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Fire Service Funding

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1. What is the tax base dollar value from residents in the robertson district large? What is the annual bill from Robertson?

The assessed valuation (AV) for the area of Hazelwood served by Robertson is $37,964,870 for Residential. The total valuation is $215,765,860 because so much of Robertson’s service area is commercial and industrial. The amount of taxes that would be collected is $5.1 million. Based on the interim agreement following termination of the contract, we are currently paying Robertson $333,450 per month, per agreement with the mediator.  That comes to $4,001,400 per year.

2. Why did the City propose NID twice?

The City is attempting to find the funding solution that best fits the needs of the residents while ensuring the City has enough money to continue providing services.

3. How and why is Robertson's fire service more expensive than other neighboring districts?

The City does not have any say in the property tax rates Robertson sets. The rates are set by the Robertson Board of Directors.

4. Why does Robertson serve only 17% of Hazelwood residents but ALL Hazelwood residents pay for Robertson fire service?

The State law at the time the area was annexed required the City to pay Robertson to serve the area based on the amount of property taxes Robertson would have collected. Since the City collects taxes from all areas of the City, each area pays a portion of the Robertson and Florissant Valley costs.

5. How much money do we have to save in 2020 to break even? By saving 1.3M already in the bulleted actions, is this a break even point or does this still leave of in the RED?

The $1.3 million of savings has already been reflected in the FY2021 Budget. To break even, we would still need to save $4.48 million in FY2021.

6. Why can only residents in the Robertson area vote on the NID proposal?

Per Missouri State Law, only the residents within the fire district service areas can vote on fire district matters, including the previously proposed Neighborhood Improvement District (NID).

7. Does annexation by a fire district mean those living in Robertson district would no longer be a part of Hazelwood and would be subject to higher taxes?

Annexation by the fire districts means that residents in those service areas would be served by those fire districts and pay taxes to those fire districts. They would also remain residents of Hazelwood and receive city services such as police, street maintenance, snow plowing, code enforcement, animal control, and parks and recreation programs.

8. Why can't Hazelwood annex Robertson or Flo Valley district homes away from existing districts?

This could be an option through a Citizen’s Initiative petition. The residents of the districts would need to bring this option forward for a vote.

9. How many people joined the meeting by Zoom?

We had 84 people join us via Zoom.

10. Why did Hazelwood sign such a long contract with Robertson in 1990?

In 1995, when the annexation was certified, the law required the City to pay the fire districts. The contract reflected the law.

11. Has Robertson been audited for the 10 percent every year?

As far as audits, Robertson is audited by a certified auditor every year, as is required by law. Residents can submit a request to the State of Missouri for the State to perform an audit.

12. What happens when the city runs out of money in 2021?

Either the City will be forced to make severe program cuts and reduce personnel or begin restructuring its contracts and bills under federal law. The City cannot "go out of business", but has not begun to study how it would restructure its contracts and bills.

13. Does annexation mean that if we live in Robertson District, we can vote to be annexed by Hazelwood or Florissant Valley Fire Protection District?

It would depend on the citizen initiative placed on the ballot. A petition could include Hazelwood providing service via a mandatory contract that the voters would require Robertson to sign. It could also include Hazelwood service area annexing into the Robertson or Florissant Valley service area.

14. If we annexed into the fire district, would we pay the $0.99 for Hazelwood taxes and $2.40 per $100 assessed value?

Residents in the Robertson Fire Protection District service area would pay both the $0.99 to Hazelwood for city services such as police, street maintenance, snow plowing, parks and recreation programs, code enforcement, as well as pay the $2.40 to Robertson for fire protection.

15. If Flo Valley and/or Robertson annex their original areas, would that reduce the payments to Hazelwood or would those people subsidize the cost for the Hazelwood Fire Department residents?

If the districts annexed their service areas into their districts, residents in districts would continue to pay the $0.99 rate to Hazelwood for city services such as police, street maintenance, snow plowing, parks and recreation programs, code enforcement, as well as paying the district taxes directly to the districts. It would reduce the City’s payments by $4 million to Robertson and $1.3 million to Florissant Valley.

