By Jalen Maki

Tomahawk Leader Editor

TOMAHAWK – The timing of increases in the costs of services provided by the Tomahawk Fire Department were discussed by the City of Tomahawk Finance Committee and several township officials last week.

In Nov. 2022, the City of Tomahawk Common Council approved the city’s 2023 budget, which included an increase in costs for services the Tomahawk Fire Department provides to eight area townships – Bradley, Harrison, King, Rock Falls, Skanawan, Somo, Tomahawk and Wilson.

The total increase spread across the townships totaled $69,840.02.

The rate increases were the result of a change in the formula used to bill for services, a change that seeks to more evenly distribute the burden of costs based on the number of fire calls from each municipality. The City of Tomahawk has covered the largest portion of costs in previous years, although roughly two-thirds of fire calls over a recent two-year average came from outside the city limits.

In years past, the city would bill townships for a base cost towards operating the fire department. Calls to the township would be billed at $500.00 for the first hour, and $250.00 for each following hour.

While the Town of Rock Falls, which receives partial coverage from the Tomahawk Fire Department, will see an increase of less than $500.00, other municipalities are faced with larger hikes in service rates this year. The Town of Bradley will see a roughly $33,000.00 increase from 2022, while the Town of King will pay nearly $18,000.00 more than it did last year.

Officials from several townships were on hand at the City of Tomahawk Finance Committee meeting at City Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 1.

Town of King Supervisor Andy Tomaszewski explained to the committee that the cost increases themselves are not the central issue, but rather their timing.

The townships were made aware of the increases after they had crafted and approved their 2023 budgets, according to Tomaszewski, who floated the possibility of having to cut road work projects and eliminate employees as ways to cover the non-budgeted rise in coverage rates.

However, it was noted during the meeting that over the last several years, contract renewal letters sent from the Tomahawk Fire Department to town officials mentioned a proposed change to how the department bills for fire calls.

“The current fire contracts and billing practices have been in place for many years, and everyone is used to the way it has been,” a 2022 letter from Tomahawk Fire Department Chief Paul Winter said. “The fire department, city clerk’s office, town clerks and chairman spend time each quarter processing bills to property owners for calls, which costs money. I am proposing a change for 2023 to the same model used within the city, where there is no billing for calls. To establish the new Fire Contract fee, the billing for time on calls within the township for the last two years will be averaged and added to the original base contract fee.”

In the letter, Winter also suggested a meeting with him, City of Tomahawk Clerk/Treasurer Amanda Bartz and interested town officials could be held to discuss the proposed changes to the fire contracts.

During discussion, it was noted that although the possibility of changes in rates had been communicated to the townships via the letters, dates for when this could happen and specific figures had not been included.

Tomaszewski said he wished that, along with sending the letters, the fire department had also reached out to the municipalities to ensure that the cost increases were understood, while committee members indicated that after sending the letters for several years and receiving no responses from the townships, it was assumed that the townships had no issues with the rate increases.

District 2 alderperson Dale Ernst called the situation a “communication disconnect.”

This year’s rate increases will remain in place.