Jan. 13—Results of a petition are being verified through the Ector County Elections Office that will likely place an emergency services district on the May ballot for voters who live outside of Odessa city limits.
Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett said Tuesday’s 10 a.m. meeting of the Commissioners Court at the County Annex will be to accept a petition to provide fire and emergency services for county residents and to schedule a public hearing for Feb. 11 at the commissioner’s court.
A November proposal failed in Ector County to provide full-time fire and EMS services to the area. Currently, all EMS calls in the area are handled by the City of Odessa’s OFR.
The petition, which has about 200 signatures, seeks to put the formation of the ESD on the May 3 ballot. The proposal is for a county-wide tax that would provide full-time fire and EMS services to county residents.
If passed, this measure would establish a tax, no higher than the maximum 10 cents per $100 of property value per Texas law. For a $100,000 home, this would amount to a maximum of $100 per year, or $8.33 per month. Fire and EMS were separate petitions, and the tax applies to both of the services separately meaning it could be as much as 20 cents per $100 valuation.
Fawcett said the county was not involved in the petition but said the county does have to add it to the May election and host public hearings. He said only those outside of Odessa city limits can vote and only those outside the city limits will pay the new proposed property tax to fund it.
If passed, the commissioners court will appoint a five member commission to run the ESD. Fawcett said it is a big project and there are a number of things to get sorted out if it passes.
He said he believes it is the correct mechanism to get enhanced county emergency services but there are still some unanswered questions that need to be hashed out.
Early voting will begin in April.