Severe staffing cuts are in store for both Sumter County fire departments after commissioners Tuesday night rejected substantial increases proposed for fire assessment fees.
A 3-2 vote to reject the fee increases came after a parade of speakers from an overflow crowd opposed them during a five-hour public hearing.
With public hearings on the 2023-24 budget next month, commissioners are expected to consider a $1 increase in fire assessment fees at a Sept. 19 public hearing. That is the maximum increase allowed without increasing the fee cap. The next fiscal year starts Oct. 1.
Sumter County Fire Chief Rob Hanson said rejecting the proposed fee increase will cause a $12.2-million shortfall in his $24.2-million budget.
Hanson said he will need to lay off 30 firefighters and scratch plans to hire 27 more employees in next year’s budget. He will disband the hazardous materials team.
Chief Brian Twiss of The Villages Public Safety Department said he will lose 57 new positions planned in next year’s $34.5-million budget, which would be cut by $14 million. He will close or reduce staff at three fire stations.
Both chiefs said emergency medical services, including advanced life support, will not be affected by the cuts. They said response times could suffer.
The proposed fee hikes would have boosted the annual fire fees to $323.24 for homeowners from the current rate of $124, a 161 percent increase.
Instead of paying the same per-parcel rate like homeowners, commercial property owners would have been assessed at 53.9 cents per square foot. Proposed per square foot rates were 40.5 cents for institutional property and 34.4 cents for industrial property.
The proposed fee hikes were based on a June 30 study by Benesch of Tampa which calculated the rates based on the proportion of fire and ambulance costs for each property type.
Commissioner Don Wiley, who made the motion to reject the fee hikes, said he was concerned about their potential impact on businesses as well as residents.
“We’ve painted ourselves into a corner and it’s going to be a difficult situation,” said Commissioner Roberta Ulrich, who joined Wiley and Commissioner Andrew Bilardello in opposing the fee hikes.
Bilardello said he would go along with the will of people at the meeting.
County Chairman Craig Estep, who supported the increases, said the safety of county residents is his top priority.
“We implemented a very expensive program and now is the time to pay for it,” he said. “I think we have two of the best fire departments in the world.”
Commissioner Jeffrey Bogue, an emergency medical services administrator who voted with Estep, said he did not want to see firefighters laid off, but that he has “never been more conflicted about a decision.”
The vote came after a lengthy public hearing where campground owners said they faced huge increases under the proposed fees.
Campground owners said they would be assessed by the square foot even though their parks are populated by snow birds who leave during the summer.
Rebecca Morrison of Bushnell, owner of two RV parks, said her annual assessment would be $490,000 under the proposed rates.
“I’m getting charged for dirt,” said John Reed of Lake Panasoffkee RV Village, adding that his annual fire fees would be $43,000. “I didn’t know dirt could catch fire.”
Gail Lazenby, a former captain with The Villages Public Safety Department, said the problem is that the county refused to raise fire assessment fees for 16 years, despite a 2007 study that recommended increases.
Terry Yoder of Lake Panasoffkee said the proposed fee increases would be difficult to manage for low-income people.
“You’ve got people living in RV’s with four kids,” he said.
Retired economist Salvatore Lazario of The Villages said a fairer system would be to assess fire fees based on property values instead of everybody paying the same rate.
“You’re pricing everybody out of this county by doing this tax,” said Steve Munz.
Fire impact fees paid by developers could offer an alternative source of revenue, said Dan Warren of the Village of Gilchrist.
County Administrator Bradley Arnold said fire impact fees may be used to raise money for a new fire station west of U.S. 301. He said they also were used to build fire stations in The Villages between County Road 466 and State Road 44.