HomeMy WebLinkAbout1922A RESOLUTION of the City Council of the
City of Kent, Washington, expressing support for
the continuation of the Kent Fire Department
Regional Fire Authority's benefit charge and for the
Authority's ballot proposition entitled, "Kent Fire
Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of
Benefit Charge."
RECITALS
A.The Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority ("RFA") has
adopted Resolution No. 97, calling for a special election on April 26, 2016,
providing for the continuation of a benefit charge on personal property and
improvements to real property within the RFA for up to six years.
B.The RFA is authorized by its plan and by Chapter 52.26 RCW to
establish, impose and collect a benefit charge on personal property and
improvements to real property located within the RFA's boundaries.
C.The RFA's Governing Board determined that the benefit charge
provides the most stable, reliable and cost effective method for financing
the services the RFA provides to its citizens.
1 Resolution
Support -Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Proposition 1
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of Benefit Charge
D.In its Resolution No. 97, the RFA states the total benefit charge
authorized by the resolution shall be reasonably apportioned among the
affected parcels of property initially by the general method on the
resolution's referenced Exhibit.
E.RCW 42.17A.555 authorizes city councils to take collective action
regarding ballot measures appearing before the voters so long as the
action is taken at a public meeting, the intended action is identified on the
agenda and the opportunity for opposing views is given to attendees at the
public meeting.
F.It is appropriate that the city council support this ballot measure as
permitted pursuant to RCW 42.17A.555.
NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF KENT,
WASHINGTON, DOES HEREBY RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
RESOLUTION
SECTION 1. -The Kent City Council supports the Kent Fire
Department Regional Fire Authority's Resolution No. 97, attached as
Exhibit A to this resolution, and the RFA's ballot Proposition 1 -"Kent Fire
Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of Benefit Charge," which
the Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority will submit to the voters
at the April 26, 2016, special election. The Proposition 1 ballot title and
ballot statement are as follows:
Proposition No. 1
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of
Benefit Charge
2 Resolution
Support -Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Proposition 1
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of Benefit Charge
Shall the Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority be authorized to continue voter-authorized benefit charges each year for six years, not to exceed an amount equal to sixty percent of its operating budget, and be prohibited from imposing an additional property tax under RCW 52.26.140(1(c)?
D Yes D No
SECTION 2. -The mayor is authorized to take action as necessary
and appropriate to implement the directives of this legislation, including
forwarding copies of this resolution to the Kent fire Department Regional
Fire Authority, and others as warranted.
SECTION 3. -Effective Date. This resolution shall take effect and
be in force immediately upon its passage.
PASSED at a regular open public meeting by the City Council of the
City of Kent, Washington, this /� day of �cA , 2016.
CONCURRED in by the Mayor of the City of Kent this /llday of.
--------,L-!f!:..::....,___::d:::..__;:__, 2016.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
3 Resolution
Support -Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Proposition 1
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of Benefit Charge
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of Resolution No.
passed by the City Council of the City of Kent, Washington, the
� __ day of ��, 2016.
t'
p:\ci\il\resolution\intcnt to continue h.-nefit chnrge.docx
4 Resolution
Support -Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Proposition 1
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority Continuation of Benefit Charge
EXHIBIT A
KENT FIRE DEPARTMENT REGIONAL FIRE AUTHORITY
RESOLUTION NO. 97
INTENT TO CONTINUE BENEFIT CHARGE
A RESOLUTION OF THE GOVERNING BOARD OF THE KENT FIRE DEPARTMENT REGIONAL FIRE
AUTHORITY PROVIDING FOR THE CONTINUATION OF A BENEFIT CHARGE; PROVIDING FOR THE
SUBMISSION TO THE QUALIFIED ELECTORS OF THE RF A AT A SPECIAL ELECTION TO BE HELD
WITHIN THE RFA ON APRIL 26, 2016, A PROPOSITION AUTHORIZING THE CONTINUATION OF A
BENEFIT CHARGE ON PERSONAL PROPERTY AND IMPROVEMENTS TO REAL PROPERTY WITHIN
THE RF A FOR UP TO SIX YEARS; AND, CALLING A PUBLIC HEARING.
