Issue Position: Coventry Fire District

Issue Position

The Central Coventry Fire District has been an issue that has already impacted so many residents of Coventry. The district was ordered into liquidation by a judge and it was just about ready to fold - leaving all of the other districts responsible to cover the unmanned areas of Coventry that would have been created by the elimination of the Central District. In April the General Assembly considered legislation that would allow the state's "Fiscal Stability Act" to encompass fire districts. The FSA will allow for a state commission to come in and assess the needs of the district, and make recommendations, negotiations and changes that would create a viable district. There was one point in the Act that I was not comfortable with, and that was the "tax cap". There was none - and this means that the commission could conceivably raise taxes to any amount without voter approval. There were 2 amendments tendered to this act that would have imposed a 4% tax increase maximum. This is what the FSA has to operate under when restructuring cities or towns. Despite my support, as well as that of several other members of the General Assembly, the amendment failed. I was inclined to vote against the FSA in its entirety, but because I have stayed closely involved with the Fire Department in my district of Coventry - the Western Coventry Fire District, I was urged by the board and the taxpayers at the Financial Department Meeting to support the FSA, which I did.

At this point, the "commission" option has been skipped and the Central Coventry Fire District has gone straight into the hands of a receiver. This receiver has the power to raise taxes and restructure the entire district in order to make it viable. One area that cannot be altered without consent however, is the collective bargaining agreement with the professional firefighters of that district. However, the receiver does have the ability to negotiate with them in an attempt to gain concessions from them that will make it possible to continue the district. If that fails and there are not enough concessions to make this work, the receiver has the option of taking it to full bankruptcy which will negate the contracts and allow them to rebuild from the ground up. This is what happened in Central Falls and that was not a very proud moment for the state of Rhode Island. I am hopeful that all parties to this unfortunate situation will take this seriously and understand just exactly what is at stake.

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