Say 'no' to crash tax
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Editor,
I find it interesting that the Polson Rural Fire Board trustees and Jack Clapp claim there will be no increase in auto insurance rates when the three insurance groups I called said there would be rate increases. Maybe the fire trustees should publish a list of insurance agencies that like giving out money — it didn’t appear any that I called did. It doesn’t matter the size of the area; when money is paid out, the insurance companies adjust their fees properly to what they have to pay out.
What benefit does the board of trustees receive?
Certainly firefighters do not get paid by the hour for response, nor do the trustees get paid to attend meetings. Firefighters, including Trustee Clapp, do receive a clothing allowance and become eligible after 10 years to receive a small state pension — both small, but still it is compensation.
Let’s review the Polson Rural Board’s own public minutes:
April 2011: A firefighter and a trustee husband were hired to build a retaining wall at the Big Arm Station for the cost of $3,000.
July 2010: The annual rent paid to a trustee was increased to $3,250 for housing fire equipment at his ranch in Irvine Flats. Also, a firefighter’s brother was paid $20,100 to pave the concrete aprons in front of the fairgrounds station, and in October 2010, he was paid $8,000 to pave the Big Arm Fire Station apron.
Dec. 2010: The board hired a firefighter’s wife to make signs for the fire truck and hired another firefighter to do electrical work on the same truck.
A firefighter provides insurance policies to the fire department.
Jim Manley resigned from the board because of being the only vote in five trying to control things like the above. Once again, accountability appears to be missing.
The "crash tax” is a sneak tax on top of our other taxes. When the fire board uses the words like “everyone else is doing it,” they are trying to convince us that two wrongs make a right. A large number of our states are outlawing this practice; Montana should also.
Jerry Peterson
Polson
