Myakka City residents approve new tax to merge with larger fire district

Residents of the Myakka City area approved a new property tax that will allow for a proposed merger of the Myakka City Fire District with the nearby East Manatee Fire Rescue District.

The decision affects residents in an area of about 230 square miles in unincorporated southeast Manatee County. With all four precincts reporting, the referendum passed, 736-585.

Myakka City residents currently fund fire services with a non-ad valorem property assessment that is based upon factors other than property value. The referendum’s approval adds a property value-based tax in addition to that charge, but will actually bring costs down for residents and improve services, according to fire officials.

Years of budgeting issues have forced the Myakka City Fire Control District to dip into reserve funds on numerous occasions, and the district currently has a deficit of over $148,000.

The Myakka City Fire District will now be able to avoid raising assessment fees on residents by combining resources with the much larger East Manatee Fire District, fire officials say. The two districts already frequently partner.

Fire officials also outlined a host of other benefits of the merger that would result in better overall emergency service, including expanded staff, better training, pay and benefits and the replacement of aging and outdated equipment.

The new funding system would work out to a lower cost to Myakka City residents for fire service, according to officials, with an average savings of more than $100 a year.

Now that the property tax has passed a referendum, the merger will require approval from the board of commissioners of both fire districts, Manatee County commissioners and the state legislature. If ratified, it will go into effect on Oct. 21, 2021.

This story was originally published August 18, 2020 at 8:16 PM.