KUNA, Idaho — The Kuna Fire District Board of Commissioners voted 4-1 on Wednesday to move forward with a merger with Nampa Fire, creating a new agency called the Treasure Valley Fire District.
Officials from both departments have said that the merger will allow the agencies to share staffing, equipment, facilities and administrative resources while serving residents in both communities.
Wednesday's meeting drew a crowd of Kuna neighbors who testified in front of the board. The majority spoke in support of the proposal citing things like better staffing, better response times and future cost savings of merging the two departments. Others spoke in opposition saying the process is moving too fast and they'd like the people of Kuna to vote on it instead of the board along with concerns over representation on the new board and the tax impact.
Kuna neighbors will see an increase of about $20 per $100,000 of taxable assessed value under the merger, while Nampa neighbors will see a small decrease in their taxes.
Nampa Fire's Board of Commissioners approved moving forward with the consolidation proposal in June.
READ MORE | Nampa Fire signs off on next step toward merging with Kuna Fire
A third-party study commissioned by the departments previously found the consolidation could make roughly $700,000 available through operational savings.
With approval from both boards now secured, the merger will move forward under the newly formed Treasure Valley Fire District. Idaho News 6 will continue to follow the transition and provide updates as additional details become available.
RELATED | Kuna & Nampa Fire host town hall series on proposed merger into one agency
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