South Pasadena : Special Fire Tax Proposed

City officials are considering taxing property owners to help pay for fire and paramedic services in the wake of a projected loss of $800,000 in revenue to the state.

The tax would be levied by a newly created special assessment district and would first appear on property tax bills next December.

“This is just an option the council is considering if Gov. (Pete) Wilson’s (1993-94) budget passes the Legislature. But with a threat to our emergency services we must consider all the options,” City Manager Kenneth C. Farfsing said.

“We were asked to come up with some means of survival and this is what we’re suggesting,” Fire Chief William Eisele said. The only alternative is to cut back on service, he said.

The City Council began laying the groundwork for a special assessment district by voting last week to hire BSI Consultants. The firm will recommend how much each property owner should pay, arrange public hearings and prepare the tax rolls.

Farfsing said that if the council approves the proposal, each property owner would be assessed according to size and type of parcel. Property owners would be able to challenge their assessments by mail or at a series of public hearings in June, he said.

Farfsing said the tax must be abandoned if property owners who provide more than a third of the assessment district’s tax revenue challenge it.

If property owners providing more than 5% of the revenue object, a special election must be called. The council would decide the matter, however, if only those providing less than 5% of the revenue oppose it.

Farfsing said the city has until Aug. 1 to submit an assessment district plan to the Los Angeles County auditor-controller.