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Posts for Fire Protection

November 2025 Ballot Measures: Counties and Special Purpose Districts

December 17, 2025  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  County Officials ,  Port Districts ,  Fire Protection ,  Parks and Recreation Districts ,  Ballot Measures ,  Special Districts ,  Property Taxes ,  Sales and Use Taxes

Levy lid lifts, bond measures, sales taxes, charter amendments, and a ban on cannabis sales and production:These and more were proposed county and/or special purpose district ballot measures voters tackled in the November 2025 general election. 

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Recapping the August 2025 Local Ballot Measures

September 10, 2025  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Emergency Medical Services ,  Fire Protection ,  Parks and Recreation Districts ,  Transportation Finance ,  Law Enforcement ,  Ballot Measures ,  Property Taxes ,  Natural Resources

Library levies, fire district measures, and sales taxes for law enforcement or 911 programs fared well; other local ballot measure results were mixed.

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Strengthening Urban Resilience to Wildfire at the Local Level

April 21, 2025  by  Alicia Bones
Category:  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection

While many rural parts of Washington State have traditionally faced high risk of wildfire, urban areas, especially those near the wildland-urban interface, are also at risk. Urban areas can take proactive steps, such as adopting wildfire-related codes, to mitigate this risk. 

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The Basics of Fire Benefit Charges

January 8, 2025  by  Eric Lowell
Category:  Fire Protection ,  Property Taxes

Fire benefit charges allow fire protection districts and regional fire authorities to impose fees for providing fire protection services to local residences and businesses, but ultimate approval of such fees depends on local voters, and the process can be complicated.

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How Did Local Ballot Measures Fare in the November 2024 General Election?

December 9, 2024  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Parks, Recreation, and Culture ,  Transportation ,  Emergency Medical Services ,  Fire Protection ,  Revenues ,  Minimum Wage ,  Law Enforcement ,  Ballot Measures ,  Special Districts

Tax-related initiatives struggled to gain voter approval in the 2024 November general election, and it was a mixed bag for other local ballot measures across the state. 

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Sunset with Port of Everett in background

Recapping the August 2024 Local Ballot Measure Results

September 4, 2024  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Parks, Recreation, and Culture ,  Transportation ,  Port Districts ,  Emergency Medical Services ,  Fire Protection ,  Law Enforcement ,  Ballot Measures

Local governments placed 90 ballot measures in the August primary election, including many levy lid lift proposals, various public safety taxes, fire benefit charges, a citywide cannabis sales ban, and proposed service expansions.

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Team works together to collect data and make a wildfire plan

Is Your Community Ready for a Wildfire?

June 17, 2024  by  Guy Gifford
Category:  Guest Author ,  Climate and Sustainability ,  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection

Which neighborhoods are most at risk for wildfire in your community? What are the priority actions your local government should take and where should these be concentrated? Developing a community wildfire protection plan can help an agency answer these questions.

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Two people ride bikes through a park

Recapping the November 2023 Local Ballot Measure Results

December 13, 2023  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Courts and Criminal Justice System ,  Parks and Recreation Finance ,  Housing ,  Emergency Medical Services ,  Fire Protection ,  Homelessness ,  Law Enforcement ,  Ballot Measures

There were a 113 ballot measures before voters this past November, in an off-year election that drew record-low voter turnouts. How did that impact levy lid lifts requests, newly proposed districts, or citizen's initiatives? 

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Wildfire under an electrical transmission line in a forested area

State-Based Efforts, Legislation Boost Local Risk Reduction, Resiliency to Wildfires

August 8, 2023  by  Leah LaCivita
Category:  Environmental Laws and Regulations ,  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection ,  Utilities ,  New Legislation and Regulations

With wildfire season underway, local governments should be aware of bills passed during the 2023 Regular Legislative Session addressing wildfire events and proposed permanent rules to protect outdoor workers from wildfire smoke.

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A voter putting their ballot into a mailbox

Recapping the February and April 2023 Ballot Measure Results

May 15, 2023  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Fire Protection ,  Health and Human Services ,  Ballot Measures

Regional fire authorities, fire district mergers, hospital funding, and a regional crisis care center network were some of the local ballot measures that appeared before voters in the February and April special elections.

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Fire Season Brings Renewal of Certain Worker Protections, More Action, and Funding

July 6, 2022  by  Leah LaCivita
Category:  Administration ,  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection

Temporary rules are in place to protect outdoor workers from excessive heat or hazardous air quality. Meanwhile, some local governments are adopting provisions of the International Wildland Urban Interface Code, and state and federal governments are boosting firefighting efforts.

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Emergency Rule Protects Outdoor Workers from Wildfire Smoke

August 5, 2021  by  Leah LaCivita
Category:  Fire Protection ,  Operating Policies ,  New Legislation and Regulations

This blog provides an overview of a new rule meant to protect workers from the harms of excessive exposure to wildfire smoke. 

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Historic Bill Focuses on Wildfire Prevention, Forest Reclamation

June 17, 2021  by  Leah LaCivita
Category:  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection ,  New Legislation and Regulations ,  Natural Resources

This blog looks at 2SHB 1168, which will increase spending on wildland fire prevention and response activities by $125 million over the next two years and up to $328 million by 2027.

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Ballot Measure Results from the 2020 General Election

November 12, 2020  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Parks and Recreation Finance ,  Fire Protection ,  Transportation Finance ,  Forms of Government-County ,  Law Enforcement ,  Ballot Measures

This blog post recaps some of the local ballot measure results from the November 2020 general election and discusses why the record-breaking turnout may make ballot measure validation tougher next year.

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Ballot Measure Results from the 2019 Primary Election

August 13, 2019  by  Steve Hawley
Category:  Emergency Medical Services ,  Fire Protection ,  Ballot Measures ,  Sales and Use Taxes

Senior Communications Coordinator Steve Hawley reviews some ballot measure results from the recent primary election in this blog post. 

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Regulating Sky Lanterns

May 6, 2019  by  Davis Abbott
Category:  Guest Author ,  Fire Protection

This blog post explores how sky lanterns—or mini air balloons—are regulated in Washington State.

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Firefighting in the Wildland Inter-Urban Interface

May 2, 2019  by  Leah LaCivita
Category:  Emergency Management ,  Fire Protection

This blog post looks at the most challenging type of firefighting—where wild lands meet human development—and how some Washington local governments are attempting to mitigate risk in these areas.

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