Georgia lawmakers are hearing concerns about the potential impact of a state Supreme Court ruling that struck down a firefighting fee in Chatham County last week.
The court ordered the county to refund about $30 million in fees and interest in a class-action lawsuit over its now-defunct fire service fee, but the decision could affect more than that one coastal community, since other jurisdictions levy various fees.
"This is a very large concern of Perry and all municipalities," said Randall Walker, the mayor of Perry, a city south of Macon.
Andrea Arnold, the city manager of Decatur, in metro Atlanta, said her city is seeking to grow revenue beyond property taxes. She mentioned fees on recreation, sanitation and stormwater.
The court ruling could
undermine that effort, she said. "The recent state Supreme Court decision has us extremely concerned about the future of fees."
Some but not all fees are specifically authorized under state law.
Arnold and Walker presented to members of the House Blue-Ribbon Study Committee on Local Government Taxation, Funding, and Budgeting at its meeting in Perry on Wednesday.
Without fees, cities and counties would have limited means of generating revenue beyond property and sales taxes.
Clint Mueller, deputy director of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia, illustrated the challenge for local governments by pointing to a state college in North Georgia.
State colleges do not have to pay property taxes, Mueller said. "But if a fire occurs on any of their properties, who's going to come put it out? The county fire department is going to put it out. So there's still a cost."
Rep. Mike Cheokas, R-Americus, said a county leader in his area had expressed a preference for fees over property taxes because some property owners, such as nonprofits, are exempt from paying property taxes.
"Even though you have to provide those services, you're not getting reimbursed for that," Cheokas said.
He asked advocates and local leaders for suggestions about how to resolve their concerns.
Mueller said the only way to address the ruling is to change either state law or the state constitution to make service fees legal.
The high court upheld a superior court ruling that found Chatham County's fire fee was effectively a property tax and was illegal because, unlike a property tax, it was not based on property value.
Instead, owners were billed according to the anticipated cost of extinguishing a fire on their property. The fees were partly based on square footage, so owners of larger buildings paid more.
Chatham County stopped collecting the fire service fee in June 2024.
Without it, homeowners and other property tax payers must cover the cost to protect colleges, hospitals and other tax-exempt properties from fires.
The study committee is scheduled to meet again at the Capitol on Wednesday, when the discussion about fees could continue.
This article is available through a partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Association's nonprofit, tax-exempt Educational Foundation.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Chatham fire fee ruling could have statewide impact
