The D21 school board will consider a resolution in July to back Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue in seeking a more equitable distribution of payments from Google to local tax entities.
MCF&R Chief Bob Palmer told the North Wasco County School District 21 board June 14 that other entities had already signed on to the concept.
MCFR board member David Jacobs told the school board that “the voice of the many hopefully will be heard at this point.”
Entities on board so far include Wasco County 4-H, The Dalles-Wasco County Library District, and the Wasco County Soil & Water Conservation District. Columbia Gorge Community College will discuss the proposal July 10, Palmer said.
Google has built three data centers in The Dalles. They are in an enterprise zone, which allows a near-complete tax break – it is taxed on the land only, not buildings -- in hopes of drawing development and jobs. The sponsors of the enterprise zone are the city of The Dalles and Wasco County. As sponsors, all Google payments go to them.
The city and county have distributed some of the money on to other tax entities, earmarked for specific projects, but have also kept money for themselves, which they are able to use at their discretion, Palmer said.
The fire district asked the two sponsors once before to change the distribution formula, but were denied. Jacobs said the only tool available is “public opinion.”
He said, “The city and county, they have total control of that money.” They can use the money in their general fund “to pay for lightbulbs and anything else they need. We’re not afforded the same luxury and we don’t think that’s fair.”
School board member Ernie Blatz said, “That’s not the city and county’s job to tell the fire district or school district how to spend their money.”
The school district has gotten Google payments to help with curb appeal projects like painting Chenowith Elementary School. It also gets discretionary money, but has to tell the city council how it plans to spend it, get city approval, and then go back and describe how it was spent.
Palmer emphasized the fire district is not opposed to the enterprise zone, which has brought in needed development.
Google payments have helped the fire district establish a second manned fire station – station 2 in Columbia View Heights – and built a training tower. “We have certainly benefitted,” Palmer said. “But what we lack is staffing.”
He said the fire district has the same number of firefighters as “when I got here in 1980.” In fact, it’s been the same for 38 years. He said Google is bringing in growth, “but we’re not growing with it.”
Jacobs said they’ve asked the city and county for money for staffing, and got no response.
The Dalles Mayor Steve Lawrence said of the school district and fire district, “I honestly don’t understand either of their positions since both received, as far as I can tell, more than they would have received by pro-rate distribution.”
The school district is the single largest beneficiary of local taxes, getting 31 percent of every dollar. If the school district were to just get its proportionate amount of money from Google payments, it would equal $682,000 a year, Jacobs said.
D21 Chief Financial Officer Randy Anderson said numbers from the state showed that if Google was on the tax rolls, it would have generated $10 million in property taxes last year.
Dan Spatz, manager of marketing and community outreach at the college, told the school board that the college shares concerns about the distribution of Google payments. “We’ve had money allocated to us and then withdrawn, so that left us with bad feelings.”
Palmer said each Google project includes an up-front payment, followed by annual payments. He said the up-front payments could be pooled to apply toward a single pressing community need, while the annual payments should be distributed to taxing entities just like regular property taxes would be.
“What we are concerned about is kind of competing against each other for funds,” Palmer said, noting that all taxing entities have needs.
School board Chair Kathy Ursprung asked if there was a way to compel a change in the Google payment distribution formula. She recounted that the fire district asked before and “was turned down flat.”
Palmer said, “We were just the Lone Ranger on that one.” He said, “I think everybody was concerned, ‘If we say something, we’re not going to get anything.’”
Palmer said there are no rules governing how the money is to be distributed, or requiring the sponsors to listen to other taxing districts.
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