I urge everyone to vote no on Proposition No. 1 concerning the Valley Regional Fire Authority (VRVA). Do not give the VRVA another blank check for the next six years.

When created, the VFRA published it would raise our taxes by $60 per household. They did raise our taxes and used the money to build two brand new stations (and abandon one) and, execute a complete remodel of a third.

On top of that, the VFRA spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a ladder truck that requires someone to fly in from Germany to complete warranty work. Surely, we do not need a repeat of those capital expenditures.

The authority was created because Auburn had raised the firefighters’ salaries so high that it was costing the city $1,000,000 more than it was collecting from the fire related taxes. It allowed the city to get out from under this obligation but we, the taxpayers, put up the extra bucks.

Businesses were hit worse. Did you know the cement sprinkled parking garage that replaced the Cavanaugh property on Main Street was billed thousands of dollars for fire protection?

On top of that, another layer of management was created when, at the Auburn mayor’s suggestion, an old friend and ex-campaign manager, a non-firefighter and husband of one of his employees, was appointed administrator.

Now the VRFA needs this proposition so it can continue to exceed the very fair taxing limits imposed by state law. We learn about this proposition as we receive our ballots in the mail so there is insufficient time to research how our monies are being spent.

Without a public process of review to determine what the public feels is necessary for the future. This is wrong. Please control the VRFA taxing power by voting no on your Aug. 7 ballot.

– Dan Shields