HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-06-8816ORDINANCE NO. 2024-06-8816
AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING AND IMPOSING A FEE ON ALL OCCUPIED REAL
ESTATE PARCELS LOCATED WITHIN THE TERRITORIAL LIMITS OF THE CITY
OF PADUCAH TO FACILITATE FUNDING FOR THE PROVISION OF JOINT 911
SERVICES AS MORE FULLY SET FORTH IN THE INTERLOCAL COOPERATION
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF PADUCAH AND MCCRACKEN COUNTY
WHEREAS, the City of Paducah and McCracken County are responsible for promoting
public safety and the general welfare of the citizens of Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky;
and
WHEREAS, the operation of an emergency 911 communications system is one of the most
critical of all public services, indispensable and necessary for the safety of the citizens of Paducah,
McCracken County to ensure prompt response to emergencies; and
WHEREAS, the City of Paducah and McCracken County have entered into an Interlocal
Cooperation Agreement for the provision of joint 9.11 services; and
WHEREAS, there is currently a fee-based system for financial support based upon a per -
month charge on "land -line" phones in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky, and
WHEREAS, the ever-increasing use and reliance on mobile phones and the concomitant
decreasing existence of land -line phones has resulted in a significant decrease in revenues to
support the operations of emergency 911 communication services in Paducah, McCracken County,
Kentucky; and
WHEREAS, the reduction in revenues has resulted in a lack of adequate funding to
continue to operate emergency 911 communication services in Paducah, McCracken County,
Kentucky; and
WHEREAS, KRS 65.760 (3) expressly permits local governments to fund emergency 911
communication services by the imposition of fees not in conflict with the Constitution and statutes
of this state; and
WHEREAS, the distribution of funding for emergency 911 communication services
among the citizens of Paducah, Kentucky through a fee on parcels located in the City of Paducah
is more equitable; bears a reasonable relationship to the benefit received; and requires more
citizens to support the system than the existing "land -line" phone fee; and
WHEREAS, the Kentucky Supreme Court has expressly permitted fees on real estate
parcels as an appropriate mechanism for funding emergency 911 communication services; and
WHEREAS, a real estate parcel fee would assist in the funding of emergency 911
communication services and also ensure the distribution of funding to a broader range of citizens
1
rather than just those who have land -line phones; and
WHEREAS, the Commission will repeal the land -line phone fee once sufficient funding
for 911 has been collected via parcel fees.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT HEREBY ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF
COMMISSIONERS OF THE CITY OF PADUCAH AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. That there is hereby established, imposed, and implemented an annual
parcel fee on all occupied individual residential units and all occupied individual commercial,
religious, charitable, educational, and public use units located within the territorial limits of
the City of Paducah, as determined from the records of the McCracken County Property
Valuation Administrator's office. The fee shall be used for the delivery of Enhanced 911
emergency telephone service as provided for by KRS 65.760 and the associated maintenance
of systems and devices, including but not limited to, operating costs of the Paducah -
McCracken County 911 Services Center and purchase and maintenance of E911 equipment.
SECTION 2. The Board of Commissioners hereby imposes the following annual
parcel fees on all parcels of occupied real property, as more accurately defined in Sections 3
through 5 of this Ordinance, which are located within the jurisdictional limits of the
City of Paducah:
A. Super Commercial Unit (contains structure in excess of
25,000 sq. ft.) $1,550
B. Large Commercial Unit (contains structure between 7,500
and 25,000 sq. ft.) 860
C. Medium Commercial Unit (contains structure between 2,500 and
7,500 sq. ft.) 325
D. Small Commercial Unit (structure between 1 and 2,500 sq. ft.) 210
E. Parking Lots (which shall include, but not be limited to, parking lots,
garages, or other areas designed for the parking of motor vehicles as
defined by KRS 186.010(4) whereby the owner, occupant, lessee, or
possessor of any portion of the parcel leases, rents, licenses, bails, or
otherwise allows the parking or storage of motor
vehicles in exchange for consideration) 150
F. Public Use Units (emergency service, governmental, religious,
charitable, and educational) 35
G. Residential Units 45
In the event a parcel is mixed use, the parcel shall be assessed at the highest applicable
assessment rate.
SECTION 3. An occupied residential unit shall be defined as each residential space
designed and/or utilized for occupancy for residential purposes and includes each apartment
and/or duplex unit, house, and mobile home as a separate residential unit.
SECTION 4. An occupied commercial unit shall be defined as a non-residential
building space of any size designed and/or utilized for occupancy by an individual non-
residential business or private enterprise which involves the manufacture, sale, lease, or rental
of goods, or services to the public.
SECTION 5. An occupied public use unit shall be defined as any parcel owned or
leased by:
A. Any City, County, State, or Federal Government in which the parcel is used for the
purposes of conducting the regular business of its government, its police department,
or its fire department.
B. A Fire District so long as the parcel is used by the District to deliver fire protection
services pursuant to KRS Ch. 75.
