The Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved a 6.97% increase to special assessment fees in the Dorcas Fire District, the first rate adjustment since the county assumed oversight of the formerly independent department in 2024.
- The increase, based on the five-year average growth rate in Florida personal income as calculated by the Office of the Property Appraiser, is expected to generate an additional $16,311 from non-agricultural parcels within the district. The rates had not been raised since 2022.
Patrick Maddox, the county’s Director of Public Safety, told commissioners the increase is necessary in part because of a state law that prohibits counties from levying special assessments against agricultural land. That exemption does not apply to independent fire districts, creating a revenue gap that did not exist under the district’s previous governance structure.
The agricultural exemption affects 1,354 parcels under 9.75 acres and 301 parcels over 9.75 acres, reducing the district’s special assessment revenue by roughly $40,340, or nearly 14% of the approximately $291,838 the fees previously generated. The approved increase recovers about 40.3% of that lost revenue.
Dorcas Fire District was recreated as a dependent special district under the county commission’s authority in March 2024 through House Bill 897. At the time, the county adopted the existing fee structure set by the district’s previous administration and entered into agreements with three neighboring fire districts to provide interim fire response.
The county commission approved staffing and a preliminary budget for a hybrid paid-volunteer fire service in September 2025, with the understanding that the department would transition from contract-based coverage to handling its own primary fire response in fiscal year 2027.
Maddox said the district’s previous administration historically raised rates by about 3% per year, well below the allowable ceiling, and did not raise the rate at all in 2023. After taking over, the county held rates flat for two additional years to study the district’s finances.
“We quickly realized that more in-depth financial record-keeping and analysis was needed than was available from the previous administration,” Maddox said.
Commissioner Paul Mixon, whose district includes the Dorcas area, moved to approve the resolution. He said a community meeting hosted by Chief Charles Cooper on June 11 drew roughly 50 residents who overwhelmingly supported raising the rate to the statutory maximum.
“My initial suggestion was lower than the maximum,” Mixon said. “And that was very quickly debated by residents there that saw a need to increase to this level to be able to see their services continue to increase.”
Mixon added that residents have responded positively to improved response times and the work of Cooper and newly selected Capt. Jason Laughren.
Chairman Trey Goodwin said he supported the increase despite his general caution about raising fees, calling the Dorcas area historically underserved on fire protection and noting that increasing density and development in the northern part of the county demand a properly funded department.
- “We took over a department that was trying to operate a life safety program on a shoestring budget and money that wasn’t being spent properly,” Goodwin said. “Sometimes you do have to pay to have the proper services.”
Commissioner Drew Palmer noted that without the increase, the county would be losing even more revenue from a funding source that was already unsustainable before the transition.
Maddox said the department has focused on refurbishing existing equipment rather than purchasing new apparatus. Impact fee increases were not included in this cycle but will likely be presented next fiscal year, he said.
