Iowa County prepares way for EMS tax levy

MARENGO — Though declaring Emergency Medical Services an essential services does not make a tax levy imminent, it is necessary if an EMS tax is to be levied in the future.

Iowa County Supervisors approved the first reading Friday of a resolution that would declare EMS an essential service in Iowa County.

On June 9, 2021, Iowa Senate File 615 was signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds. The law says that Iowa counties may levy a tax to fund EMS if EMS is an essential service and if voters approve the levy.

Iowa County Supervisors agreed in September to consider such a resolution.

Supervisors Keven Heitshusen, Chris Montross and Seth Meyer voted to move forward with a resolution, and Supervisor Abby Mass voted no. Supervisor Jon Degen abstained because of a possible conflict of interest.

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Following a public hearing Friday, Supervisors approved the first reading of the resolution. Two additional public hearings will be conducted and the second and third readings considered Friday, Dec. 12 and Friday, Dec. 19.

Heitshusen, Meyer, Montross and Degen voted to approve the first reading of the resolution. Maas voted against it.

The adoption of the resolution will allow voters to consider a property tax not to exceed 75 cents per thousand dollars of assessed value for EMS and the creation of a county emergency medical services system advisory council.

Though Supervisors didn’t comment before Friday’s vote, Maas said in September that the county should wait to see if the money is needed before moving to levy a tax.

During Friday’s public hearing, Iowa County EMS Director Adam Rabe read a brochure detailing why the resolution should be approved.

Declaring EMS essential doesn’t automatically put the levy on the ballot, said Rabe. It’s the first step in the process.

An EMS advisory council, appointed by the Board of Supervisors, would conduct EMS needs assessments to see if the EMS needs the additional funding, the brochure says. The Supervisors would have the authority to put the issue on the ballot.

Costs continue to rise, said Rabe. EMS tries to replace an ambulance every two years, and they now cost more than $300,000.

Iowa County Ambulance needs new EKG/defibrillators, which cost about $48,000 each, and will need new CPR machines in 2030, at a cost of $120,000, and new ventilators in 2032, another $200,000.

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Rabe said that ambulance staff is hard to keep without pay raises. To keep property taxes down, Iowa County gave no raises to non-union employees this year.

Medicare and insurance reimbursements have stagnated, said Rabe, widening the gap between costs and revenue, and State tax reforms have reduced the percentage of property value that is assessed for taxes, lowering taxes for property owners and reducing revenue for county services.

Rabe said that 53% of the ambulance’s budget comes from charges for services and 47% comes from property taxes paid into the general fund. The budget is just over $1 million a year.

First responders around the county, which are part of EMS, are volunteer agencies, funded nearly completely by donations and fundraising, though the ambulance service provides some disposable supplies, continuing education and shared software.

According to the EMS brochure, 24 Iowa counties have approved EMS levies since 2021. Amounts vary from 21 cents to 75 cents; 17 counties levy the maximum.

Some counties approved the levy at 75 cents but the actual rate is determined by county supervisors each year, the brochure says.

Iowa County supervisors meet at 9 a.m. each Friday at the East Annex, 970 Court Ave. in Marengo.