Commissioners flag fire-rescue contract and reserves as recurring pressure on FY2027 budget

At the workshop staff confirmed the town’s multi-year fire-rescue agreement includes a 3% cost increase for the coming year and is funded from ad valorem revenues. Finance director Mariah Pierce said the fire-rescue line is a significant recurring expense and that the town maintains a $400,000 fire-rescue reserve.

Commissioners debated whether to separately itemize the fire-rescue portion of property tax bills or to pursue an assessment (MSBU-style) for a fixed-fee replacement. One commissioner said separating fire as an assessment could shift costs off ad valorem and produce a flat fee similar to waste-disposal assessments; staff advised that municipalities cannot levy a millage for that purpose but can consider non-ad valorem assessments with a separate methodology.

Separately, several commissioners raised the disaster reserve level (currently $1,000,000 in policy) and asked staff to research the historical basis for reserve sizing and what a revised disaster-reserve target would cost in practice. Staff agreed to return with more detail and to include fire-rescue contract and reserve data in the next budget packet.