Salem Fire Chief asks Burke County commissioners to raise fire tax rate to 0.1

Salem Fire and Rescue Chief Charles Autry told the Burke County Board of Commissioners on April 7 that his department is requesting an increase in its fire tax rate from 0.0716 to 0.1 to finance a new engine, cover mortgage payments on a recently completed station and respond to rising call and operating volumes.

Autry told the board Salem saved about $1.5 million to build a new station and has $545,000 remaining in a certificate of deposit; $351,000 of that will be applied to finalize a mortgage expected in April, and the department will begin monthly mortgage payments of more than $16,000. He said the department has ordered a new engine priced at $943,000 that must be financed under contract terms by the end of 2025 and that payments on the engine are…