SPEAK OUT: Tax Relief And Our Fire Deptartment

Our current fire department system is akin to hailing a stretch limo when all you need is a local bus, purchasing a mansion when all you need is a 2 bedroom Apartment, or buying the most expensive SUV when all you need to get the job done is a Smart car - we cannot afford this type of "raise taxes to cover the spending."

Instead, our elected officials must begin to approach spending more closely aligned with the need. We do not have the fires in Springfield that justify the waste that is occurring today.

Part-time paid addresses that issue without any safety related delays or insurance increases. Our town is so slow Fire wise that we could effectively have Union, Kenilworth and Summit absorb us from their respective sides and each time they have to respond, we pay them a fee - even if the cost was 1K per day for response it would be 2.5+ MILLION less than what we pay today for crews to mostly sit around working maybe 2-4 hrs per their 24 hr shift.

That is not including the cost of overtime, medical benefits, longevity and paid time off. People of Springfield, talk to your neighbors and ask of our TC members to streamline how our town is utilizing it's resources in a way that is fiscally responsible.

That is not what is occurring today and we all are feeling the pinch of stupid spending in our town and in NJ.