Guest View: Paying twice for fire responses
Hollister’s $5 million fire department budget supported by an add-on 1 percent Measure E sales tax should include putting out non-negligent fires and handling non-negligent traffic accidents at no costs to residents; that’s what the fire department is budgeted for and the employees paid to do. Unfortunately, the never-ending grasp for more public monies has convinced a majority of the council that they can strong-arm the taxpayers for expensive fees just to get the staff and equipment out of their multimillion-dollar firehouses and actually come douse a fire or pry you out of a wreck. When they come, you should be prepared to pay through the nose—either directly or indirectly.
