When you vote “No” on the San Juan EMS Levy, you are not voting against the EMS or the volunteers; you are voting for fiscal responsibility.

Levy lifts should be for specific expenditures, such as a new ambulance or updating necessary equipment or buildings, not for increasing the salaries of administration and other office personnel.

Our elected and appointed officials should always consider the taxpayers best interest first before spending a dime.

The amount of money being requested now is far in excess of that which is necessary to provide quality service to our community with the level of emergency response to which we have become accustomed.

The wage and benefit packages for the paid staff have increased, having now reached approximately 1.9 million dollars.

Their staff has increase from three to now fourteen in 10 years, with almost twice the total entire operation budget in ten years.

I want the Hospital Board commissioners to go back and assess the expenditures and ask for funding that shows fiscal responsibility. They have time to do this.

The San Juan Hospital Board has an obligation to act in the best interest of those who voted them into office. Vote “No” on the EMS Levy.

Leslie Brennan/San Juan Island