Background: WHEREAS, the RF A is authorized by the Kent RF A Plan and chapter 52.26 RCW
to establish, impose and collect a benefit charge on personal property and improvements to real
property located within the RF A; and
WHEREAS, , the voters of the RF A previously authorized the RF A to impose and collect a benefit
charge for six years in 2010; and
WHEREAS, the Governing Board has determined that the benefit charge, established in
conjunction with a lower level of property taxes, provides the most stable, reliable and cost
effective method for financing the services the RF A provides to its citizens; and
WHEREAS, the benefit charge will be reasonably proportioned to the measurable benefits to
property resulting from the services provided by the RF A and shall not exceed 60% of the
operating budget of the RF A; and
WHEREAS, it is reasonable and necessary that the RFA obtain voter approval to continue its
benefit charge for an additional six year period to maintain and improve the services provided by
theRFA;
RESOLVED, by the Governing Board of Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Autho1ity:
1.Continuation of Benefit Charge. It is the declared intent of the Governing Board to
continue imposing a benefit charge on personal property and improvements to real prope1ty
located within the RF A, which have or will receive benefits provided by the RF A to be paid
by owners of such properties.
2.Method of Apportionment. The total benefit charge authorized by this resolution shall be
reasonably apportioned among the affected parcels of prope1ty initially by the general
method described in Exhibit A.
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority -1-
3.Amount of Benefit Charge. The benefit charge for each year shall be set in the year
preceding imposition of the charge after a public hearing to review and establish the amount
of the benefit charge pursuant RCW 52.26.230.
4.Notice of the Benefit Charge. Subsequent to the public hearing refen-ed to in Section 3,
prope1ty owners will be notified in writing each year of the benefit charge and the amounts
thereof to be charged in the subsequent year.
5.Review Board. Subsequent to establishing the annual benefit charge and notifying the
prope1ty owners, the RF A shall fonn a review board pursuant to RCW 52.26.250. The review
board shall be convened and available for at least a two-week period to hear and decide
written appeals from property owners regarding their paiiicular benefit charge assessment.
6.Effective Date. If approved by the voters, the continued benefit charge shall be imposed on
the affected prope1ties beginning January 1, 2017.
7.Contract For Administration. The Chief of the RF A is authorized and directed to negotiate
a contract with the King County treasurer to provide for the administration and collection of
the benefit charge. The contract shall establish the fee to be paid by the RF A to the County
Treasurer and County Assessor for services to be perfonned under the contract.
8.Public Hearing. The Governing Board will hold a public hearing before the Board on
February 17, 2016, as part of the Governing Board's regular meeting to consider the proposal
to continue the benefit charge to support the legally autholized activities of the RF A to
maintain and improve the services afforded in the RF A. The RF A shall cause public notice
of the heating to be published in a legal newspaper circulated within the RF A not less than
ten days plior to the date of the heating. The RF A shall also post a public notice of the
heating at all fire RF A stations within the RF A.
9.Election. Pursuant to RCW 52.26.220, there shall be submitted to the qualified electors of
the RF A for their ratification or rejection, at a special election on April 26, 2016, the question
of whether or not such benefit charge for services provided by the RF A shall be continued.
The Board of Commissioners hereby requests that the Elections Division of King County call
such special election, and to submit the following proposition at such election, in the fonn of
a ballot titled substantially as follows:
PROPOSITION
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority
Continuation of Benefit Charge
Shall the Kent Fire Depattment Regional Fire Authority be authorized to
continue voter-authorized benefit charges each year for six years, not to exceed
an amount equal to sixty percent of its operating budget> and be prohibited
from imposing an additional prope1ty tax under RCW 52.26.140(1)(c)?
