Kenai Peninsula mayor proposes raising volunteer fire and EMS tax exemption to $50,000

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche has proposed raising the property tax exemption for volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders to the first $50,000 of a home's assessed value, up from $10,000. The proposal would also limit it to one exemption per property, down from two.

That means a household with two volunteers would lose one exemption. The remaining one would cover $50,000 of value, compared with up to $20,000 for two now.

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly is scheduled to introduce the measure Oct. 20 and hold a public hearing Dec. 1.

At the borough's 3.85-mill base rate, a $50,000 exemption would cut a volunteer's borough tax by $192.50 a year, up from $38.50 now, before service area and city taxes apply. To qualify, a volunteer must be current and active with a state-recognized first responder service, registered fire department or certified ambulance service in the borough.

The change follows House Bill 13, which removed a $10,000 state cap on the exemption and let municipalities set their own amount. It took effect Sept. 20. The Senate State Affairs Committee wrote that removing the cap "gives our hard working, dedicated volunteers a well-deserved exemption."

The borough had asked for the change. On Jan. 20, the assembly voted 9-0 for Assembly Member Dale Eicher's resolution saying the $10,000 limit provided "minimal incentive to serving as a volunteer firefighter or paramedic."

HB 13 allows up to two exemptions per property, as did the January resolution, and lets municipalities exempt volunteer hazardous materials responders. The ordinance sets the limit at one and does not add hazmat responders.

The ordinance would also end the borough's 8% interest on refunds of taxes paid in error, after HB 13 removed that requirement from state law.

It would tighten assessment appeals, too. Deputy Borough Attorney Walker Steinhage wrote that the first year under tax rules rewritten in 2025 showed several things to improve. Appeals would have to state the appellant's opinion of the property's value, incomplete forms would be rejected and evidence would be due 15 days before the first hearing. An appellant who fails to appear without good cause would be considered to have failed to meet the burden of proof. Under existing rules, that means the appeal is dismissed, the assessor's value stands and the filing fee is lost.