Voting begins this week for registered voters in Kingfisher to decide the fate of a sales tax extension to fund a new fire department.

The election to extend a one-half cent sales tax for an additional 10 years will be held Tuesday, Jan. 14.

However, early voting begins Thursday, Jan. 9, and runs for two days.

Voters can cast their ballot from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Kingfisher County Fairgrounds MACenter.

Kingfisher County Election Board Secretary Shawna Butts said early voting is open to all voters.

“You do not need to provide an excuse to vote early. Oklahoma allows early voting for all elections conducted by the County Election Board or State Election Board – from school board and municipal elections to state and federal elections,” Butts said.

“This is a great option for those who will be out of town on election day or who want to avoid long lines.”

The Kingfisher City Commission called for the special election during its November meeting.

That came after multiple discussions at meetings by city officials as well as a community forum in which the public was invited to provide input on solutions to help a shortfall in funding the construction of a new fire department.

Voters in May 2021 passed the original FIRE (fire, infrastructure, recre-ation, emergency services) tax that was projected to bring in just over $8 million over 10 years.

The facility is set to replace the aging structure the KFD has used for 50 years and has outgrown. The city purchased the land for the new fire department’s location at 1501 S. Main St. using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

However, construction costs began to skyrocket in the post-COVID world and according to the facility’s architect Ray Holliday of BRW Architects, Inc., “they haven’t come back down.”

It’s now projected the 16,500 square foot facility will cost about $12.2 million – a number that includes the building, architect’s fees and interest – which caused city leaders to seek input on resolutions to close the funding gap.

Commissioners, City Manager Jim Thomas and fire department members hosted the community discussion in October and floated the idea of extending the sales tax for an additional 10 years once the current tax expires. That meeting was also attended by Holliday, who went over the details of the proposed new facility and explained several different options that were considered.

Thomas said he felt those in attendance understood that the new facility was not extravagant and that it would meet the needs of the city for the next 50 years.

Currently the tax on purchases in Kingfisher is 9.25 cents.

The city gets 3.5 cents of that, of which 2 cents goes into the city’s accounts, 1 cent toward the hospital and then the half-cent for the fire, infrastructure, recreation, emergency services.

If citizens vote to extend the FIRE tax, sales tax in the city would remain at 9.25 cents.

The current tax runs through 2031, meaning an extension would push the half-cent sales tax to 2041.

As was the intent with the original sales tax, any tax collected beyond the cost of the fire department will go toward other city improvements.

Butts reminds voters that early voting is not available at polling locations.

Some voters may need assistance to vote because they are blind or visually disabled, physically disabled or infirmed or illiterate.

Such individuals may request to have an assistant or vote privately and independently using the ATI device attached to the voting device.

Those who require assistance should talk to their precinct official or contact the County Election Board directly for instructions.

For questions, contact the Election Board at 405375.3895 or Kingfishercounty@ elections.ok.gov.