Riverhead Town considers shortening wait for volunteer firefighter, EMS tax break

Riverhead Town residents who serve as volunteer firefighters and EMS personnel will earn a 10% real property tax reduction after two years of service rather than the current five-year minimum, if a proposed code amendment is adopted by the Town Board. 

The property tax reduction, which is authorized by state law, is an incentive intended to help the town’s volunteer fire and EMS departments recruit and retain members.

Council Member Ken Rothwell invited local fire service leaders to the Jan. 8 Town Board work session to talk through the proposal and discuss what departments are seeing on the ground as they try to attract and keep volunteers.  

Noting the savings the town realizes from volunteer services, Rothewell said, “if we ever had to pay departments, the cost would be astronomical.” The community “desperately” relies on the volunteers for these services, Rothwell said.  “The men and women put their lives in jeopardy all the time. And so this is just a way to say thank you as well,” he said. 

Council Member Denise Merrifield questioned the practical and fiscal details behind the pitch, asking about what departments invest in training and how long it typically takes before a new member becomes operational. She also raised concerns about preventing people from qualifying for the benefit and then leaving while retaining the benefit.

Fire officials described the training pipeline as extensive, including a college-level course and additional training for probationary members.   

Rothwell, a longtime volunteer firefighter, said the amount of training volunteers must complete in the first two years alone demonstrates a strong commitment. “I think our younger generation that’s coming in [are] the ones that are starting out and just getting married and purchasing a house,” he said. “Why make them wait five years before they can get any type of benefit? So let’s help, let’s help the younger generation as soon as we can,” he said.

“I just want to make sure that we have it in it in the law, that they’re going to be working on Riverhead fires, Wading River fires, all the town of Riverhead fires,” Merrifield said. “I just want to make sure that it’s clear that if you get this tax exemption, that you’re not going to be working for Islip Fire Department.”

The state law allows the exemption if a volunteer serves in a “neighboring town,” Assessor Laverne Tennenberg told the board.

Wading River Fire District Commissioner Greg Meyer said that provision comes into play in his district, which straddles two towns: Riverhead and Brookhaven. There are Wading River volunteers who live in Brookhaven, he said.

Tennenberg said that fire districts submit eligibility lists to her office referencing service-duration categories for members who have not reached lifetime status, which is attained by those who serve at least 20 years. A volunteer must qualify by March 1, the taxable status date, to be eligible for the exemption in the coming tax year, which begins Dec.1, Tenneberg said. The volunteer must file the application with the assessor’s office before March 1, so the local law must be in effect by then, she said.

Rothwell said the code change must be made by local law and would require a public hearing. The Town Board could schedule the public hearing at its next meeting Feb. 3 and adopt the change at the following meeting. He asked the town attorney to weigh in on the feasibility of getting that done.

Town Attorney Erik Howard said the amendment would be  “a pretty straightforward amendment” to the section of the code that lists the available exemptions and he saw no reason why it couldn’t be in place before the March 1 deadline.

Riverhead Fire Chief Piotr Kurzyna said the change will make recruitment easier and new members will ease the burden of existing members. “Our guys have been working extremely hard this year,” he said. “We had 11 structure fires,” Kurzyna said, the second-highest number in Suffolk County.

The change in the exemption is a local option, Tennenberg noted. It will not affect school district property taxes. The school district’s trustees would have to approve an exemption change for it to apply to school district taxes.

“That’s their choice,” Supervisor Jerry Halpin said.  “We love you guys, and so we think it’s great. And you know, it’s fantastic, right?” No board member voiced any objection to moving forward on the proposal.