Zephyrhills Sets Sept. 14 Hearing on New $85 Stormwater Fee for Homeowners

Every property owner in Zephyrhills will see a new line item on their tax bill this November: a stormwater utility assessment that the City Council is set to finalize at a public hearing on September 14, 2026. The hearing starts at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 5335 8th Street, and it's the last chance for residents to weigh in before the charge becomes official.

Under the proposed rate for the city's 2027 fiscal year, single-family homes will pay a flat $85 a year. That charge applies per parcel, whether the lot is small or large, and covers detached houses and single mobile homes sitting on their own lot.

Commercial buildings, industrial sites and multi-family properties won't pay a flat rate. Instead, their bill is tied to how much of their land is covered in pavement, rooftop or other hard surface that rainwater can't soak into. The city calls that measurement an ERU, short for Equivalent Residential Unit, and it has set one ERU at 2,770 square feet of impervious surface. A business with 18,000 square feet of parking lot and building footprint, for example, would be billed for 7 ERUs, or $595 a year at the proposed rate.

City officials say the money can't be spent on anything but stormwater work. That means flood reduction, protecting water quality, and keeping up the ponds, ditches and culvert pipes that carry runoff out of neighborhoods when it rains. Under Florida law, non-ad valorem assessments like this one are walled off from the general budget, so the funds can't be redirected to police, parks or road paving even if the city later wants to.

Condominiums and townhomes will be billed differently than a standalone house. Their assessment is based on a share of the impervious area across the whole complex, including shared parking lots, walkways and recreational amenities, divided out among the units.

Why now

City leaders began moving on a dedicated stormwater fee after flooding tied to Hurricane Milton left parts of the area underwater in 2024. Zephyrhills, like much of Florida, has relied on its general fund and grant money to pay for drainage work in the past. A dedicated assessment gives the city a steady, protected funding stream instead of competing every year against other budget priorities.

The rate itself moved during the process. City Council members discussed a residential figure as high as $118 a year earlier this year before landing on the $85 rate now up for a final vote.

The Sept. 14 hearing is the formal opportunity for property owners to speak on the record before the council votes to adopt the assessment for collection on this fall's tax bill. Residents who can't attend in person can still reach Knoechelman's office directly with questions about how the rate was calculated or how a specific property's ERU count was determined. More detail on the program, including a full breakdown for multi-family and commercial parcels, is available on the city's Stormwater Assessment page.

Zephyrhills residents can find more on this and other city decisions at Zephyrhills Community Website, and we'd love to hear what you think about the new fee in our Community Forum. For more coverage of city budget and council decisions, visit our government and politics section.

Header photo: Ebyabe / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.5)