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New fire fee plan may alarm, relieve
By SAUNDRA AMRHEIN, Times Staff Writer DADE CITY -- Pasco County inched closer to changing the way it charges for fire service on Wednesday, giving initial approval to a plan that would hit the owners of low-valued homes harder than those with expensive ones. Proponents say the change spreads the cost of fire protection more fairly. The proposal also leaves the door open for lifting assessment exemptions from churches, schools and other nonprofit groups, which could face new annual payments, depending on building size, from $149 to $7,474 for fire protection. The commission voted 3-2 to advertise and pursue the option that would split charges for fire services in unincorporated areas down the middle between property taxes and a flat $40 assessment. Commissioners Pat Mulieri and Steve Simon voted against it. Simon said the 50-50 split -- in contrast to other ideas that relied more on property taxes and less on a flat assessment -- would place a heavy burden on residents who own less valuable property. "Let's make that (burden) as small as we possibly can," Simon said. The decision allows the county to advertise examples of charges ahead of a public hearing to give residents a sense of the pending changes. A public hearing will be held at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 5 at the West Pasco Government Center. A final decision on the fire rates won't be made until budget hearings in September. Assistant County Administrator Dan Johnson says the new scheme is a way for everyone to pitch in for fire services. Currently in unincorporated areas, owners of property with a low taxable value contribute little toward fire protection because their taxes are so low, he said. In some cases, the $40 flat assessment alone is more than what they pay in fire taxes. "By having a per parcel assessment, everyone pays some basic level of service," Johnson said. Right now, property owners in districts covered by the county's fire crews -- outside incorporated cities or one of the four remaining volunteer departments -- pay for fire service through a special tax calculated by assessed property values. Those in volunteer districts pay requested contributions to their fire companies -- $25 a year in Magnolia Valley and $40 a year in Land O'Lakes. The county wants to replace the four remaining volunteer departments -- Magnolia Valley, Land O'Lakes, Tri-Community and Traveler's Rest -- and establish the county as the primary provider. Residents in the Magnolia Valley and Land O'Lakes volunteer districts would then have to contribute the $40 flat fee plus an assessed property tax, like other residents in the unincorporated areas. Regardless of whether the county approves the flat fee, the move to extend service would force the county to increase the special tax paid by everyone in the unincorporated area. That rate could rise from $1.54 of $1,000 assessed taxable value to $1.93 -- a 25 percent boost. The owner of a $125,000 house with a $25,000 homestead exemption would see fire taxes go up from $154 a year to $193. The tax increase would pay for initial costs for fire trucks and equipment and other capital expenses totaling $3.7-million, Johnson said. The tax would likely drop again, he said, in the following two years as the county finances the remaining $2.8-million in capital needs. The county on Wednesday also left open the option to assess traditionally tax-exempt entities such as schools, nonprofit groups and churches. "I'm sorry, but we respond to each one of those facilities," Commissioner Peter Altman said. -- Saundra Amrhein covers Pasco County government. She can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6244, or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6244. Her e-mail address is
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From today's Pasco Times |
