Marion County adopts FY 2025–26 millage rates and budgets after debate over fleet funding and ARPA use

Ocala, Fla. — The Marion County Board of County Commissioners adopted final millage rates and budgets for fiscal year 2025–26 at a final public hearing on Sept. 18, 2025, approving a countywide millage that produced an adopted budget and approving line-item budgets for a range of county and special-district funds.

The board adopted a consolidated set of millage rates and budgets after debate over capital-improvement project (CIP) reallocations, funding for a proposed consolidated fleet facility and whether to use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) interest funds to lower property tax bills. The board voted on each taxing authority in sequence and also adopted non‑countywide budgets en masse.

Why it matters: The board’s decisions fix the county’s tax levies and appropriation levels for the coming fiscal year and set near-term priorities for capital spending. The meeting included a detailed debate about moving unspent CIP allocations to a high‑priority fleet facility, how to use roughly $7.8 million in ARPA interest to affect millage or one‑time relief, and how much the county will hold for a future health‑unit facility application to the state.

The board’s actions and votes

- The board adopted a consolidated countywide millage resulting in an overall county millage of 4.02 mills and adopted budgets that the clerk and staff recorded in subsequent resolutions. The adopted totals discussed on the record included an adopted countywide budget line and several non‑countywide funds; the board approved the major countywide and special‑district budgets during the hearing (motions and tallies are below).

- After staff presented a CIP reallocation proposal that would move project budgets to increase the proposed consolidated fleet facility budget, commissioners asked for further review and agreed to a dedicated workshop before moving forward with construction. The county administrator said property for a new fleet location had been secured but commissioners questioned the timing and the project’s estimated cost.

- The board discussed using ARPA interest and other one‑time funds to reduce the millage or to provide one‑time parcel-level relief tied to the solid‑waste assessment, and…