OCALA, Fla. — The city of Ocala is suing the Marion County School District over unpaid fire fees. Every Ocala homeowner pays the fee. Commercial property owners do, as well.
Ocala resident Laura Wellborn said there should be no exceptions.
"If you use the services, if you're entitled to the services, then you should pay for the services," Wellborn said.
A few years back, the city enacted a user fee for fire department services, but there is now a very large delinquent account. An unpaid bill of $462,000 is owed by the Marion County School Board.
"We are trying to maintain fire protection in the city of Ocala and that comes with a cost," Councilman Daniel Owen told WFTV.
Owen said that, since 2007, the Ocala Fire Department has responded to more than 445 calls to Marion schools inside the city.
Administrators are out this week on spring break. A spokesman did not return a call from WFTV and one school board member that was contacted did not know about the dispute.
But at a recent city council meeting, the school board's attorney said the district had immunity from paying the fire fees. But Owen says Marion County government pays them and so does the state.
Since there's a stalemate, the city has decided to sue.
"They've kind of got their line in the sand, so we've got ours. When that happens, in good 'ole America, everybody likes to go to court. So that's what we're going to do," Owen said.
WFTV
