For the last several years, Leon County Schools hasn’t paid the city for its fire or stormwater services — generating a pile of unpaid invoices and a bill of nearly $3 million dollars and counting — sparking an uproar among progressive city leaders and firefighter union members.
Yet school officials say they have no obligation to pay these fees, and they’re standing firm in their decision due to what they say is their “sovereign immunity.”
“One of the major responsibilities I have is to protect the financial interests of the district,” LCS Superintendent Rocky Hanna told the Tallahassee Democrat in an interview. “I think it would be irresponsible of me to be committing up to $1 million or more a year to fund a program we’re not required to pay.”
While the district previously paid roughly $1.4 million in fire service and stormwater fees, in 2021 the school board sought outside legal expertise from a Gainesville attorney to determine whether they had to pay for firefighter services. Hanna said legal precedence determined the school board was exempt and some school districts around the state aren’t paying for these services.