Santa Paula officials continue to explore joining the Ventura County Fire Department, a move that could cost significantly more for taxpayers in the long term. Under the proposed change, the city would disband the department, formed in 1903, and join the fire district. The district is paid through property taxes.
The district would take just under 80 percent of the city’s property taxes annually. In 2015-16, the county gave Santa Paula $3.6 million in property taxes. Had it been part of the district, the city would have received about $800,000 -- the other $2.8 million would have gone to fire. The city spent just under $2.4 million out of its general fund on fire that year.