Heated debate: residents, EMS crews and council spar over rededicating part of 1% sales tax to fund ambulances

A lengthy, at-times emotional public hearing and council debate June 11 centered on whether Plaquemines Parish should ask voters to dedicate part of the existing 1% sales tax now used for fire services to fund emergency medical services.

Residents, EMS personnel and fire officials came to the microphone in large numbers. Speakers with personal accounts of delayed response times and life-saving calls urged immediate action:

"A life should never be spared at the cost of a dollar amount," one audience member told the council, urging the measure be placed on the November ballot so voters could decide. Another attendee said she coded for nine minutes and credited EMS with saving her life.

Shannon Larus, the parish EMS manager, told commissioners she had limited involvement in prior budget decisions and pleaded for a sustainable, dedicated revenue stream. "I do not have a seat at that table," Larus said, adding that the service needed predictable funding to hire and train staff.

EMS clinicians and paramedics described staffing shortages, the loss of ambulances and the inability to provide in-house training without stable funds. "We don't have the funding," said Josie Arnold, who identified herself as an EMS provider in the parish. Arnold said 25% to 30% of the 1% sales tax could allow the EMS department to staff more ambulances, provide housing for crews, and improve response times.

Fire department representatives warned council members of the operational impacts of transferring revenue midstream. Fire officials said fire services also rely heavily on their 1% sales-tax revenues to operate 12 stations and maintain apparatus. "If we take 50% of something and we have three times the equipment, it's not going to work," said a speaker representing the fire department.

Council members pushed for a fact-based plan before finalizing any ballot proposal. Several commissioners said they were sympathetic to EMS needs and would support putting a question to voters provided the administration and EMS develop specific staffing and cost plans. One commissioner signaled intent to offer an amendment at the next meeting to place a 25% rededication on the ballot, contingent on a plan.

Council President and other commissioners repeatedly asked the administration and EMS to produce an itemized plan that shows how many additional ambulances, crews and dollars are needed, and how much of the sales-tax share would be required to sustain them. If the council has figures, finance staff said they can model the fiscal impact and return to the council for a vote on placing the matter before voters.

What happens next: The council did not adopt a final figure or place the measure on the ballot at the June 11 meeting. Commissioners asked EMS and administration to produce a staffing plan, cost estimates and an implementation timeline; members said they would consider placing a rededication (range discussed: 25% suggested by some commissioners) on the ballot for voter approval, contingent on receiving that plan.