16. Why is Robertson charging a much higher rate than the other districts?

The City does not have any say in the property tax rates Robertson sets. The rates are set by the Robertson Board of Directors.

17. Why is Robertson so much more expensive than the others?

The City does not have any say in the property tax rates Robertson sets. The rates are set by the Robertson Board of Directors.

18. Only Robertson residents will be able to vote for the annexation, correct?

Per State law, only residents in the Robertson service area would be able to vote on annexing into the Robertson Fire Protection District.

19. How can we get Robertson to accept the citizens initiative and put it on the ballot?

It is up to the citizens in the Robertson service area to place a question on the ballot. If the Robertson Board does not place an initiative on the ballot, residents would have to sue the District to get a judge to order it on the ballot.

20. How do the services provided, firefighter pay and benefits, and other costs compare between Hazelwood and Robertson?

On average, the difference in total compensation (pay, benefits, perks) between Hazelwood firefighters and Robertson firefighters is $20,000.

21. Why did Hazelwood sign the contract at all?

The contract reflected the State law at that time, including no ending date. The issue now is how the costs have gone up so much over the past 23 years. The City is trying to find the best long-term solution to this funding problem and am asking the residents for their input.

22. Has restructuring the 3 fire departments into 2 districts covering all of Hazelwood been considered?

The City is working with Florissant Valley to study whether they would add the Hazelwood service area, eliminating the Hazelwood Fire Dept.

23. What happens in 2021 when the city is unable to pay these fire districts? Will the city go bankrupt? Do we lose our fire service?

The City is not considering bankruptcy at this time. However, the City is required by federal and State law to continue providing services. The City has not studied how services and contracts would be affected if a long-term solution is not found.

24. Does the difference between the original 1997 Robertson contract payments and 2017 payments take into account inflation in that time?

Inflation is not a factor in the calculation of the payment. We do not know how much of a factor inflation was in determining the increases in tax rates.

25. How does Robertson justify their rates compared to Hazelwood & Florissant Valley? Is there any give on their end?

The City does not have a say in how Roberson sets their rates. The City is working with Robertson and Florissant Valley to try and find a cost-effective way of continuing to provide fire (and all other) services to Hazelwood residents.

26. What is the common ground the mediator is trying to find?

The mediator is working to help both sides find a solution that provides fire protection for all of Hazelwood without causing any organization to go broke.

27. Who has the authority to lay off Robertson since there's no money to pay them?

The City cannot lay off Robertson firefighters. We have no control over their budget and personnel.

28. What cuts are you looking at for the Hazelwood Police and Fire Departments?

We would be looking at 15 police officer positions and 3 firefighter positions, which would reduce things such as a minimum of 4 firefighters on a truck per call.

29. Is there a way that the 17% of residents served by Robertson could pay the cost of Robertson if that's what a majority of them want?

The City has tried this before with the NID. Both times it was proposed, it was voted down by the residents in the Robertson service area. Annexation into Robertson by the voters would mean residents and businesses would pay the whole cost.

30. By state law, the 17% only get to vote than is it a state law that those 17% of voters get to pay the taxes and not all Hazelwood residents?

The State law at that time said that the City would annex, but pay Robertson to provide services based on the taxes that would have been collected. Taxes are collected throughout the City, so all residents pa for the fire service in Robertson (and Florissant Valley). The City is looking for a fair solution to this problem.

31. How do we start a petition to have one fire dept and it to be Hazelwood? If Robertson didn't turn in the last petition, how can we trust them to turn in a new one?

A petition would have to be signed separately by residents in each of the fire districts requesting that the City serve the area by contract. If either (or both) petitions were approved by the voters in Robertson and/or Florissant Valley, the City would provide the fire service to those areas. If either Board did not place a petition on the ballot, residents would have to sue to have a Judge order it on the ballot.

32. Where can I learn more about this and take action with fellow citizens?

You can always find more at www.Hazelwoodmo.org/fireservice. You’ll also be able to sign up for email updates about this topic, as well as other City issues.

