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Board weighs VOSAP retirement option versus vehicle tax rebate for volunteers
Summary
Supervisors discussed two incentive options for Page County volunteer firefighters and rescue squad members: enrollment in VOSAP (a retirement/award plan with quarterly reporting) or a personal property tax rebate for one responding vehicle. Staff provided cost estimates and noted administrative setup requirements; no final action was taken.
Page County supervisors discussed potential incentives on Nov. 17 to recruit and retain volunteer firefighters and rescue squad personnel, including participation in VOSAP (the Virginia Volunteer Firefighters and Rescue Squad Workers Service Award) and a personal property tax rebate.
Miss Mueller briefed the board that VOSAP offers contribution levels (for example $30, $60 or $90 per quarter tied to verified call responses) and would require quarterly certification by the agency captain or chief. She said staff estimated roughly 196 volunteers who regularly run calls; using a midrange VOSAP estimate would cost about $70,500 per year (staff noted that figure did not include administrative costs).
The alternative discussed was offering one personal property tax rebate for the vehicle used in emergency responses; staff estimated the rebate option could cost about $68,006 in lost tax revenue if applied at full scale. Supervisors debated administration, qualifying thresholds (Rockingham County policy was cited requiring 50 emergency calls and minimum training), whether to cap rebate amounts and whether to choose a percentage‑based threshold rather than a fixed call count. Several supervisors favored a combined, comprehensive approach of incentives plus recruitment work with local schools and to seek volunteer input before choosing a path.
No binding vote was taken. Miss Mueller said agencies would need to apply to participate and that implementation timing would depend on administrative setup; the personal property tax rebate would be difficult to apply mid‑tax cycle because bills had already been issued.
