FEARS have been expressed that Hampshire residents will again be forced to pick up the bill when the fire service becomes a precepting authority - which could be as early as next year.
Council tax payers could be hit the in the pocket for the second year in a row unless the government helps with extra cash to help with the changes to the way in which the fire service is funded, the chief fire officer and treasurer have warned.
Anger has already been expressed at the low level of government funding for local services this year which has resulted in warning that the overall council tax bill will increase by around 15 per cent.
But plans are being put in place which will give all fire services the power to raise their own funds through the council tax precept.
At present the service puts together a budget which Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council and Southampton City Council finance.
However new legislation will separate the fire service from the councils in the same way that Hampshire Constabulary is separated with the possibility of precepting beginning as soon as April 2004.
On Wednesday a report from the chief fire officer and treasurer warned that without government funding to aid the transition it would be costly to tax payers.
ÒGiven the particularly poor RSG settlements for the constituent authorities for 2003/04 and the likely severe impact on Hampshire residents, it is particularly worrying that with the new arrangements the authority is likely to impact on Hampshire council tax payers from 2004/05.Ó
In theory the introduction of an extra precepting authority should have little impact on the overall council tax figure as the finances are simply being transferred from one authority to another.
But the fear is that Hampshire Council Council will swallow up the gap left by the fire service funding to help pay for other vital services such as social services and education, meaning that tax payers will see no reduction in the share of council tax paid to the county council.
And without government help the fire service fears its share will be a greater burden to residents.
The report said: ÒTo illustrate the potential impact if this authority were to set its own council tax at the 2003/04 base budget level of £51.2 million, with the current levels of grant attributed to fire, then this would lead to a council tax of £42 per year for a band D property.