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Bonner County Ambulance District votes to request withdrawal from five urban renewal areas
Summary
The Bonner County Ambulance Service District voted to express intent to withdraw from five urban renewal areas that currently capture a portion of ambulance tax revenue; staff estimated the district could recover roughly $70,000 total if the URAs accept the requests.
The Bonner County Ambulance Service District on Thursday voted to formally request withdrawal from five county urban renewal areas so that ambulance tax revenue currently diverted to those URAs could return to the district budget.
The board approved a motion to “express our intent to withdraw from the Dover URA, the Sandpoint DT URA, the Sandpoint N URA, Priest River URA, and Old Town URA” and to accept resolutions prepared for each withdrawal; the resolutions will be assigned numbers later. Commissioners recorded a roll call in support of the motion and the item passed.
Why it matters: a recently passed state law (referred to in the meeting as House Bill 436) opened a short window for taxing districts to request restoration of tax increment revenue captured by urban renewal areas. Chief staff estimated the ambulance district’s share across the five URAs would total roughly $70,000 if the URA authorities permit the withdrawals.
What happened at the meeting: Chief Lindsey and the board reviewed the five URAs and presented resolutions drafted by district counsel. A staff explanation described an urban renewal area (URA) as a locally designated zone where tax increment is directed to renewal projects rather than the originating taxing districts; the new statute allows taxing districts to ask to stop that diversion and request that the increment remain with the taxing district.
Board members noted the request is only the first step; URA bodies may deny withdrawal requests under the statute if legal criteria are not met. The board’s motion was to file the formal requests and submit the resolutions to the county clerk; the board will wait for responses from the URA authorities to know whether any funds will be redirected to the ambulance district.
Formal action: the board made and seconded the motion and recorded a roll call vote; Commissioner Williams and Commissioner Helfrich were recorded as voting yes in the roll call noted on the record. The resolution numbers will be assigned by the clerk’s office as the requests are processed.
Ending: staff will submit the URA withdrawal requests under the timeline allowed by the statute and report back to the board on any URA responses and the amount, if any, returned to the district.
