Tensions have been high between the city and county while they continue to battle over fire services, but the city commission reached its breaking point Wednesday, outraged by reports presented to the county that some city leaders said are “junk” and “misinformation.”
The mayor and commissioners erupted during their Oct. 21 meeting over reports that allege the city has mismanaged the fire department’s budget, shorting the fire fund by tens of millions, and that the city hasn’t abided by the two governments’ interlocal agreement in multiple different ways.
Mayor John Dailey said he’s “very disappointed” in his county colleagues for their accusations and for the poorly crafted reports that weren’t fact checked with the city.
“I’m not spending anymore time on this junk that’s coming out of the county,” Dailey said. “I am disappointed in the behavior of certain county commissioners, including the chairman, for gaslighting this community on false narratives.”
Dailey’s last meeting, Jumonville’s beginning
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City Commissioner Curtis Richardson smiles as Tallahassee Mayor John E. Dailey stands behind a Tallahassee Fire Department member seated in the mayor’s chair before a City Commission meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, in Tallahassee, Fla. (Sarah Cheatham/Tallahassee Democrat)
The night before the city’s meeting, the Leon County Commission held a special workshop to discuss the future of fire services in the county and whether this means the county will stand up its own fire department. County commissioners were presented with two reports that pointed out flaws in the current agreement and alleged mismanagement of the fire funds.
County Commission Chair Christian Caban said the entire dispute started after the city chose to unilaterally raise the fire fee without the county’s approval. He added that the simmering crisis is the mayor’s fault and a result of hurt feelings after the firefighter union didn’t endorse him.
“I will continue to be the adult in this conversation,” Dailey said after praising the department and fire chief as the best chief in the nation. “I’m not going to get down into the sandbox of an elementary school screaming match and try to drag everybody through the mud.”
In a terse text to the Tallahassee Democrat, Caban dismissed criticism levied by Dailey and Commissioners Dianne Williams-Cox and Curtis Richardson, who all voted in 2025 to terminate the firefighting contract with the county.
“A hit dog will holler,” Caban wrote.
See the Tallahassee Fire Department in action through the years
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A vehicle fire temporarily blocked all eastbound lanes of Interstate 10 in Leon County on Thursday afternoon, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. (FHP)
City refutes claims made in county reports
Robert Wigen, the city’s resource management director, pointed to a litany of corrections to the report by Benesch’s Public Finance Practice, which was hired by the county for $87,600 to assess the city’s fire fund.
He rejected the findings and said the city hadn’t underfunded the fire department by as much as $21.2 million like the reports claim.
“If we had a $20 million hole, that would have been addressed sooner than later,” Wigen said. “We know the fire department is properly resourced.”
He called the findings compiled by companies the county hired “flawed and overstated.”
One of the county reports reveals that the county collects a flat rate fee while the city’s collection of fees is on an escalated rate over time. The study said this was a major contributor to the lack of funding.
Wigen said that while the county implemented a five-year average, the city’s escalated rate would arrive at the same amount as the county’s because the city charges the fee on the utility bill. But the study doesn’t reflect the recovery of costs over time because the firm only reviewed the first two years of the five-year period, which didn’t account for the money collected in the next three years.
Tallahassee Mayor John E. Dailey welcomes City Manager Karen Jumonville during a City Commission meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, in Tallahassee, Fla. The occasion marked Jumonville’s birthday and Dailey’s final commission meeting as mayor.
Following the presentation, Dailey went on a question-asking spree probing different departments within the city about how many collective years of experience they have and whether anyone from the county’s firm contacted them during their investigation. Everyone — including the city manager, city attorney and inspector general — said no.
“I rest my case,” Dailey said.
County officials, however, note that they have been poring through city records for months.
The county attorney’s tracking log of public records requests made to the City of Tallahassee attorney shows the county received volumes of documents pertaining to fire services, fire assessments, budgeting, infrastructure projects, debt, collections, and related financial records. Those documents became foundational to the Benesch report.
Commissioner Curtis Richardson was unimpressed and criticized the company that compiled the report for not consulting directly with city staff: “Who the hell is Benesch? Who in the hell is that to bring information like that to the county commission?”
Majority blocks motion for additional independent audit
With the dueling presentations from the city and county, Commissioner Jack Porter requested that the inspector general present them with options for an independent audit that would set the record straight once and for all.
“I firmly believe that if we have done nothing wrong, then I want to be able to definitively say that from an independent review,” Porter said. “If we have made mistakes, I want to know that too so we that we can address them.”
The idea was shut down by the voting majority.
Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox said she was glad the city cleared the air and clarified the facts for the public.
City Commission Seat 5 candidate incumbent Dianne Williams-Cox participates in a forum hosted at WFSU on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026.
“This is the agency that runs the fire department,” Williams-Cox said. “So who better knows how it operates and how it gets paid for than the ones who are running it.”
Commissioner Jeremy Matlow said he didn’t think the “political disputes” were productive in light of the upcoming change in city leadership after the November election. He said regardless of who ends up holding office, there will be a majority that wants to reach a deal with the county and make amends.
“I don’t think we need to debate the inner details of what this is now because it’s likely going to change in just a few days,” he said.
Both he and Porter wanted to focus discussion on potential financial impacts if the county were to split off and create their own department
“Honestly, the only thing we’ve accomplished on fire services is how loud we shout across the street at each other,” Matlow said.
Williams-Cox and Richardson both said the city didn’t start this fight. Richardson even said he has “no interest” in separating with the county, but both he, Williams-Cox and Dailey were the three that voted to sever the agreement with the county last September.
Tallahassee City Commissioner Curtis Richardson talks with an attendee during the Oct. 1 LeMoyne Arts African American Tribute Garden Dedication Ceremony.
When people say things that aren’t true, “we’ve got to call them to the carpet; we’ve got to do what we did today,” Williams-Cox said.
“Robert didn’t shout,” she added. “Robert gave it to us just like it was. The (fire) chief didn’t shout. He gave it to us just like it was.”
What led to the city-county fire feud?
Last year, the city discovered a massive hole in the Tallahassee Fire Department’s budget. The lack of funds was exacerbated by inconsistently applied exemptions to religious institutions and millions in unpaid invoices from the Leon County School Board, among other things.
To start filling in the gaps, a rate study determined raising the fees residents pay was the best solution to ensure the fund wasn’t “fully exhausted” by the end of the year.
City commissioners unanimously approved the 22% rate hike against the county’s wishes, driving a wedge between the two sister governments. In response to the county’s pushback, the city said it was time to sever its relationship with the county and let the county create its own fire department.
The county has until Sept. 30, 2028, to develop its own department or make nice with the city.
Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Mayor, commissioners blast ‘junk’ county report on Tallahassee fire fee