Yes, the county residents wanted better ambulance service availability and wanted the service provided by the fire departments instead of the private contractor AMR. This has a cost, and this is what you are seeing.

The fire assessment hasn't gone up in over 10 years and it never covered the cost of the basic fire service, last year the $124/developed property covered just over 20% of the actual fire service costs, the rest came out of the general fund that is about 50% funded by property taxes. The new assessment covers the cost of fire protection service for both fire departments. The cost of transport services (ambulance service) that isn't covered by insurance/direct payment is covered in the general fund budget for both FDs.

Businesses will take a huge hit as commercial industrial and intuitional properties now pay by the square foot instead of the flat $124, and apartment complexes that used to pay $124/year for the entire complex now will pay $323.64/year for each dwelling unit/apartment.

If you live in The Villages, a significant part of this increase is also due to the No vote for the Independant Fire District. While there would have been an increase in cost due to the increase in services (ambulance availability) provided, Villages residents make up about 80% of the property values in Sumter County and likewise of the individual developed properties; the fire service budget for the VPSD is only slightly larger than the Sumter County FD, this means that the Villages residents are funding 100% of VPSD and over 50% of the Sumter FD cost. Had the IFD been approved this extra 50% would not have been paid by Villages residents. It's all simple math.

While it was inevitable that the total cost was going to go up due to the increased services, Village residents can thank the those few vocal misguided organizations and individuals that spread their misinformation and distrust so well for the additional cost being carried. This is two elections in a row that these groups have screwed things up for the residents, let's hope that they don't have the same success (?) in the next election cycle.

Don,

I really wish there was a good UNDERSTANDABLE explanation of the proposal prior to the vote. I was so confused by the wording of the proposal and then the following discussions that ii appears I made mistake. Your comments appear to be spot on.

What would the Villages do without Goldwingnut? Thank you, Don! Maybe when there is another election, you can explain it to us before the vote. You always do thorough research. Thanks again!

Got a fee notice today of over $330

I tried, but my hands were very tied because I would be voting on these issues in upcoming meetings so I was very limited on what could be said. I tried to get an official response to counter some of the misinformation that was being put out, but there appeared to be other agendas at play that didn't align with my thinking, and I was overruled. There was enough information available that an educated and approximate amounts could have been put forth by both parties if they had cooperated to provide a clear picture.

The ugly truth of the issue that went undiscussed was that had the IFD passed, all FD and transport costs would have had to be removed from the county budget (across the board property tax rate decrease) to prevent double taxation for the same services. A new tax structure would have had to be established for both FDs to cover their costs. This would have resulted in two similar sized budgets for the two FDs with 80% of the tax base paying for one and 20% paying for the other. The county residents would have seen a huge increase to cover both fire and transport service costs while Villages residents would have seen a per house decrease in fire protection cost plus a smaller increase in transport service costs. Again, it's just math, and math has no opinions, biases, or agendas, only facts.

The County residents would have been the most negatively impacted and had absolutely no say in making the decision.

Perhaps you should check again, the amount per developed residential property is $323.64, and it is the same for everyone in the county.

no law states that you can't post about voting in opinion form on this forum. Just saying....

The Florida Open Meeting laws (a.k.a. Sunshine Laws) apply to social media as well as other forms of communications. My comments could have been interpreted as back-channel communication with other commissioners. I cared not to go down the same avenue as my predecessor, just saying...

Let's all understand that what we got was not a bill or even technically a fee notice. We got a "Notice to Property Owners" supposedly required by Florida Statutes. It basically states that the county plan is to charge the Fire Protection Services equally to all county residences. What is wrong with that? They are even having a public hearing on August 22 for public comment. Note there is a Paragraph that states that exceeding this Notice cost "maximum " will require a notice

Costs are costs. The actual budget will be based upon costs of facilities, personnel, and services paid. If they took money from General fund before, and have now proposed separate fund, then we should expect a decrease in general fund.

Should be based upon total assets and services currently approved. If anything new is included, that should be identified.

Not even in opinion form? Oh wow! Strict rules. Thanks for your honest answer.

Please read post #41, there are new services being provided that must be paid for - ambulance transport services. All of this has been fully explained in public records and meeting records for the budget. This we addressed in great detail at a County Commission workshop meeting that was open to the public (recording is also available on county website). Multiple meetings/workshops have been held since the first of the year as we have worked through the budgeting process, these meetings have all been open to the public and open to public comment and input, sadly the most public attendance was 5 people with the normal being only 2 people from the general public at these meetings. Quite honestly, after 7 months of work on the county budget and priorities, the time for public outrage over what has been proposed is now long since passed.

