MARSHFIELD, WI (OnFocus) – Voters will decide on April 4 whether to support a public safety referendum in the City of Marshfield. An approval would mean an increase in the City’s annual tax levy to cover Fire and Police Department costs. A denial could mean challenges meeting call demand.
How Wisconsin Municipalities Set Budgets
In Wisconsin, municipalities are responsible for creating and managing their own budgets. One important factor to consider when creating municipal budgets in Wisconsin is the levy limit.
The levy limit is a state-imposed restriction on the amount of property tax revenue that municipalities can collect from year to year. The levy limit is calculated based on a combination of inflation and net new construction in the municipality. Marshfield increased the tax levy by 0.554% for the 2023 budget, due to these state-imposed caps on how much municipalities can increase property taxes.
The levy limit applies to the total amount of property taxes that a municipality can collect, but not to individual property tax bills. If property values rise, individual property tax bills may increase even if the municipality stays within its levy limit. Marshfield property values have not been assessed since
Municipalities can exceed the levy limit in certain circumstances, such as to fund voter-approved referenda or to cover unexpected expenses related to emergencies or litigation. However, exceeding the limit typically requires a two-thirds vote of the governing body.
The City of Marshfield budget passed for 2023 with 4% cuts across departments, including significant cuts to public safety.
A shortage in the Emergency Medical Services Enterprise fund compounded the issue. City staff overestimated the amount of money that was expected to fund the account, resulting in a $600,000+ negative fund balance.
Why a Referendum
The department has 36 sworn positions as well as an administrative associate that operate out of a single station. Along with covering fire protection and other services for the City of Marshfield, the department provides advanced life support, emergency medical services transport for Marshfield and 13 other municipalities surrounding the city, for a combined population of about 32,500 people.
The department also provides advanced life support intercepts for all of the basic life support and advanced emergency medical technician services that transport into the city of Marshfield. In 2017, Marshfield Fire & Rescue entered into a new partnership with the Marshfield Clinic Health System (MCHS) and the Marshfield Medical Center by providing ambulance transportation for patients being transported to/from another hospital for additional specialty care services.
According to the City, calls for service have increased by 55% in the previous decade. In 2022, the department responded to a record 4,074 calls for service while staffing levels have remained the same. Marshfield Fire & Rescue has longstanding contracts (25+ years) with local townships for ambulance services and furnishes revenue for the City. Inter-facility transfers accounted for 253 calls in 2022 (See Specialty Transports Chart in Annual Report). Read more about calls and budgets in the Fire Department’s annual reports, located HERE.
Per this report, the MFRD was not alone in setting records for call volume in 2022. Many other departments across the State of Wisconsin, and the rest of the nation, are experiencing the same phenomenon. The increase in calls is largely due to an aging population which is causing the need for increased medical care, including EMS.
According to the Wisconsin League of Municipalities, this trend is expected to continue for the next 15-20 years. As the need for public safety continues to grow, specifically for Fire and EMS, agencies will experience an increased demand for personnel and resources.
Police Call Volume
Year- Calls
2013- 18310
2014- 17365
2015- 17410
2016- 18492
2017- 19209
2018- 22033
2019- 22051
2020- 18296
2021- 17684
2022- 18974
EMS Call Volume
Year- Calls
2013- 2789
2014- 2725
2015- 2923
2016- 2966
2017- 3348
2018- 3742
2019- 2736
2020- 3592
2021- 3712
2022- 4074
The Impact of a Referendum
The proposed referendum would total $1.13 million, and would occur annually going forward. That amount would cover nine firefighters/paramedics plus turnout gear, one police officer plus equipment, one full-time police department records specialist and one administrative assistant position to be split between the fire and police departments.
If the referendum passes, taxes will increase $78.45 per year per $100,000 of assessed property value. For example, a home assessed at $200,000 would be taxed $156.90 per year more than it is now. The increase would continue in subsequent years. This does not include other increases, such as other tax increases by the City, the recurring school district referendum which is in place, or the new school district referendum that is proposed (if passed).
If the referendum fails, the city will be faced with difficult decisions about how to handle the growing need for public safety services and it would have a negative impact on public safety services, according to City documents.
Voting will take place Tuesday, April 4, 2023. View your ballot here.
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Author: News Desk
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