 The East County Paramedic Service, provided through the Camas Fire Department (CFD), is a regional emergency ambulance service in Clark County, Washington, formed by the cooperative partnerships of the voters of the Cities of Camas and Washougal, an eastern portion of the City of Vancouver, and the rural communities of Fern Prairie, Mt. Livingston, Sunnyside, Mt, Norway, Orchard Hills and Bear Prairie within the service area of East County Fire & Rescue.
The service was established in 1979, when voters approved the first tax levy to begin paramedic service. The CFD, with an established, decades-long history of providing Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulance service to the area, became the administrator of the new paramedic service.
 This ambulance service is funded by an EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Levy process that requires periodic renewal, at least every six years. When the EMS Levy appears on your ballot, it is important to realize that
it is not a new tax, but a continuation of an existing voter-approved tax that is necessary to continue providing your paramedic ambulance service.
Currently the EMS levy in Camas is 35 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation (equal to $105 per year if you own a $300,000 home). The proposed EMS levy rate change is 46 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation (equal to $138 per year if you own a $300,000 home). This will be a $33 per year increase to maintain what has been recognized as one of the Top 5 EMS service providers in the United States and Canada.
 Clark County collects the approved EMS Levy funds through your annual property taxes, and the levy funds are then passed to the CFD in their role as administrator of the ambulance service. State law requires that EMS Levy funds are accounted for independently of the CFD's general budget, and can only be used for expenses directly related to regional EMS. At no point are EMS Levy funds and City of Camas funds co-mingled.
 EMS Levy funds are utilized to hire and train paramedics, to purchase and maintain a fleet of four ambulances, to provide EMS training to all other fire and EMS responders serving in the ambulance service area, and to replenish EMS equipment for the other fire districts in the ambulance service area.
From time to time, when the EMS Levy renewal is required, we hope you will remember the times that your firefighters, first responders, and paramedics promptly came to the aid of you, your family or your friends and loved ones, a service that would not be possible without the continued cooperative support of the communities served.
|
Ensure the reliable continuation of our
community-based
ambulance service.
Vote
YES on EMS
The lives of your family,
friends and neighbors
in East County may depend on it.
|
 |
|
