{"id":189280,"date":"2026-03-12T21:59:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T21:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/189280\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T21:59:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T21:59:07","slug":"judge-allows-parts-of-tallahassee-fire-fees-lawsuit-to-move-forward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/189280\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge allows parts of Tallahassee fire fees lawsuit to move forward"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – A lawsuit over Tallahassee\u2019s fire service fees<\/a> was presented in front of a judge Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n

The suit will move forward with some plaintiffs – but not all, after the City of Tallahassee\u2019s motion to dismiss was largely denied.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit is challenging the city\u2019s fire fee on monthly utility bills, claiming it\u2019s unconstitutional and discriminatory.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit is led by the watchdog group Citizens for Government Accountability<\/a>. They point to a case in Ocala, where a judge ruled the city\u2019s fire fees illegal and ordered a refund for residents. <\/p>\n

But Greg Stewart, an attorney representing the city, argues the way that Tallahassee its fire fees is different and legal. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn that case (the Ocala case), the city did not impose a special assessment, but attempted to fund fire service through a user fee. User fees and special assessments have completely different requirements,\u201d Stewart said. <\/p>\n

More Tallahassee news:<\/p>\n

The plaintiffs\u2019 attorney, Jackie Azis, said, \u201cA lot of what the city is alleging is not for the court to resolve at this phase – for instance, whether it\u2019s a special assessment – because we have raised sufficient allegations to show that there is a dispute over this.\u201d <\/p>\n

At the hearing, Judge Angela Dempsey said not enough has been alleged for the suit to stand as-is. However, the judge ruled that CGA had not established standing to pursue its claims as a group.<\/p>\n

The judge gave CGA time to amend its lawsuit, and allowed the individually named plaintiffs to keep going. <\/p>\n

CGA told WCTV they plan to amend the complaint to keep the lawsuit moving forward, and that they hope to amend it in a way to represent all Tallahassee utility ratepayers.<\/p>\n

The fire fee has become a lightning rod issue in the capital city. City commissioners voted 3-2 to stop providing fire services to unincorporated Leon County after a dispute<\/a> about how much the fee should be raised boiled over.<\/p>\n

Leon County leaders have accused the city of mishandling taxpayer dollars in building fire stations, and of illegally collecting the fee on utility bills. <\/p>\n

In fact, county leaders went so far as to pass an ordinance requiring the fee be collected on property tax bills, though that move itself has received mixed reviews.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the city has consistently defended its methods, and tweaked the definition of a house of worship so that some church facilities, but not the sanctuaries themselves, will pay. <\/p>\n

The Leon County School District has racked up millions of dollars in bills, the city said, after they refused to pay the fire fee. <\/p>\n

LCS previously said<\/a> any attempt to collect could result in the entire fee structure being thrown out, and the city has since made no attempts to recoup what its owed, though they did stop giving the school district an overall discount on utilities.<\/p>\n

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