33. Why are there 3 districts now? What can we do to release Robertson and have another district take over?

When the residents voted to annex into the City in the early 1990s, the law at that time allowed citizens to choose their fire service provider and have the City pay the taxes that residents would normally pay to the fire districts. In order to end litigation surrounding the annexation, the City entered into a contract with each of the districts for the districts to provide service in those areas. The City acts as a conduit, or middle-man, between the fire districts and the residents.

In order to have another district take over, a citizen’s committee would have to create a petition, gather signatures, and submit the petition the the Robertson Board of Directors. Then, the voters within the Robertson area would need to approve the petition at the election.

34. How do we stay abreast of changing information regarding this matter?

You can always find more at www.Hazelwoodmo.org/fireservice. You’ll also be able to sign up for email updates about this topic, as well as other City issues.

35. How are taxes charged to tax exempt apartment complexes?

There are no apartment complexes that have tax exemption. Tax exemption is reserved for businesses that bring new jobs and other revenues to the City and would not be built but for the exemption.

36. Why do you break down the cost by person?

The City is trying to find a comparison for residents. There are various models, but this is the easiest to understand and the best comparator we have.

37. What percent of Robertson's property tax income comes from within the Hazelwood city limits?

Based on Robertson’s 2019 audit, about 52% of Robertson’s property tax revenue comes from Hazelwood.

38. Where can we find the information on the last two tax increases for Robertson Fire District?

The voters approved tax rate increases 3 times plus bond issues for equipment. Robertson’s tax rate has increased from 91 cents in 1995 to as high as $2.72 for residential property. St. Louis County has tax rates summaries dating back to 2015 at their website: https://stlouiscountymo.gov/st-louis-county-departments/revenue/tax-rates-summary/. 

39. Why are we wasting time and taxpayer money in mediation and delaying the ultimate court ordered resolution?

We understand your frustration. But both the City and Robertson are mandated by the court to participate in mediation. Robertson is considering placing a question to annex their service area on the April ballot. We hope that a long-term solution that is approved by the voters can be found.

40. Can we have Florissant Valley take over Hazelwood?

 Florissant Valley is studying possibly providing service to the Hazelwood service area.

41. How many Robertson meetings have you attended?

The City has attended many of Robertson’s meetings for about 5 years.

42. Why did the City provide a loan to the St. Louis Curling Club? And why does the City provide the majority of businesses in Robertson with loans?

The City did not give a $30,000 loan to the curling club, only agreed to fund a loan after they completed the building. They have since withdrawn their loan application. 

Only 6 businesses in Robertson have received a loan. The vast majority of businesses in the Robertson service area do not have tax abatement or received a loan. Per State law, the money from the 1/2-cent economic development sales tax can ONLY go for non-retail uses and CANNOT be used to pay for fire service.

43. What are the pros and cons of mediation?

The Judge in Robertson’s lawsuit against the City has ordered the parties into mediation. It is his hope that the parties will be able to resolve this issue without having to go to trial. This is very common in these types of legal disputes. Either party could be subject to a ruling against it if they do not engage in good-faith mediation.

44. What are the pros and cons of de-annexation?

The statutory time limit to challenge the annexation expired over 20 years ago. If property in the fire district service area could lawfully be de-annexed and removed from the City, those residents would still not be “re-annexed” into the fire district, so they would still be left without any Fire and EMS services as well as City police protection, street maintenance, snow plowing, and use of park programs and facilities.

45. What was the decision on the citizen's petition?

Citizen’s may file a petition with either or both districts to take a certain action, such as approve a new contract. If the voters approve the petition, the fire district is required by law to follow the will of the voters.

46. How long does the judge expect discussion to continue before making a ruling?

The courts have been shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Only emergency cases are being heard. In addition, the Judge has made it clear that he wants the parties to find a mediated solution. If mediation does not resolve the issue, a court hearing will be held when the courts open. The City has not been incurring many legal fees during the mediation.