The department is the newest ambulance service provider in Webster County, but it was not yet functioning in that role when voters in March approved the levy. On Wednesday evening, several members of the Webster County Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council cited that fact when they declined a request for $75,000 from Otho.

Council members decided to press ahead with the plan presented to voters, which divides most of the revenue between the three ambulance service providers that were in operation at the time the county Board of Supervisors called for the special election. Those three services are the Fort Dodge Fire Department, Dayton Rescue Squad and Southwest Webster Emergency Medical Service in Gowrie.

“I cannot in good faith change what the voters voted on,” Webster County Supervisor Niki Conrad said as the council debated the request Wednesday.

Following the meeting, Otho Fire Chief Marty Smith said the department will continue providing ambulance service.

“We anticipate continuing service to our community,” he said.

He said the department is “pretty well self-sufficient” without the essential service revenue.

On March 4, Webster County voters approved a new property tax levy of 75 cents per $1,000 of taxable value to pay for emergency medical care as an essential service. That tax is estimated to generate $1.6 million annually.

About $850,000 has been collected so far, according to Krystal Lloyd, the county’s budget and finance director.

The proposal placed before the voters called for dividing the bulk of that money, about $1.4 million, between Fort Dodge, Gowrie and Dayton. Fort Dodge was to get 76 percent, Gowrie was to get 14 percent and Dayton was to get 10 percent.

Otho began operating an ambulance service in February.

Smith has been asking the council for months to include Otho in the funding. Last month, the council asked him to submit a proposal.

The Otho funding request has been the subject of two long and at times testy council meetings.

On Wednesday, council members pored over reports from different sources that seemed to show differing figures on how many ambulance responses Otho has made this year.

There was also debate over how many of those calls require the paramedic level ambulance service of the Fort Dodge Fire Department and how many could be handled by the basic life support ambulance service of the Otho Fire Department.

Council members also expressed concern about whether Otho would be able to continue providing ambulance service for the long term future.

Conrad said it appears that Dylan Hagen, the county’s emergency management coordinator who is also the assistant fire chief in Otho, is the primary emergency medical technician responding to the ambulance calls.

“Most of the calls are being answered by Dylan,” she said. “My understanding is that he is camped out at the Otho fire station. Can we keep this up if Dylan isn’t the primary one answering calls?”

Smith said seven new people have joined the department since January. He said three of them are EMTs. He said two of the current firefighters are in EMT classes

After more than an hour of discussion, the council moved to make a decision.

Initially, none of the council members would make any kind of motion to be voted on. After a minute or two of silence, Fort Dodge City Councilman Cameron Nelson moved to approve funding for Otho. No one seconded his motion, so there was no vote.

Typically, motions that come before a governing body but are not seconded result in the issue being ineligible for action. Those issues are considered dead.

Conrad said she will consult Webster County Attorney Darren Driscoll for advice on the council’s next step.