In a unanimous decision during a February meeting, the board of directors of
the Hoodland Fire District approved putting a Local Option Levy on the May
ballot to fund a Deputy Chief position. The district has lacked an officer in that
position since John Ingrao took over as Chief after Mic Eby’s retirement at the
end of 2016.

Chief Ingrao, who served as the Deputy Chief under Eby, noted several
benefits to adding a Deputy Chief, including always having three paramedics
on duty and having a second command officer to ensure proper coverage in
the district.

“It’s an issue, there’s no department that only has one chief, except for small
rural ones,” Ingrao said, adding that he would like to retire next year. “To me,
it is a matter of succession planning (and) resources to go on multiple calls.”
The levy, set to last for five years, would have a rate of 25 cents per thousand
on property in the district, resulting in a charge of approximately $38 on a
house with a valuation of $150,000. Ingrao acknowledged that nobody wants
higher taxes, but the district is unable to add the position with the current
finances.

“It’s just a healthy thing for an organization and there’s no other way for us to
get to it with the budget,” he said.

Ingrao added that after he became Chief, it was decided that the district
should go to 24-hour staffing (before then, paid staff covered the district for
12 hours per day, leaving a hole in advanced life support coverage). To reach
that level, the Deputy Chief position was left vacant; a plan that was intended
to last for 18 months but has now stretched past two years.

To gauge the feasibility of a levy being passed by voters, the board hired
Campbell DeLong Resources, Inc., which conducted phone polling in January
this year. 152 voters answered a variety of questions, with the analysis
revealing 70 of those polled as likely to vote for the levy “if the election were
held today,” based on their initial reaction.

82 percent of the respondents categorized themselves as people who “always
vote,” and the same percentage have lived in the area served by the HFD for
more than 10 years. The average age of respondents was 67. 56 percent of
the voters polled reported contact by themselves or a family member with the
HFD in the past year.

71 percent of the voters polled noted the HFD offered “excellent service,”
while 61 percent saw the district as being efficient with tax money.

Should the levy be approved by voters in the May election, Ingrao noted the
position is unlikely to be filled from within due to the number of classes and
certifications required.

Ingrao added that it has been more than 20 years since the district asked the
community to approve a levy.

Ingrao plans on presenting the levy to local service agencies, faith-based
groups and other organizations in the coming months.