I_I YES
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority
LI NO
-2-
10.Requesting Publication of Local Voters' Pamphlet. The Governing Board hereby requests
that King County Elections prepare and distribute a Local Voters Pamphlet for the April 26,
2016 special election in the Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority.
11.Pro and Con Committee Appointments. The Governing Board hereby assigns to the Fire
Chief or designees the task of appointing members to a committee to advocate voters'
approval of the proposition and to a committee to prepare arguments advocating voters'
rejection of the proposition.
ADOPTED by the Governing Board of Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority in
a regular open public meeting on the 20th day of January, 2016.
Jane Ogren, BoadSecretary
ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the
Governing Board, of Kent Fire Department
Regional Fire Authority, held on
January 20, 2016.
Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority
GOVERNING BOARD
Q� U.-..
Bill Boyce, Member
',"y; C h,i]t: l') 4 {j
Mike Denbo, Member�A
Les Thomas, Member
-3-
APPENDIX A
Fire Benefit Charge
Fire Benefit Charge
Fire benefit charges were authorized by the State legislature in 1987 in exchange for a
reduction in levy capacity. This two part funding system consists of a maximum tax levy of
$1.00 per thousand of taxable value ($0.91 in 2016) and; a fire benefit charge that is
limited to 60% (46% in 2016) of the annual operating budget. The fire benefit charge is
variable based upon square footage and the amount of resources needed to provide
emergency services to each house or business. Exemptions from the fire benefit charge are
limited to property used for religious worship or education.
Fire Benefit Charge (FBC) -Formula
When approved by voters the FBC formula must reasonably apportion cost to the services
afforded to the property. Therefore, assessed value is not used in determining the FBC,
instead the KRFA uses property type, property use, and associated risk increasers (see
definition of hazard factors) or risk reducers (see sprinkler and alarm discount) in
determining the FBC amount for each structure.
The primary factors of the formula are based upon the amount of "required fire flow" or
water needed to extinguish a fire, and the number of firefighters and equipment needed to
effectively deliver the required fire flow and their associated cost for fighting a fire in the
type and size of structure being assessed. As structure size or fire loading within a
structure increases, the need for required fire flow, firefighters, and equipment also
increases. The benefit charge formula is in part, based upon the Insurance Services Office
(ISO) fire flow formula (square root of area * 18) and considers these factors. The Kent
Fire Authority Governance Board has adopted the following formulas for the benefit charge
and reserves the right to change the formula on a periodic basis to meet statutory
requirements:
One and two family buildings
'./Area * 18 * CF* ERF * CPG * Sprinkler Discount = FBC
Manufactured home
'./Area * 18 * CF* ERF * CPG * Sprinkler Discount FBC
Multi Family buildings
'./Area * 18 * CF* ERF * CPG * Sprinkler and Alarm Discount FBC
Commercial buildings
'./Area * 18 * CF* ERF * HF* CPG * Sprinkler and Alarm Discount = FBC
Definitions:
'./Area = The square root of the total square feet of the buildings over 400 square
feet located upon the property.
APPENDIX A
Fire Benefit Charge
>-CF= Category Factor: The category factor is based upon building type and size. This
information is obtained from the King County Assessor database for each building
subject to the FBC. The major categories are:
•One and two family buildings
•Multi-family buildings
•Commercial buildings
•Manufactured homes
};>-ERF = Effective Response Force. The effective response force factor is relational
to the size of force in firefighters and equipment needed to sustain delivery of the
required fire flow.
>" HF = Hazard Factor: The hazard factor represents the degree of risk caused by the
use, processing, or storage of hazardous materials within a building. The hazard
factor reflects the need for larger and/or more specialized effective response forces.
Hazard factors are determined from use and risk classifications found in the National
Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) Standard 13 (Standards for the Installation of
Sprinkler Systems).
>" CPG = Cost Per Gallon: Is the relative cost of providing the required fire flow per
gallon during a fire incident. CPG is a balancing factor used as an adjustable
multiplier to finely tune the FBC calculation across all properties to reach precisely
the desired target FBC amount.
