning stages. The one that is likely to be started first is an expansion to Central Station, the department's headquarters at 80 Ridge Road. Also in the planning phase is a new fire station to replace Station 5 in the Village of Lansing. With more than half of the department's emergency calls originating in the Village, the old Station 5 is too small to accommodate modern fire equipment. That project is estimated in the range of $2 million. Capital projects differ from year to year fire district budgets in that the taxpayers get to vote to approve or deny them.
But because the district has been building its reserve fund steadily in anticipation of these projects, Gesslein says that the impact on the tax rate would only be about two cents per $1,000 of assessed value. "In 2008 we have the potential to borrow $1.2 million," he says. "We have the potential for a couple of million dollars of construction if we start Station 5 in the Village. It really doesn't change the tax rate very much. That's what good financial planning will do for you."
Radio equipment to comply with the County's new emergency response system won't impact next year's budget. The county is providing some of that equipment for the departments, and the rest was accounted for in this year's budget.
A small group made up largely of fire commissioners and volunteer firefighters
came to hear about the state of the budget and next year's tax rate
Other factors impact the budget in positive ways as well. Chief Scott Purcell says that fire trucks are better built and last longer, and that smaller vehicles are also being kept longer, thus reducing expenses in replacing older vehicles. "The trucks were on a 20 year replacement schedule," he says. "There's no reason why we can't get 25 years out of them. The smaller vehicles are on a four year rotation, but now GM, Ford and the others offer a five year warrantee. There's no sense in getting rid of a vehicle that's still on warranty."
As of August 31st, 2007 the District's outstanding debt is only $370,000, and Gesslein says that the district is actually making more money in interest on it's funds than what it pays in interest on its loans. "We don't owe very much money," he says. "The budget we proposed is $1,228,200. We've got some money coming in from interest and things of that sort, and we're carrying over about $30,000 from this year. So what we have to raise from property taxes is $1,118,200."
Gesslein acknowledged that when the County reassesses Lansing properties next year the assessed value of individual homes could go up, but he says that may not affect the amount of fire district taxes we pay by much. "Next year (the assessments) could really skyrocket," he says. "If that happens we might even drop the tax rate."
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