Half-cent sales tax to fund LA city fire department heads to the Nov ballot

The L.A. City Council on Tuesday agreed to place a half-cent sales tax to fund the fire department on the November ballot. The vote was 14-0.

If approved by voters, the measure would raise $345 million in its first year and would remain in effect until repealed by voters.

United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, the labor union that represents firefighters, sponsored the measure. The union collected more than 225,000 petition signatures to qualify the measure.

“Due to decades of underinvestment, the LAFD currently operates with the same number of firefighters as in the 1960s, six fewer stations and five times the call load,” the union said in a statement issued before the vote.

According to national standards, emergency resources are expected to arrive at nearly all 911 calls within four minutes. Current LAFD response times are almost double this recommended average, according to the union.

The money would be spent on core functions, including hiring additional firefighters and paramedics, building new fire stations and repairing old stations, as well as modernizing equipment.

Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez said no part of L.A. is immune from the growing threat of fire, pointing to the Palisades Fire last year and the Boyle Heights fire currently affecting air quality throughout the region.

“When these emergencies happen, our constituents expect us to be prepared. They expect firefighters to have the staffing, equipment and resources they need to respond quickly and to keep people safe,” she said.

“As climate change and corporate negligence continue to make these emergencies more frequent and more severe, we have a responsibility to be honest about the conversation that it will take to protect our community,” Hernandez added. “This measure gives voters a chance to weigh in on that question directly.”

The current sales tax rate in the city of Los Angeles is 9.75%. The fire measure would increase it to 10.25%.

The measure says new revenue would not be able to replace existing general fund support for the fire department. It also creates a Citizen's Oversight Committee and annual public audits.

Susan Shelly of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association said if the city made the fire department a top funding priority, it wouldn’t need a tax increase.

“They should fund the fire department appropriately from the first dollar that's in the budget,” she said.