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Whatcom County · Fund #1240 · Special Revenue

Whatcom Countywide Emergency Medical Services Fund

Whatcom County's Countywide Emergency Medical Services Fund (Fund 1240, formerly Fund 130) accounts for revenues and expenditures of the county-administered EMS system, primarily Advanced Life Support (ALS). Three ...

Active Special Revenue Whatcom County
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About this fund

Whatcom County's Countywide Emergency Medical Services Fund (Fund 1240, formerly Fund 130) accounts for revenues and expenditures of the county-administered EMS system, primarily Advanced Life Support (ALS).

Three revenue streams flow into this fund:

  • 22 cents per $1,000 EMS property-tax levy (2024 rate) under RCW 84.52.069 — shows up as "EMS District Whatcom County" on tax bills
  • 0.10% additional voter-approved County/City sales tax under RCW 82.14.450 (the older 0.10%, distinct from the 2023 Justice Project 0.20%); 2/3 to EMS, 1/3 to criminal-justice purposes split 60% county / 40% cities by population
  • User fees, Medicaid reimbursements, miscellaneous revenue

The County transfers $1.5M/yr from the criminal-justice portion of the fund to the General Fund to support Sheriff and Prosecuting Attorney operations.

Authorization

The legal basis for the fund.

RCW citation: RCW 84.52.069 (EMS property tax); RCW 82.14.450 (older 0.10% sales tax)

Multi-year balance ledger

Year-by-year revenue, spending, and ending balance from the city's budget and CAFRs.
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Where the money goes

Top spending categories from documented budget line items.
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Revenue mix

Every documented inflow into this fund. By default the mix uses each source's most recent year (which means percentages mix years). Pick a single year to see strictly comparable percentages.
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Discussed in meetings

Real Briefings that mention this fund.
Apr 29, 2026
Ferndale's City Council committees convened for their regular Wednesday meeting cycle, addressing a mix of routine infrastructure maintenance, forward-looking comprehensive planning, and emerging public safety concerns. ...
Apr 27, 2026
The April 27 Bellingham City Council meeting was dominated by a comprehensive State of the Court presentation revealing dramatic increases in municipal court caseloads and the strains this growth is placing on judicial ...
Apr 27, 2026
The Public Health, Safety, Justice and Equity Committee approved an ordinance establishing $1,000 penalties for licensed care facilities that misuse the 911 dispatch system for non-emergency lift assistance. The ...
Apr 20, 2026
The Lynden City Council's April 20, 2026 meeting focused primarily on infrastructure investments and routine administrative items. The centerpiece was approval of a substantial engineering contract with Reichhardt & ...
Apr 14, 2026
The Whatcom County Council's Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee held a packed session focused primarily on two major items: amendments to the EMS Oversight Board structure and a comprehensive presentation on ...
Apr 14, 2026
The Whatcom County Council Finance and Administrative Services Committee meeting on April 14, 2026, began as a routine consent agenda session but erupted into a heated confrontation over legal authority regarding a ...
Apr 13, 2026
The Bellingham City Council's Committee of the Whole addressed several governance and organizational improvements on April 13, 2026, including receiving a comprehensive report on the 2026 state legislative session and ...
Apr 06, 2026
The Lynden City Council's April 6, 2026 meeting featured a ceremonial oath of office for three police personnel and consideration of two significant infrastructure and finance items. Police Corporals Luke Buitenbos and ...
Apr 01, 2026
The Ferndale City Council held its regular committee meetings on April 1, 2026, covering three key areas of city business. The Public Works & Utilities Committee unanimously approved a $183,821 contract supplement ...
Mar 24, 2026
Whatcom County Council held a contentious 3-hour meeting centered on a proposed 0.1% sales tax for criminal justice purposes, with the evening dominated by extensive public testimony and heated council debate over ...

Methodology note

Real Record tracks Fund 1240 as the Whatcom Countywide EMS Fund. The two RCW 82.14.450 increments (0.10% older + 0.20% Justice Project) are tracked as separate revenue_sources because the distribution and purpose differ.

Sources: Whatcom County adopted budgets and Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFRs); Chart of Accounts; Real Briefings meeting coverage. Real Record renders the published fund data in plain language; we don't change the numbers. Where the source publishes a different classification than ours, both are shown.