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Village residents will be asked Tuesday if they will authorize a tax that would guarantee ambulance service.
Tax proceeds could be used to create an ambulance service within the Germantown Hills Fire Department or contract with Emergency 116 of Metamora.
E116, a not-for-profit organization, currently provides private ambulance service to the area without any tax support.
Other options would be contracting with Advanced Medical Transport of Peoria or with a neighboring community's service.
The referendum would levy a maximum of 30 cents per $100 of assessed property valuation for the sole purpose of ambulance service. That rate would be in addition to the fire district's current levy.
If the referendum passes, the fire district will decide which option to choose, Fire Chief Chip Wilmot said.
"It depends on what agreements we can enter into with another agency that adequately serves our needs or, if not, we will probably start our own (ambulance service)," he said.
While some "cursory studies" have been done, the department has not conducted any detailed formal study on what it would cost to set up an ambulance service, he said.
The department also has not had any conversations with AMT or any other neighboring community about the cost of contracting an ambulance service.
The fire district now levies just under 22 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, which costs the owner of a $150,000 home about $96 per year, assuming the homestead tax exemption. If the new tax was levied at its maximum 30 cents, that same homeowner would pay $132 more annually.
Wilmot, a volunteer like most of the 27-member fire staff, said it's unlikely the new tax would be set at its maximum. The current 22-cent fire rate is 8 cents below its 30-cent maximum.
E116, which serves Germantown Hills, Metamora and the surrounding areas, operates on a fee-for-service and donation basis with a 15-member staff, 12 of whom are paid.
Last year, E116 operated $30,000 in the red and said it could not continue operating the way it has without a regular revenue source.
What it proposes is for communities to share costs and contract with E116. It also would upgrade to paramedic care, with staff trained to administer certain medications and perform CPR and other life-saving services.
"We are not going to close down this year or next year, but we were looking down the road and planning five to eight years into the future," board member Bob Murphy said. "For 32 years, we have been operating without tax support."
Village residents will be asked Tuesday if they will authorize a tax that would guarantee ambulance service.
Tax proceeds could be used to create an ambulance service within the Germantown Hills Fire Department or contract with Emergency 116 of Metamora.
E116, a not-for-profit organization, currently provides private ambulance service to the area without any tax support.
Other options would be contracting with Advanced Medical Transport of Peoria or with a neighboring community's service.
The referendum would levy a maximum of 30 cents per $100 of assessed property valuation for the sole purpose of ambulance service. That rate would be in addition to the fire district's current levy.
If the referendum passes, the fire district will decide which option to choose, Fire Chief Chip Wilmot said.
"It depends on what agreements we can enter into with another agency that adequately serves our needs or, if not, we will probably start our own (ambulance service)," he said.
While some "cursory studies" have been done, the department has not conducted any detailed formal study on what it would cost to set up an ambulance service, he said.
The department also has not had any conversations with AMT or any other neighboring community about the cost of contracting an ambulance service.
The fire district now levies just under 22 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, which costs the owner of a $150,000 home about $96 per year, assuming the homestead tax exemption. If the new tax was levied at its maximum 30 cents, that same homeowner would pay $132 more annually.
Wilmot, a volunteer like most of the 27-member fire staff, said it's unlikely the new tax would be set at its maximum. The current 22-cent fire rate is 8 cents below its 30-cent maximum.
E116, which serves Germantown Hills, Metamora and the surrounding areas, operates on a fee-for-service and donation basis with a 15-member staff, 12 of whom are paid.
Last year, E116 operated $30,000 in the red and said it could not continue operating the way it has without a regular revenue source.
What it proposes is for communities to share costs and contract with E116. It also would upgrade to paramedic care, with staff trained to administer certain medications and perform CPR and other life-saving services.
"We are not going to close down this year or next year, but we were looking down the road and planning five to eight years into the future," board member Bob Murphy said. "For 32 years, we have been operating without tax support."
The proposed contract fee of $60,000 for Germantown Hills is based on calls from each community.
In 2010, E116 handled 550 calls, with 55 percent from Metamora, 30 percent from Germantown Hills and the rest from rural Metamora.
The proposed cost for Metamora would be $111,236 and for rural Metamora, $30,337. E116 still would charge residents a basic $500 service fee.
Metamora Mayor Bill Belshaw said he will meet with the E116 board to discuss the matter.
Art Kiesewetter, a representative with Metamora Rural Fire Protection District, said there are mixed emotions about the plan.
"For us to participate, we would have to have a referendum too. It will be interesting to see what happens in Germantown Hills."
