I really have mixed feelings about this one.

My knee-jerk reaction is the same as Friday and Hitman.

Then there's the tax angle, these folks enjoy low taxes and have voted to keep them low, thus there is no government organized fire department. If people figure out that the fire department will put out fires even if they don't pay then the department's revenues will drop towards zero. Maybe the FD could put out the fire on a non-subscriber and then place a lien on the property for the bill.

Most of us dislike taxes and overpaid public employees, but at least they won't pull this kind of BS. Personally, I'd just as soon pay the taxes rather than have this happen in my town. There are no winners in a story like this.

North of Fort Collins, there's the Rist Canyon VFD which covers a large area of foothills and enjoys strong support from those who live in the area. They have an annual fundraiser and a solid force of volunteer firefighters. No subscription fee required. If a fire breaks out, they color code your driveway with tape so that fire teams bypass properties that have not cleared a "defense space" around the structures. Those properties that have good D-space will have a volunteer with radio on-site if/when a fire is nearby. It seems like a good setup and they are doing well with limited resources.