Commissioners approve Salem fire tax increase

By MARTY QUEEN marty@thepaper.media

Residents in the Salem Fire District will see their fire tax rate go up after the Burke Board of Commissioners voted 4-1 to approve the hike at Monday night’s meeting.

Rates will rise from .716 cents to 1 cent per $100 of property value. For a piece of property worth $200,000, the tax bill would go up by $57 annually.

The rate increase will add $170,000 per year in revenue for Salem Fire and Rescue. Salem’s board of directors had previously unanimously voted to ask the commissioners for the rate increase.

The new rate will be contained in the fiscal year 2025-26 budget and will be official when the board approves the budget. The recommended budget will be presented to the board on May 19.

Commissioners Mike Stroud, Randy Burns, Jeff Brittain, and Phil Smith voted in favor of the measure, with Brian Barrier the lone opposing vote.

Both Smith and Burns offered heartfelt support for the Salem Fire Department, agreeing that Fire Chief Charles Autrey wouldn’t ask for anything the department didn’t need.

“I live in that district, so when I vote tonight, I’m going to be voting to raise my own taxes,” Smith said. “But everybody I’ve talked to said this man, Mr. Autrey, is not going to ask for something if he doesn’t need it.”

Burns, a former volunteer fireman, also pledged his support prior to the vote.

“Our primary responsibility as county commissioners is public safety,” Burns said. “And if we fall short on public safety, none of the rest of it matters, so I support your efforts.”

Prior to the increase, Salem had the lowest tax rate of any of the county’s 21 fire departments and its new rate will still be lower than Burke’s 1.06-cent average. The Salem department serves more than 8,700 residents.

Autrey, addressing the board, pointed out that Salem had a 1-cent rate prior to 2023. Despite an unusually high property revaluation in January of that year, Salem’s board of directors honored a promise to go to a revenue-neutral, .71 rate for the next budget cycle.

He also mentioned that some districts have rates nearly twice Salem’s. South Mountain (1.36 cents), Jonas Ridge (1.35), and Chesterfield (1.30) are the three highest.

“I would also like to point out how low our tax rate is compared to the rest of the county,” Autrey said. “And that we did in fact go revenue-neutral a few years ago, the only department in the county to do so.”

Salem recently ordered a new firetruck to replace one that is aging out. The truck costs nearly $1 million, a fact that gave Barrier pause during the pre-agenda meeting two weeks ago.

He still had misgivings Monday.

“Well, certainly, there’s nothing more important to me personally than what I call essential services, fire, police and EMS,” Barrier said. “However, I’m also responsible to the taxpayers of the county, which we all are.”

Autrey added that by keeping its equipment up to date, the fire department will save residents money on their home insurance policies. The state’s ISO (Insurance Services Office) prorates premiums based on the proximity and quality of fire departments in the area.

“I would like to point out that one of the things that you can see a direct return on is lowering your ISO group,” he said. “And then the corresponding decrease in insurance payments.”

Autrey said Salem saved $1.5 over the course of a decade, and used $1 million of it to help build a new fire station. The department still has the remainder, about $550,000, in the bank.

But $351,000 of that will be used to pay off the mortgage on the building when it finalizes at the end of this month. The remainder would then be used as a down payment on the fire engine.

The chief said the department has applied for numerous grants over the years with mixed results. “I do think we’ve done our due diligence,” he said.

Marty Queen is the senior reporter. He may be reached at 828-445-8595 or marty@thepaper.media.

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