South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

MFPD in good fiscal shape, according to fiscal ’11 audit

The Mehlville Fire Protection District is in good financial condition, an independent auditor recently told the Board of Directors.

The Board of Directors voted June 27 to approve the district’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, audited by Hochschild, Bloom & Co., for the year ending Dec. 31, 2011.

Robert Offerman of Hochschild, Bloom & Co. reported the fire district received an “unqualified opinion” on its 2011 financial statements — the best possible opinion that can be given.

The audit found the district’s revenues in 2011 increased by $632,057 — 3.08 percent — to $21,123,819 from $20,491,762. The largest increase in revenue was from charges for services — ambulance billing and permits. Charges for services increased by $601,258 — 14.6 percent — while property-tax revenue for 2011 declined 0.03 percent — $5,091.

As some may recall, when Michael Klund unsuccessfully challenged board Chairman Aaron Hilmer in the April 2011 election, Klund contended ambulance billing, which had been approved in 2002 by a previous board, was “double taxation” and should be eliminated.

Eliminating ambulance billing, Hilmer said after the election, would have resulted in such a revenue shortfall that the board would need to ask voters to approve a tax-rate increase of roughly 10 cents.

The irony is not lost on us that Klund wrongly considered himself the candidate of fiscal responsibility.

The audit also stated Mehlville’s 2011 tax rate of 69.7 cents per $100 of assessed valuation was “the lowest rate of all fire districts in St. Louis County for the sixth year in a row.”

Back in November 2004, voters were told that approval of the district’s 33-cent, tax-rate increase, Proposition S, could be “the difference between life and death.” Not surprisingly, the tax-rate increase was overwhelmingly approved.

At that time, the district’s tax rate was set to be nearly $1.20 per $100 of assessed valuation. However, Hilmer and board Treasurer Bonnie Stegman, both of whom first were elected in April 2005, opted in August 2005 to set the tax rate at 86.5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, electing not to apply the 33-cent, tax-rate increase.

In December 2005, Hilmer cited the fiscal soundness of the fire district and termed Prop S “the greatest sham ever laid on the voters of south county.”

As evidenced by the district’s 2011 tax rate of 69.7 cents per $100, truer words were never spoken.

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