Sebring Fire Assessment Hearing Thursday

After a public hearing for citizen comment, the Sebring City Council will consider Thursday the final rate resolution to implement a fire assessment.

The public hearing and council vote on the fire assessment rate are part of the council's regular meeting at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, at the Highlands County Commissioners' Boardroom, 600 S. Commerce Ave., Sebring. The meeting was originally scheduled for Aug. 19, but was rescheduled due to Tropical Storm Fay.

The City Council approved the Fire Protection Assessment Ordinance on its second reading on July 15.

The city looked to a fire assessment as an equitable way to pay for the city's fire department. Some property owners pay little or no taxes to the city due to Homestead exceptions.

"I feel like they are being completely unfair about it." said Debra Hearin co-owner of Highlands Village Assisted Living. "We already pay so much in taxes already."

The majority of the elderly can't afford nursing home care as it is, she said. They are going to put businesses out of business. They are going to have a lot of homeless people on their hands if they implement this.

A rate study determined recommended rates for various categories of business and residential properties based on the number of calls for fire department response.

Council is considering implementing the assessment at 10 percent of the recommend rates.

At the 10 percent level, the fire assessments for 2008-09 would be as follows:

• Residential - $26 for each dwelling unit.

• Commercial - 2 cents per square foot.

•Industrial/warehouse - 1 cent per square foot.

• Institutional - 3 cents per square foot.

• Nursing homes - 20 cents per square foot.

• Land - $4 per acre.

The projected revenue for the assessment at the 10 percent level is $219,594

Council plans to reduce the property tax rate in relation to the fire assessment level. At the 10 percent level the corresponding millage reduction would be .3 mils.

The proposed 2008-09 millage is 5.6271, which is unchanged from the 2007-08 millage.

When the city council establishes the fire assessment rate that will determine how much the millage will be reduced, Sebring Finance Director Mike Eastman said.

The fire protection assessment will be collected on the ad valorem tax bill to be mailed in November 2008.