The Cortez Fire Protection District is vital to the safety of the community and to ensure proper services are provided, additional funding through this ballot initiative is needed. The additional funding will assist in keeping fire fighters properly trained and compensated. It will also assist in keeping fire trucks up-to-date. The overall yearly cost to property owners is low and worth the sacrifice for the safety of the community. Support the Community by supporting this ballot initiative.

No one likes tax increases, but this is necessary to maintain essential and critical emergency services. The District has suffered losses in qualified personnel due to lack of competitive pay. The District is also in need of replacing and repairing emergency response vehicles and equipment. This ballot initiative is needed to address the District’s financial needs and the extra tax expense is outweighed by the peace of mind a properly funded Fire District creates.

This ballot measure provides necessary funds to extremely important aspects of the Fire District’s emergency services, personnel and apparatus. The additional tax revenue is needed to be competitive with regional fire service employees and will reduce turnover and new employee training costs. Employee retention leads to staff trained at a higher level. The additional tax revenue created by this initiative will support both personnel and equipment.

“Notice of Election to Increase Taxes and Debt on a Referred Measure”, 2023 Montezuma County Ballot Information Booklet, pgs. 6-7.