Majority of voters support Oceano fire tax — but not enough to pass. Could that change?
Oceano’s fire tax gained ground as ballots were counted Tuesday night, but the measure still does not have the number of votes it needs to pass.
With all of the district’s three precincts reporting, the measure was at 63% in favor, but it requires a two-thirds vote — roughly 67% — to pass.
Though results are in for all the physical polling places, the totals could change as any remaining vote-by-mail ballots or conditional ballots are counted in the coming days.
As of Wednesday morning, ballots for 1,322 people, only about 33% of registered voters in the CSD, had been counted. This means there are still more than 2,650 potential ballots that could impact the results.
Over the years, costs have increased at the Five Cities Fire Authority, as the department tries to transition away from a reserve model into a full-time department.
But the Oceano Community Services District, which has few significant sources of revenue, has been unable to keep up with those rising costs. District officials say the tax is necessary for the CSD to stay with the fire authority.
If unsuccessful, the district could choose to transfer fire services over to San Luis Obispo County, or it could try to establish a stand-alone fire department.
The tax would charge property owners $180 per parcel within the CSD, and could increase up to 2% per year thereafter. It would potentially net the CSD about $422,000 in its first year, according to district officials.
This story was originally published March 3, 2020 at 8:13 PM.
%20Cropped.jpg)