SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Scottsdale residents will see a city sales tax initiative on their ballots in November, after weeks of litigation from a lawsuit.
A group of residents filed a lawsuit against the city, saying the city was promoting it as a tax cut, when they felt it would actually be a tax hike.
A Maricopa County judge dismissed the case last month, although the group that filed the lawsuit is now appealing that decision.
Scottsdale Firefighters Association President Sasha Weller told ABC15 the Scottsdale Fire Department needs the money that would be generated from the sales tax if it passes.
"We're running with less resources today than we were running with in 2008," Weller said. "We're just holding our breath. We're relying on other communities to help us and, frankly, Scottsdale can do better."
A 0.2% sales tax that voters put into effect almost 30 years ago to buy the McDowell Sonoran Preserve expires next year.
The city wants to put a new 0.15% sales tax into effect the day after the old one expires to maintain and upgrade parks and recreation related projects and resources.
Weller said the Scottsdale Fire Department needs that money for tools like more trucks to cut down on response times, especially in the southern portion of the city.
He said they also need more resources to combat wildfires and perform rescues in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve and its trails.
Last week, a group of 13 people, including children, were lost on a trail in the Preserve and were running out of water. Four people had to be rescued, including a 10-year-old who had to be airlifted off the mountain.
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Weller said more resources for those scenarios are necessary as growth and tourism continue to explode in the city.
"While well intended many, many years ago, when the preserve and some of these other things around the city were introduced, some out of necessity and some out of desire to preserve these lands, there wasn't really a ton of public safety forethought, long term," he said.
If the group suing the city over the language used about the ballot measure succeeds in their case appeal, the measure could end up not being on the ballot at all.
At the end of the day though, Weller said the money needed to keep up with growth has to come from somewhere because public safety is paramount.
"When public safety becomes a crisis, all the other human services, the non, really, essential, essential services, those get cut at the bottom of the budget, so you can maintain what is the emergency services in public safety," he said. "The consequence doesn't change in public safety. In fact, it tends to get worse until you start mitigating it."
ABC15 will stay on top of what happens with the appeal. Lawyers working on the case expect a decision to be made by the end of the month.