>-Senior Citizen Discount: By State law, the FBC provides senior and disabled persons
exemptions to the FBC for property they own based upon age, income and disability. King County processes and approves these discounts in three categories: >-Full exemption 75% discounted rate >-Partial exemption 50% discounted rate >-Standard exemption 25% discounted rate
>" Sprinkler and Alarm System Discount:
Fire sprinkler systems in combination with alarm systems will receive a reduction
depending upon system capability. Partial coverage systems may not qualify for a
discount.
>" Manufactured Homes: King County does not adequately maintain square feet data
for mobile homes. Where complete data is missing, the manufactured home size has
been determined to be 1075 square feet.
>" Minimum Square Footage: The FBC will not be applied to parcels with a total
improvement square footage of less than 400 sq. ft.
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2016 Kent Regional Fire Autharity • Benefit Charge Formula:
Square root of total square footage X 18 X C.tegory Factor X Fire Flow Factor X Respcnse Factor X Risk Factor X Applicable Discount= FBC
Total square footage of structure(s) "' "' "' "' 0 "' g: "' � 8 "' "' "' "' "' ot "'· "' "' "' "' "' "' "' ,,; "' "' ... "' "' "' g: g: :, .. "' � "' :'.l "' "" "' "' "' "' "' "' "' ,,; "' "' ... N "' ... "' "' ot "'· ot ,,; ... ... N ... "' .; ,.; "'"' ... ... .; 0 0 8 8 .... 0 0 8 8 0 0 0 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 ! 0 0 0 0 0 s·0 0 0 0 0 ... ... "' 0 0 0 0 � o· 0 ... 0 0 0 category Factors: 2 ... .:, ..: .; '" .; ... N ., .... ... ... "' "' ...
Residential 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80 0.80
Mobile Homes 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75
Apartments 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 3.25 3.25 3.25 6.70 6.70 8.60 11.10 14.25 14.25
Commercial 1.10 1.10 1.10 1.10 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.50 1.50 2.05 2.05 3.05 335 3.50
Fire Flow Factor:• 0.29756155104
Response Factor:••
Resident.al 1.00 1.10 1.35 1.65 1.65 2.25 2.25 2.25 2.25
Manufactured Homes 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Apartments 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60
Commercial 1.18 1.18 1.18 1.18 1.18 1.18 1.75 1.75 1.75 2.65 4.20 4.20 4.20 4.20 4.30 4.30 4.40
Risk Factor: .. •
Light Hazard/Regional 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Ordinary Hazard/Regional -1 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Ordinary Hazard/Regional -2 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
Extra Hazard/Regional-1 130 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 130 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 1.30 130 130 1.30
Extra Hazard/Regional -2 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40
Discounts:
Automatic Fire Sprinklers 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900
Manual Local Alarm 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980
Manual Central Alann 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950
Automatic loc-11 Alarm 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970
Automatic Central Alarm 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925
Agricultural 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250
••Response factor is based upon the number of firefighters needed to deUver the required fire flow
•u Risk factors ,1pplyt0 commercial property and are def med by the National Fire Protection k.sooatlon and deal wlth fire haz:trds Md ha:a:rdous mab?l'lals.
"' 0 "' A g: � "' � "O .,,. C "' is "' .. "' "' .; .; 8 8 8 0 s· 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .... "' ... ...
14.25 14.25 14.25 14.25
3.75 4.00 4.15 5.15
1.60 1.60 1.60 1.60
4.50 4.50 4.50 4.50
1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
1.30 1.30 130 1.30
1.40 1.40 1.40 1.40
0.900 0.900 0.900 0.900
0.980 0.980 0.980 0.980
0.950 0.950 0.950 0.950
0.970 0.970 0.970 0.970
0.925 0.925 0.925 0.925
0.250 0.250 0.250 0.250