Fire district budgets set for public hearings tonight

Local fire districts will hold public hearings on their proposed 2015 budgets at their respective headquarters tonight.

State law requires the districts to hold public hearings on the third Tuesday in October on the proposed budgets for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins Jan. 1.

The commissioners of each district are mandated by state law to adopt an annual budget on or before Nov. 4. They may make changes to the proposed budget subsequent to the public hearing.

Fire districts are the taxing entity that funds the local fire departments, which are mostly run by volunteers but receive taxes for items such as equipment, facilities and some paid employees. The districts are subject to the 2 percent tax levy cap imposed by state law in 2011.

State law requires the fire districts to file their proposed and adopted budgets with the town clerk in each municipality in which the district lies.

Below is a summary of the districts’ budget proposals,  public hearing times and locations and the budget documents filed by each district with the appropriate town clerks :

Riverhead Fire District
$4.89 million in spending, 1.56 percent tax levy increase

The proposed budget calls for $4.89 million in spending, up 3.4 percent over the 2014 budget of $4.73 million. The district is offsetting taxes with the use of $250,000 in fund balance, bringing the tax levy to $4.5 million, which is up 1.56 percent.

Tax rates, which are determined by the town, were not yet available. The district covers parts of three different towns: Riverhead, Southampton and Brookhaven.

The public hearing on the budget will take place at 7 p.m. at Riverhead Fire Department headquarters, 540 Roanoke Avenue in Riverhead.

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Flanders Fire District
$691,000 in spending, 1.3 percent tax levy increase

The proposed 2015 budget calls for spending of $691,500, up 1.1 percent from the 2014 budget of $684,200. The amount to be raised by taxes is $561,500, up 1.3 percent over the tax levy of $554,200 in 2014.

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Jamesport Fire District
$842,810 in spending, 1.56 percent tax levy increase

The proposed 2015 budget is $842,810, which is up 1.5 percent over the 2014 budget of $830,318. Of that amount, $766,833 will be paid through taxes, which is a 1.56 percent tax levy increase.

The public hearing is at 7:30 p.m. at the firehouse on 25 Manor Lane in Jamesport.

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Wading River Fire District
$2.24 million in spending, 1.8 percent tax levy increase

The proposed 2015 budget calls for $2.24 million in spending, up 2.4 percent from the 2014 budget of $2.19 million. The amount to be paid by taxes totals $2.1 million, up 1.8 percent over the 2014 tax levy of $2.07 million.

The public hearing is at 7 p.m. at the fire headquarters at 1503 North Country Road in Wading River.

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Manorville

The Manorville Fire District’s proposed budget was not available on the websites maintained by the Town of Riverhead or Town of Brookhaven websites.