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" Georgetown Emergency Services Pleads: 'Let Us Tax You More—For Your Safety, Of Course!'💸🚨"

Oh fabulous, because nothing screams "progress" like making the poor pay more for essential services. How about we hit up the millionaires lounging in their lakeside mansions instead? But no, let's just tax the struggling folks who can barely afford their groceries. Brilliant move, Georgetown. Just brilliant.

Published October 9, 2024 at 7:01am by Claire Osborn

Oh, Here We Go Again: Georgetown Wants Your Money for Fire Stations

Buckle up, folks! The powers that be are once again knocking on voters' doors this November, begging for a sales tax hike to fund fire stations for the rapidly growing Emergency Services District No. 8 around Georgetown. Because, you know, they've only tried this a couple of times before. eye roll emoji

Last November, voters shot down the proposition by a mere 250 votes. Only 46.8% of voters were like, "Yeah, sure, take my money," while a cool 53.2% said, "Nah, I'm good." And let's not forget the epic fails of 2022 and 2007, where the proposition crashed and burned with 61% and 78% of residents giving it a hard pass.

Georgetown Fire Chief John Sullivan, who's basically the district's paid cheerleader, is hoping for a different outcome this time around. "After last year's election, we had a focus group meeting where we kept hearing that people had no idea what was going on," Sullivan said. Shocking, right? People not paying attention to local politics? Unheard of!

Now, let's talk numbers. The district currently has a 6.25% sales tax, but if the powers that be get their way, that'll jump to 8.25%. Sullivan says this'll make the tax burden more "equitable" for property owners, because, hey, tourists and passersby will chip in too. Because nothing says "welcome to Georgetown" like an extra tax on your Starbucks.

A 2% sales tax hike would rake in about $4 million a year, Sullivan claims, and help build five new fire stations over the next decade. Currently, the district has one lonely fire station on Williamson Drive.

ESD No. 8 serves a whopping 80-square-mile area around (but not in) Georgetown, with a population expected to double in the next decade. If the sales tax hike doesn't pass, Sullivan warns that response times could increase. "People can't expect response times to be 10 to 15 minutes if you are doubling the number of people and double the number of calls," he said.

So there you have it, folks. Vote early, vote often – early voting starts Oct. 21, and Election Day is Nov. 5. And remember, no organized resistance means it's up to you to spread the word (and the snark).

Sources: [Insert URLs here, because transparency is so important]