Election
BY GRACIE WARHURST
Travis County voters to decide on ESD 2 tax cut, fire and EMS
Residents will decide this November whether to cut a half-cent sales tax imposed by the Travis County Emergency Services District No. 2. What’s happening Travis County ESD 2 provides fire suppression, fire prevention and first-response emergency medical care for 77 square miles across Pflugerville and outside of the city. The ballot measure would abolish the half-cent tax the district receives from the city of Pfluger- ville, but the ESD would retain the half-cent tax it gets from residents outside of the city. Pflugerville Residents for Responsible Taxation, self-described as a nonpartisan group of con- cerned citizens, believes the district is overfunded for the services provided. A statement, signed by the PRRT and listing David Rogers, a Pflugerville City Council member, as its spokesperson, urges a “vote for transparency and tax relief.”
The details PRRT argues that since TCESD No. 2 stopped providing ambulance services in 2022, the half- cent tax shouldn’t be going to the district. The city of Pflugerville is currently using an out- side contractor for ambulance services. TCESD No. 2 still provides these services for other areas of the district, and officials say the district’s firefighter paramedics also assist the for-profit ambulance provider within the city. What they’re saying When the tax was first approved by voters in 2000, Fire Chief Nick Perkins said “nobody was talking paramedics or ambulances at that time.” He also says the measure would reduce the district’s budget by 40% and result in 130 layoffs. Also of note PRRT also disputes the TCESD No. 2’s use of the name “Pflugerville Fire Department,” demanding
ESD 2 medical service calls in 2023
247
Strokes
895
Cardiac emergencies
2,682 Motor vehicle accidents
5,148 Medical calls in city of Pflugerville
10,553 Total medical
emergencies calls
SOURCE: TRAVIS COUNTY ESD NO. 2/COMMUNITY IMPACT
the district remove it from the ballot because it is not a city-managed entity. “It’s very confusing for us,” Perkins said, in reference to the demand. “We are also known as the Pflugerville Fire Department—that goes back to our roots of 1955 ...”
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PFLUGERVILLE - HUTTO EDITION
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