TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – In a late-night vote, Leon County commissioners voted to add a non-binding referendum to the 2026 ballot that would allow voters to indicate if they want the City of Tallahassee and Leon County government to combine. <\/p>\n
Commissioners David O\u2019Keefe and Nick Maddox voted against the motion. <\/p>\n
Tuesday\u2019s vote is the latest development in an ongoing discussion about local government consolidation. <\/p>\n
Recently, county staff generated a memo outlining the potential positives and negatives of combining the two local governments.<\/p>\n
A majority of commissioners said they wanted the public\u2019s direct input, instead of selecting a smaller sub-committee.<\/p>\n
The idea has been voted on before and was rejected each time by voters. The 2026 vote will be non-binding, and it would require an act of the legislature to officially combine the two governments.<\/p>\n
A professor from Florida State University previously told WCTV that consolidation can have positive impacts, but does not inherently solve the current local government issues.<\/p>\n
The city and county are at odds over a fire fee, and a charter review committee is debating whether or not all county ordinances should override all city ordinances.<\/p>\n
The structure of a new consolidated government would also need to be decided. Currently, all 12 city and county commissioners sit on a sales tax board.<\/p>\n
To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> <\/a>and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n Copyright 2025 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n