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Montgomery Township reopens 2026 budget, trims new fire tax and hires independent fire-services consultant
Summary
Facing public concern over response times and a projected budget shortfall, the Montgomery Township Board voted to reopen the 2026 budget, reduce a recently adopted fire tax to a total of 1.00 mills, and contract the Center for Public Safety Management to perform a comprehensive fire services study.
Montgomery Township’s Board of Supervisors voted Jan. 5 to reopen the 2026 budget, scale back a recently adopted fire tax and hire an independent consulting firm to evaluate fire services and staffing.
The board authorized reopening the budget and directed staff to return amended figures at the next meeting. The board also voted to amend the fire tax ordinance so the township’s total fire tax would be 1.00 mill (reducing the 1.71-mill level adopted in December), reallocating roughly 0.44 mills for fire staffing, 0.45 mills to capital reserves and 0.11 mills to the general fund for other pressures.
Why it matters: Residents, volunteer and career firefighters pressed the board to address what they described as growing response-time gaps and declining volunteerism. Several speakers said the staffing proposal adopted last year lacked independent review; the board’s actions set a path to revisit assumptions…
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