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Letter to the editor

Fire district's budget to take dip in new year

By TIMES STAFF
Published August 15, 2007

The fire district's budget will likely decrease in the coming fiscal year. Nevertheless, the proposed budget remains the second highest in the past seven years.

The Lealman Fire Commission has proposed a $5.05-million budget for the 2007-08 fiscal year, which is about $350,000 less than the current $5.4-million budget.

Along with the drop in expenditures is a proposed drop in the tax rate from 4.3 to 3.69 mills. A mill is $1 of tax for every $1,000 of assessed value. Thus, a homeowner in Lealman with a house worth $125,000 with a $25,000 homestead exemption will pay about $369 in fire taxes in the coming year, about $61 less than in the current year.

Next year's proposed tax rate drop is the fifth consecutive decrease, even though budgets have gone from $3.49-million in 2000 to $5.4-million in 2006.

The budget is scheduled to become final after two public hearings: 5:30 p.m. on Aug. 31 and either 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 7 or 10 a.m. on Sept. 8. Both will be at the district's new fire station, 4360 55th Ave. N.

[Last modified August 14, 2007, 20:29:02]