BROOKSVILLE — Hernando County commissioners on June 9 rejected proposed increases to garbage rates and fire fees, voting 4-0 against each and directing staff to return with ways to hold costs flat.
The June 9 votes came as commissioners weighed a property tax amendment on the November ballot — backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis — that could sharply cut county revenue. If 60% of voters approve it, homestead exemptions would rise.
Commissioners outlined what less revenue could mean: shelving a planned fire station at U.S. 19 and Atlanta Avenue; ending 24-hour service at the Hernando Beach and Lake Lindsey Road stations, the county’s two least-active; delaying Capital Improvement Program projects; closing one or more library branches; eliminating the county’s Office of Economic Development; and trimming other services.
Commissioner Steve Champion said the county weathered deep cuts during the 2008 recession and would survive again. He vowed throughout the meeting not to support any tax or fee increase.
Champion warned that the county could turn to municipal service benefit units, or MSBUs, to recover lost revenue — assessments that are not shielded by homestead exemptions. Residents upset about taxes, he added, should also scrutinize the school district’s taxing power.
Several residents made similar arguments Tuesday. One woman, who said she moved to the county five years ago, noted that its budget has climbed from $500 million to nearly $1 billion since she arrived. She was among several speakers who addressed the board during open comment and on the solid waste items.
Taking out the trash
Commissioners rejected two solid waste measures: one revising disposal rates and fees at the Hernando County Solid Waste Management Facility and convenience centers, and another raising the annual solid waste disposal assessment. The assessment carried no increase for 2027, though its cap could rise in later years with commission approval.
The 2027 assessment was set at $102.70 per unit for single-family and multifamily residential units, up from $98.04. The cap could reach $114.12 for a single-family unit and $103.14 for multifamily units of up to four. The assessment was projected to raise about $9.1 million in 2027.
Most rates would have risen about 1.4% in January 2027, excluding construction and demolition debris and flat-rate charges.
“The answer is no from me,” Champion said, urging Solid Waste Services Manager Scott Harper to run the operation more efficiently. He moved to deny the request and signaled he would do the same on the residential rates.
“The majority of the citizens do not want an increase,” he said.
Commissioner Ryan Amsler said residents keep raising the November ballot with him.
“It’s a very clear message from the public,” Amsler said. “It’s hard to ignore an overwhelming mass of people saying, ‘We want government done for cheaper.’”
People are figuring out how to live on less, he said, and government — including fire service and the sheriff’s office — should do the same. “That’s the message I’m getting left and right,” he said.
Commissioner John Allocco asked Harper where the county could cut “to stay flat.” Harper pointed to “little things,” such as using day labor for litter pickup.
County Administrator Jeff Rogers noted that some spending is required and tied to essential services.
The discussion turned technical, covering landfill “cells,” what can go in them, how to extend their life and the cost of closing full cells and opening new ones. After weighing whether to end recycling — and why a waste-to-energy plant that works in a county such as Pinellas would not work in Hernando — commissioners voted 4-0 to deny both items and asked staff to bring back cost-saving ideas.
Firing at the fire chief
A proposed increase to the Fire Rescue MSBU also failed, 4-0, though Brooksville residents will remain in the unit and continue paying county fire fees.
Fire Chief Paul Hasenmeier, who also serves as public safety director, faced sharp criticism from Champion, who said at one point that he had no confidence whatsoever in the chief.
Champion challenged Hasenmeier’s figures, saying the fire budget was $21.9 million in 2019, has already doubled since and would approach triple that under the 2031 proposal. If the county cannot afford a new station, he said, it should not build one — or build it and close an older one. He acknowledged the chief faces unfunded mandates from Tallahassee and said that is where complaints belong.
The property tax amendment, Champion said, “does not protect you from an MSBU.”
Hasenmeier said Champion had made many inaccurate statements and noted that he was not chief in 2019. “Whether you made good or bad decisions to fund the fire department, I guess we could debate that, but I won’t.”
“Where you came from, you probably should go back there is what should happen,” Champion said. “Because I think you’re doing a terrible job.”
During public comment, one resident urged the commission not to cut fire service. Another, who declined to give her name, said local growth and budgeting decisions drove the department’s rising requests.
“One of the fear tactics that was given to me in regard to essential services is, ‘Imagine losing someone because an ambulance couldn’t get to you in time,’” she said. “I grew up in a small town. We had a volunteer fire department. The nearest ambulance was 30 miles away. I had a brother that died and watched him die. Sometimes, life’s circumstances really stink, but that’s the way it is, all right? Grief, you can’t ever tell someone to get over it because you can’t ever get over something like that. But grief is not a reason for reckless spending.”
The commission’s next meeting is set for 9 a.m. Tuesday, June 23. Agenda items include a proposed moratorium on data centers.