Eugene Fire Fear supporters gather days after the referendum has been announced

Eugene, ore. – City leaders and residents were shared in the newly adopted fire fee of the city of Eugene.

On Tuesday, which support the fee collected in the Eugene public library, one of the previously equipped services given by urban budget cuts to encourage residents do not sign a referendum.

As a referendum on the fire fee of the city, a group of supporters is concerned that Eugene will be forced without this additional source of income to reduce services, to the detriment of public security and to the disadvantage of public security and to the disadvantage of public security and to the disadvantage of public Security and the disadvantage of public security and to the disadvantage of public security and to the disadvantage of public security and to reduce the disadvantage of the city, as Referendum of the city. Health.

The fee on February 10, and the supporters say that it is crucial to finance a protected fire brigade fund that would support the growth and ability of Eugene Springfield Fire to meet current needs.

The reversal of the fire fee would probably affect most of the urban services, said City Councilor Jennifer Yeh.

This is because the financing of the department would then come from the general fund.

“If we made these cuts, there would be no time in the foreseeable future that we would add these services back,” said Yeh. “So if we have lost firefighters, if we have lost the police, if we have lost days in the library, this will be a long -term loss because it is not as in the next year or the next year. Suddenly our tax problems in the State of Oregon is repaired.

Although Yeh says that the city needs more than a fire fee to fix the problem, she says that the fee is what the city currently needs.

“In the long term, absolutely because this is not a local problem, it is a question of our tax system as a state and we have no control over it,” she said.

One concern of those who have created the referendum is that the regulation does not have an end date.

Yeh said that does not mean that things have to go on and the city council can decide at some point to eliminate it.

Brittany Quick Warner with the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce said the decision should ultimately be made to the residents.

“It is a fee that is permanent, which by the city administrator – the city council – without a voice of the public that is implemented without the public, we could ultimately have decided to refer this to the voters,” she said .

With every city department at the Hackklotz without a fire fee, the Eugene Public Library, which has lost 2 million US dollars in the last budget cycle, says probably close its doors for a few days a week if the fee will fail.

“This time I know that the city with a deficit of 11 million US dollars will decide to give nothing,” said Linda Ague, President of the Friends of Eugene Public Library.

According to Cary Lieber, while a lack of a fee that the Greenhill Humane Society does, this will mean the potential for more dog stitches, strays and car accidents that are involved in these strays.

“Eugene has had safe protection for animals since 1944, and this would return at the time when the streets of Eugene literally run,” he said.

Lieberman claims that it also eliminates the protection for around 1,600 strays per year and a safe protection for animals that were brought in by first aiders in crisis situations.

Afscme Local 1724, which represents 670 city workers such as street cleaners, homeless cleaners, custodian banks and planters outdoors, says that the effects will be direct.

“It would be a massive success of the work we can do, and it would definitely have an impact on our ability to serve the public,” said Adam Epstein, President of the Union for Local 1724.

The fire brigade fee would cost households around $ 10 per month and companies around 38 US dollars per month and is expected to achieve annual turnover of $ 10 million for fire services.

According to the ESF, the money from the fee of its fire brigade leaders from the city's general fund would remove the money.