I was driving home from a meeting that I was invited to attend at a local volunteer fire department. The topic was approaching the municipalities that they provide services to for the placement of a fire tax in those municipalities.

This is not the first time the fire department has been there, but they always get the same response: We need to review this again. The fire department was asking for 2 to 3 mills to be placed on the property value. In this case it would amount to an average of $20 per property for the year. Not per person.

One of the supervisors even suggested the fire department needed to work harder and have more fundraisers to raise money to purchase emergency equipment. At a time when membership is down and prices are higher than ever, it’s hard for me to believe that is the answer.

And that’s when it hit me. Gov. Tom Wolf has proposed a tax be imposed on each person to support the use of the state police, with each municipality to collect the tax.

Each municipality is charged with providing for the safety and well-being of their residents. They were told providing fire protection also came under safety and well-being of the residents, but they needed to review it again.

Why not propose that each municipality have a fundraiser instead of a tax to raise funds for the police protection?

The elected officials, their wives and children could work at it also. Just like the fire service.

What a great chance for them to meet the residents and get their feel on issues. Just imagine, there they are, serving the residents a plate of spaghetti. What a great time to ask for their vote at the next election.

All money raised at the municipal fundraiser would be sent to the state to help pay for the state police service.

And just like the fire service, even if all the residents don’t go to the fundraiser, they still get the protection paid for by some but not all.

See you at the next Municipal Fundraiser, dinner, hoagie sale, raffle, gun bash.