If someone is upset over the proposed increase my questions to them are:
Which fire station shall we close to save money? The one near your house or the one near someone else's house?
What other services shall we cut?
and
Why didn't you attend the budget workshops and express your concerns then?

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but the County has to live in the real world with deadlines, real costs, and priorities for the entire county, the highest of which is public safety. In this case, the public has spoken and demanded a higher level of service, and these are the costs that must be paid. If the cost is too high, then something must be cut.

Yep, even now as I comment on the issues here, I must pick and choose my words very carefully so as to not violate the Sunshine laws.

Is there any chance that we’ll get the opportunity to vote for a IFD again, or was that one and done?

Yes, it can be voted on again, talk to your district supervisors and the district staff and let them know your desires.

Look at the Sumter Fire Assessment Report on the July 11 Workshop Agenda

They took money before and they are taking money now. This increase in the fee better represents the true cost of providing fire protection service but also makes it possible for the property tax rate to remain at the rollback rate (legally defined as no increase or decrease).

EDIT: I used 2023 numbers (current year) rather then 2024 numbers (upcoming year) which made the calculations very wrong. Below is a more accurate statement.

Had the fee not been increased then the $124 fee would still be far less than the true cost of service and the property tax rate would have increased by something like 20% to 25% (rough calculation based on the proposed budget).

Why was this statement NOT MADE in a commissioner meeting? In an open forum with all commissioners present, and in full compliance with communication laws.
Factual information that was never presented.

It describes two fully separate independent kingdoms. No tax money from one gets used for the other. I think that's what everyone wanted.

The issue was not a Sumter County issue. The Commissioners withheld comment to allow the Villages residents to come to their own decision.

Two separate departments with separate funding mechanisms is exactly what was presented... many times. Even the Sumter County proposed budget showed the separate funding for the out years.

The only thing that was not presented was how it would affect non-Villagers. However, that was not the concern of the IFD vote. The IFD vote was only to determine if Villagers wanted their own separate district. Facts were provided, statements were made questioning the honesty of those providing the facts, the phrase "pig in a poke" was thrown around, the vote was taken, and here we are.

Fire assessment tax
 

I believe this increase was proposed last year, and the research showed that even without this assessment, tax increase the fire department still provided the services

[QUOTE=margaretmattson;2241768]no law states that you can't post about voting in opinion form on this forum. Just saying....[/
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$ Assessment Fire Protection $
 

I received a notice of public hearing. It will help at Everglades Recreation center on Marsh Bend Trail, 8/22/23 at 6pm

Is this to agree/reject the proposed assessment of $324?

Reply
 

I agree. If they took money from General fund before, and have now proposed separate fund, then we should expect a decrease in general fund. (Question is, will this happen?)

See post #56 and the proposed budget at the link in post #55.

- The proposed budget sets the millage at the rollback rate
- The overall general fund will increase, at least in part due to growth in homes and businesses

After I retired, I was elected Town Supervisor of a rural town in upstate NY. This put me in charge of the budget and the budget setting process. All of our meetings were publicized and open to the public. If two people from the general public showed up, it was a crowd. We always answered questions during the meeting and in 1:1 situations. However, with the sunshine laws, we had to be very careful of what we said in other forums.

So here is a big tip of the hat to Don for his thoughtful, measured approach both on this forum and in official meetings. You have a job that has more headaches than rest of us will ever know.

Not really, just read the notice. You may comment at the meeting but must also submit an appeal in writing within 20 days. Also, read the last paragraph---unless there is litigation filed within 30 days, the assessment will go into effect.

The vote occurred last November, and the majority of voters rejected the formation of an independent Villages fire district. If memory serves, for some unknown reason, a vocal group encouraged a no vote claiming it would financially benefit "the developer", who had nothing to do with it. But the emotional argument prevailed at the voting booth. So now you have the cost increase you would have had anyway, but it is now under County, not Village control.

Very good summation of the 'current situation'. It amazes me how some people's intent is to ensure the 'evil developer's' don't benefit from anything. Why do I care if they benefit from something that will also benefit me? There is no one who can tell us how much this increase might have been-lower or higher, had we voted to authorize the IFD-but having that expense more under OUR (TV) control, rather than lumped in with more disparate interests in the rest of the county, in my mind was a no-brainer. I don't work for TV, nor have any financial interest in anything beyond my own home, but let's get off the 'bash the developer' bandwagon-It's visceral and unfounded. If I see the words 'Katie Belle's' referenced one more time in a social media post, I'm going to take this Lenovo and throw it in an alligator infested retention pond.

