Karns Volunteer Fire Department switching from donations to fees

[Newsjock]

Source: WBIR Knoxville

... In a letter written by Chief Ken Marston that's been sent to area households, the department calculates only 10% of businesses donate and only 20% of residences do so.

In fact, donations are decreasing while the area continues to grow.

Karns VFD covers the Ball Camp, Solway, Hardin Valley and Karns communities. That's an area of nearly 65 square miles, which includes a hospital, a college and 13 schools.

Over the last few years, the department has struggled to raise enough money to support its services. Firefighters have sent out hundreds of letters to residents asking for donations. They even put out TV commercials trying to persuade people to support the department that protects their homes.

The campaigns didn't work. Officials say donations still aren't covering the amount of people the department protects. They now plan to switch from a donation system to a membership system. Northwest Knox County residents will receive a letter in the mail written by KVFD Chief Ken Marston explaining the situation.

Read more: http://www.wbir.com/news/article/137048/2/Karns-Volunteer-Fire-Department-switching-from-donations-to-fees

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Taxes....

no that would be like communist and shit!

And I worked with an organization that RELIED on donations too, and unlike them... for legal reasons we could not take state taxes. So that option did not exist.

[JVS]

2. If they must, so be it.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. Shut it down. The cheap bastids don't want to pay for a fire dept, they don't get one.

[SharonAnn]

4. Thanks. "donations are decreasing while the area continues to grow"

Her in Libertarian, Tea Bag East Tennessee this is a common situation. "No taxes!" is the chant you here. Then they complain about lack of services.

We're the home of the elderly who receive Social Security and ride scooters paid for by Medicare while they campaign to "keep the government out of ..(fill in the blank)"/ The ones I liked best was the Medicare receiving folks who wanted to get government out of health care.

[rpannier]

8. You mean all that stuff comes from taxes

It doesn't come from the Infrastructure Elves?

[PoliticAverse]

5. Classic example of the "free rider problem" nt

[JVS]

7. I hope there are economists going into the field to do research on this.

;-)

[TorchTheWitch]

6. wrong answer

TAX. Not a membership fee - TAX. At least this department is smart enough and moral enough to not go back to the 19th century libertarian policy of allowing the fire to burn when the fee hasn't been paid.

[Hannah Bell]

9. it was the county that voted for that policy, presumably representing the will of its residents.

not the city fire department funded by 2500 people in the city to provide services in the city, not to the 32,000 people in the county.