Send letter to Rural Fire Board opposing crash tax
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Editor,
Crash Tax is being banned across the nation.
I suggest typing “Crash Tax” into a Google search and you will find information on how many cities, fire districts and states have now decided this backdoor tax is a bad idea.
A Harris Interactive poll found that three out of four Arizonans (77 percent) believe their taxes cover the time and services provided by emergency response providers following a traffic accident.
Utah became the 11th state that bans or restricts accident response fees. Governor Gary Herbert has signed legislation that places restrictions on local governments charging accident response fees. It allows a local entity to bill “at-fault” motorists for “hard costs” which are actual costs associated with providing medical treatment and transportation, debris clean-up and roadway repair. However, the law prohibits billing for “engine fees” and flat “response fees.”
Arizona became the 12th state with Gov. Jan Brewer signing a bill to stop local governments from charging accident response fees. However, the bill does make allowances for certain fees in rural areas where the response is outside of the fire district.
As of April 15, 2011, bills that would prohibit local governments from charging accident response fees have been introduced in California, Colorado, Kansas, Massachusetts, and Michigan.
It was reported on April 7, 2011 in an editorial in a Gloucester, Mass. newspaper:
“While there can be a context to assessing charges in some cases, as we noted previously, the idea of collecting ‘fees’ from residents’ insurers for putting out house fires, or tending to motor vehicle accidents and other emergencies, runs contrary to the idea that property owners indeed already pay taxes for these services.”
New York City Crash Tax also is halted as the Wall Street Journal reports that Mayor Michael Bloomberg has dropped his administration’s controversial “crash tax” proposal. City Council speaker Christine Quinn, said “Emergency services is a basic government function” and was a strong opponent of the accident tax proposal.
In the Star Tribune, Minneapolis, Minn., the headlines reads on April 21, “Crash Tax proposal is towed away from South Metro Ordinance” and further states “South Metro Fire Department would have charged nonresidents for services at accident sites. But public opposition scuttled the plan.”
This past week residents sent a loud and clear message to the Polson School District by voting no to the three new taxes. The Polson Rural Fire District Board has approved the “crash tax” and, unlike the school district, did it without asking the residents for their permission. Please send them a letter saying “We vote no to this backdoor crash tax.” The address is 106 First Street East, Polson, Mont. 59860.
Ron Freiz
Big Arm