And if the alligator eats it, it must be the developer's fault. :1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

I can say that the maximum I would have paid for fire protection under the IFD was $717. It is likely I would have paid less since it is likely the variable Ad-Valorem would not have been maxed out in the first year. I can say that under the proposed budget I will be paying $727 to fund fire protection in the upcoming year.

I will be paying $10 more than the maximum I could have been charged under the IFD and $300 more than what I expected to pay under the IFD.

Had the IFD proposal passed, the developer would have lost control of the VSPD. Currently the VSPD is under the direction of the VCCDD, a developer appointed (it called landowner elected, but with basically one landowner it is, well, appointed) board. If the IFD had passed then the VPSD would have been under the direct control of a resident elected (not landowner elected) board and the developer would have lost any control over the VPSD.

The sky is falling (aka I hate the developer) crowd would have had you believe that since the Govenor would have appointed the initial board that they would have been all hand picked by the developer. Individuals desiring one of these would have to apply to the Govenor's off for one of these positions, and I'm pretty sure the governor's office would have reached out to the local RPOF leadership and other influential individuals (including the developer's office) for their input. Why, because the governor's office doesn't and can't know everyone in the state so they rely on local leadership for input on getting the people with the right mindset in place for the initial board to get things rolling, and after 2 years it would have been up to the residents to elect or replace 3 of these individuals. No this was pure patrician party politics masqueraded as public concern; our governor being a Republican would have appointed 5 strong Republicans to the board which would have further eroded the democrat's footing in Sumter County. This is something the democrat leaning board of some organizations couldn't possibly tolerate so they used their typical tactic and blamed it on the developer and would have labeled anyone appointed to the board as "in the developer's pocket". Trust me on this one, I know it from first-hand experience.

As we sit now, there is an extra layer of administrative laboring involved with getting a VPSD budget passed and funded, it now has to go through the county for final say on funding. With this extra layer comes no way of separating which fire department your tax dollars go to; it all goes into one pot and then is divided between the FD. The big winner is the non-Villages residents of the county, and the big losers are the Villages residents due to the 20/80 county/villages split in tax revenues and funding but not necessarily in spending in this area.

While many didn't fully understand the issue and were perhaps influenced by a false narrative of the issue when they voted last year, the next election is even more critical. Everyone should remember that it only takes 3 votes, yes the votes 3 individuals, to make VPSD go away. It only takes 3 county commissioners in agreement to consolidate the two fire departments into one and the VPSD vanishes.

Both FDs are outstanding organizations with phenomenal and strong leadership and exceptionally talented employees, but they have different missions and different customers, one size does not fit all. Both FDs have worked together for years and continue to do so now when the needs arise, hopefully that will never change.

Mine also.

I salute The Villages EMS, but one thing for you to keep in mind. Still yet, The Villages EMS has a remarkable record of delivering heart attack victims to the hospital with their hearts still pumping is also due to the fact that there are over 256 AED Teams, there are ovfer 671 AEDs located withing The Villages and 6,000+ AED/CPR Responders. That was last count and the numbers are growing every week. Those AED responders receive the greatest credit for saving the lives of victims of cardiac arrest. GOD bless them every one.

The Developer's Fire Impact Fee
 

Residents should understand that the Developer is paying a fire impact fee of $0 on his new construction.

:popcorn::boxing2:

And we need to understand that because.......??????

And are impact fees split out into fire, police, library, etc????

And does the fire department have to respond to "the developer", or to homes that are owned by people that are on fire???

Just more anti-developer crap.

Has a history of that……..

and also a relatively new user name if not mistaken.

Just like every other builder in Sumter County, NONE pay a "fire impact fee". Why? Because Sumter County doesn't have a fire impact fee. This assessment change has absolutely nothing to do with impact fees, it is all about the operating costs and the cost increases caused by the increased ambulance service availability that the residents wanted.

That guy has caused a lot more harm than good. Not really sure of his agenda.

Used to go by Avacado or something like that. Totally incapable of any objectivity when it comes to the developer.

Right! Will never answer a direct question. Just accuses everyone of working for the Developer if challenged.