I guess now we know why Sumter County did not release estimated county fees for fire assessment during the referendum. I know people were worried about The Villages fees and the taxes for the Villages Fire Department but at least the Villages Fire Management was open as to what their fees and taxes would be. I am sure the fees would have been much higher for the rest of Sumter had the referendum passed. The Villages Fire district would have had the majority of the homes and the highest residential tax assessments in the county. The county wanted to spread these dollars over the whole county. Protection is very concentrated so cost are probably less per home in the Villages. The rest of the county is very much rural and very spread out which results in higher cost for the same protection! Hopefully this is a lesson learned! Again, than you to the Villages Fire Department for being UPFRONT on the cost of the department! By the way, this does not mentioned any increase in the county budget for fire protection which are paid with general county taxes.
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