The fire district’s tax revenues are based on several factors outside the voter-approved tax rate. Beyond rising costs, a state law (known as the Hancock Amendment) requires the fire district to roll back (reduce) its tax rate so that revenues from existing property taxes can only increase by the lesser of the 5% or the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which was 3.4% for 2024. Meanwhile, the cost of firefighting equipment continues to skyrocket. The Hancock Amendment handcuffs fire district revenues and keeps us from being able to keep pace with rising expenses. Revenues grow at a minimal rate and are unable to keep up with fire service related inflation and rising expenses. Due to continual, required rollbacks, our current operating tax rate is 59.57 cents, whereas a decade ago, our voter-approved operating tax rate was 82.41 cents. This is a decrease of more than 27%. While Missouri’s CPI has increased 22.5% in the last 10 years, the fire district’s tax revenue has only grown 8.66%. We cannot keep up with the cost increases associated with emergency rescue services. Specialized equipment, gear and supplies that keep our firefighters and community safe have more than doubled in cost as shown below: Rescue Equipment and Gear2015 Cost2024 Cost Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA)$5,400$10,000 Set of Fire Gear$1,900$5,100 Fire Boots$225$611 Helmet$200$500 Nomex Firefighting Hood$8$124 Total$7,733$16,335