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Commissioners set fire MSTU rate to 2.1225 mills to fund firefighter raises and staffing
Summary
The board approved a fire municipal service taxing unit (MSTU) rate of 2.1225 mills, citing an 11.7% growth in taxable value that yields roughly $12.5 million in new revenue to fund firefighter wage increases and additional staff.
The Pasco County Board of County Commissioners approved a tentative fire municipal service taxing unit (MSTU) levy of 2.1225 mills at the first public hearing on the FY2026 tentative budget. Staff said taxable values for the MSTU increased 11.7%, producing roughly $12.5 million in additional property-tax revenue for the fund.
Staff described the planned uses of the additional revenue: wage increases for the firefighter union, four additional emergency medical services supervisors, and four additional fire arson investigators. "The additional revenue will be used to fund wage increases for the firefighter union, 4 additional emergency medical services supervisors, and 4 additional fire arson investigators," the presenter said.
Board members asked about the structure and future changes to MSTUs. Staff said the county intends to bring proposed changes back later in the year to allow rescue services to be rolled into the fire MSTU and to create an MSTU structure for law enforcement; staff indicated a November timeframe to present MSTU language changes for board consideration.
Discussion and concerns: some commissioners raised caution about combining rescue funding and ambulance billing with the MSTU, noting that rescue operations recover some costs through billing and that moving those revenues and costs into an MSTU could shift pressures between funds. Staff said the board could make commensurate reductions in the general-operating millage if services were moved into MSTU funds.
Outcome: the board adopted the fire MSTU tentative rate of 2.1225 mills (5.62% increase from the rollback rate of 2.0096), with staff to return to the board with detailed MSTU language and options before implementation.
