Local Emergency Services Districts adopt new tax rates

Denton County Emergency Services District Nos. 1 and 2 set new tax rates last week.

The ESD No. 1 — formerly the Argyle Fire District — requested the second ESD to fund the ambulance service it provides. New leadership took over after former Fire Chief Mac Hohenberger was indicted on federal embezzlement charges in 2022, and they found the district had been mismanaged and could not afford to continue providing both ambulance and fire services without a second ESD to provide additional funding. Click here for more information about the ESD’s budget deficit and why the second district was necessary.

In November 2023, 89.2% of voters approved the creation of Denton County Emergency Services District No. 2.

“The combined services of Denton County ESD No. 1 and Denton County ESD No. 2 will allow our fire department to serve our community with the highest level of service for decades to come,” the districts said in a statement.

Last week, the ESD No. 1 Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a tax rate reduction of 2.0283 cents to provide fire protection services for the community, according to an ESD news release. The 2024 Adopted Tax Rate for Denton County ESD No. 1 will be 6 cents per $100 of valuation. The adoption of this tax rate is based on a Maintenance and Operation Rate of $0.043144/$100 and Debt Service Rate of $0.016856/$100.

For the newly created ESD No. 2, the Board of Commissioners unanimously approved an Adopted Tax Rate of 10 cents per $100 of valuation to provide emergency medical services for the community.

“Together, Denton County ESD No. 1 and Denton County ESD No. 2 will be able to address the evolving needs of the communities that we serve, including the addition of a third ambulance operating out of Station 513 on the east side of the District, a new Fire Station on the west side of the District, and an Aerial Ladder Fire Truck and Command Unit covering the entire District,” the districts said in a statement. “As always, the Board of Commissioners and the Fire Chief are grateful for the trust that our citizens have put in us and are committed to persistent transparency and engagement in the communities that we serve. Thank you for your continued support and commitment to keeping our community safe.”