Seminole County commissioners

approve a nearly 19-percent increase in the fire-protection tax, saying the money is needed to shore up funding for the county’s 19 fire stations.

Seminole County commissioners have approved a nearly 19-percent increase in the fireprotection tax, saying the money is needed to shore up funding for the county’s 19 fire stations and the salaries of firefighters and paramedics.

“We have been living off reserve funds,” for fire services, County Manager Nicole Guillet said at a budget meeting last week. “Next year, we will run out of reserve funds [at the current fire tax rate]. There will not be enough money to fund the fire department. In three years, there will be an $8 million shortfall.”

Seminole commissioners voted to raise the county’s fireprotection tax by nearly 44 cents from the current $2.33 per $1,000 of taxable property value. Under the new rate, a home with a taxable value of $150,000 after homestead exemptions will pay about $414.74 next fiscal year, roughly $65.26 more than the current rate.

Revenue from the tax is used to pay for the salaries of firefighters, paramedics and other county fire department employees. It is also used to maintain and purchase new equipment, such as firetrucks.

The fire tax applies to properties in unincorporated Seminole and the cities of Altamonte Springs, Casselberry and Winter Springs.

While boosting the fire-protection tax, commissioners held the line on Seminole’s property-tax rate of $4.88 per $1,000 of taxable property value that will help fund an overall budget of $755 million for next fiscal year, which began Sunday.

Several residents spoke out against the fire-protection tax increase.

“The idea of a tax hike after a year of spending frivolously is audacious,” Shaun Kunz said. “The timing is poor after many of us got hit by these storms.”

Bill Hyde said the county was using “scare tactics” to urge the increase, which he maintained will hurt elderly residents on fixed incomes.

“Seminole’s senior taxpayers have to sit at the table, looking at yet another tax increase and figuring out where the money is going to come from,” he said.

Matt Collins, executive director for the Seminole Committee for Government Accountability, brought to the meeting three boxes he said were filled with petitions signed by residents opposing

the tax increase.

Firefighters do “a superb job and should be given the resources to keep up the good work,” he said. “But that can be done without a tax increase if commissioners would simply behave responsibly with our money.”

But Commissioner Lee Constantine opened the boxes and said there were only enough petitions to partially fill one box and none of them was signed.

He pointed out that the higher tax levy could lower rates for homeowners insurance premiums. That’s because fire departments are monitored and rated by the International Standards Organization — or ISO — based on how long it takes to reach areas, coverage area size and fire training. Insurance companies then use ISO ratings to set premiums and the cost of home policies.

Seminole’s long-range plans include spending $3.5 million to upgrade the fire services radio systems and building a new fire station in the northwest area of the county.

Resident Joe Wheeler said the higher fire-protection tax levy is needed.

“I’m usually not in favor of raising taxes,” he said. “But if we’re going to be paying more money out, I’d rather be paying it to the fire department to improve the training and the fire equipment.”

In 2008, Seminole commissioners lowered the fire-protection tax to its current rate. But as the county’s fire department grew along with population growth, Seminole began tapping into its fire reserve funds to help fund the operation.

“Those fire reserves will be depleted by next year,” said Edward Bass, the county’s resource management director.

Commissioner John Horan defended raising the rate.

“I know that this is a burden,” he said. “Any tax is going to be a burden. We all pay taxes. But I know that we set taxes at the lowest possible rate that provides adequate level of services.”