Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
Woodville Township has a three-mill renewal property tax levy on the ballot, which essentially serves as the general fund for the township’s police services.
It does not fund EMS services, as there is some confusion since fire and EMS are housed in the same building.
The county auditor estimates that the levy would collect $283,000 annually with a $47 per year cost per $100,000 home valuation to taxpayers.
“It buys our equipment, it pays what we reimburse the firefighters' compensation package, and the trucks,” fire chief Tim Schnitker said. “Pretty much everything that we buy out of the levy is to support the fire department.”
Schnitker noted that the Woodville Volunteer Fire Department Association also helps raise money to offset, or lower, the cost that they have to ask the taxpayers for.
“They buy things so we haven't had to raise the taxes,” Schnitker said. “We do fundraisers, and we try and supplement so that we don't have to go to taxpayers for money. We do pancake breakfasts, and we do a gun raffle every year. It's a non-profit. We raise money to try and buy things so we don't have to buy it out of the taxpayers’ money.”
That said, Schnitker said the levy is still extremely vital as it serves as the department’s operating budget.
“It’s the income that actually pays for the department,” he said. “If we don't have income, we couldn't pay for our trucks, we couldn't pay for our insurance, and we couldn't pay for our fuel. A portion of the maintenance for the building comes out of that as well.”