C. A non-residential building space of any size designed and/or utilized for occupancy
for religious activities and/or worship.
D. A non-residential building space of any size designed and/or utilized for occupancy
for the carrying out of a charitable purpose as determined by Section 501 of the
Internal Revenue Code.
E. A non-residential building space of any size designed and/or utilized for occupancy
for the purpose of education, the administration thereof or extracurricular activities.
SECTION 6. The 911 parcel fee shall be placed upon the City of Paducah's property tax
bills prepared by the City's Finance Department beginning with the 2024 tax bill and continuing
every year thereafter. The due dates shall be the same as the property tax due dates set by the
Board of Commissioners.
SECTION 7. For the first year only, owners of all occupied residential rental units shall
be eligible to claim a rebate of $22.50 per unit against the annual fee due. This rebate, which is
the equivalent of a 6 -month share of the fee, is granted to allow owners of rental property
additional time to recover some or all of the amount of the fee from tenants. In subsequent years,
the full amount of the annual 911 parcel fee shall be paid for all occupied residential rental units.
In order to be eligible for this rebate, the property owner of the occupied rental unit(s) shall
complete and submit the form, attached hereto, to the City of Paducah Finance Department,
which shall be received by the Finance Department on or before March 1, 2025.
SECTION 8. The Board of Commissioners, in conjunction with McCracken County,
Kentucky, shall amend the Interlocal Agreement for Provision of Emergency 911 Services to
create a "Joint 911 Parcel Fee Appeals Board" to address all appeals of parcel fee assessments.
SECTION 9. Any property owner may appeal the classification of their property under
the terms of this Ordinance. However, an appeal shall not affect the date the parcel fee is due. A
property owner wishing to appeal a classification shall file an appeal by delivering a notice of
appeal to the Paducah City Clerk by no later than December 1st of the year for which the fee is
due. The Joint Appeals Board shall set a date for a meeting in which the property owner can
present evidence and otherwise be heard on the issue of classification. The property owner shall
bear the burden of proof that the property has been incorrectly classified by clear and
convincing evidence. The City shall also have the right to present evidence of proof that the
classification is appropriate. If the property owner presents sufficient proof of lack of
occupancy and/or any other evidence to indicate that the parcel was inappropriately classified,
the Joint Appeals Board shall provide relief to the party by a majority vote, including, but not
limited to, a refund of all or a portion of the parcel fee paid during the applicable tax year.
SECTION 10. All real estate parcel fees shall be collected by the City of Paducah's
Finance Department.
SECTION 11. The real estate parcel fees collected shall be accounted for and kept
separate and apart from other accounts and may only be used for the funding of emergency 911
services as permitted by state law and as more fully set forth in the Interlocal Cooperation
Agreement between the City of Paducah and McCracken County.
SECTION 12. The failure of any owner of real property to pay the fee as set forth in this
Ordinance shall be punishable as a Class A Misdemeanor and/or by civil collection process.
SECTION 13. As more fully set forth in the Interlocal Agreement for the Provision of
Emergency 911 Services entered into by the City of Paducah and McCracken County, the 911
Board shall review the fee imposed by this Ordinance and by no later than April 1 st of each year
make a recommendation to the City of Paducah as to any adjustments to the then -effective parcel
fee to ensure adequate funding of the Joint 911 services.
SECTION 14. Unless otherwise determined by the Paducah Board of Commissioners,
commencing April 1, 2025, and on April 1st of each successive year thereafter, all parcel fees set
forth in this Article shall be automatically adjusted based on the Urban Consumer Price Index for
the South Region as published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, for
the prior January.
SECTION 15. The provisions of this Ordinance are declared to be severable. If any
section, phrase or provision shall for any reason be declared invalid, such declaration shall not
affect the validity of the remainder of this Ordinance.
SECTION 16. This Ordinance shall be read on two separate days and become effective
upon summary publication pursuant to KRS Chaptc
ATTEST:
Lindsay Parish, kity Clerk
Introduced by the Board of Commissioners, June 11, 2024
Adopted by the Board of Commissioners, June 25, 2024
Recorded by City Clerk, June 25, 2024
Published by The Paducah Sun, June 29 , 2024
4859-4231-7447
APPLICATION FOR OCCUPIED RESIDENTIAL RENTAL UNIT REBATE
(Submit one form for each parcel containing one or multiple units)
Name of Property Owner:
Address of Property Owner:
Telephone Number of Property Owner:
Name of Occupied Rental Property (if applicable):
Address of Occupied Rental Property:
Number of rental units located on this parcel:
I hereby certify that the information contained herein is true:
Signature of Property Owner
THIS FORM MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE CITY'S FINANCE DEPARTMENT ON OR
BEFORE MARCH 1, 2025 BY PERSONAL DELIVERY OR MAIL TO:
Paducah City Hall
Finance Department
300 South 5t' Street
Paducah, Kentucky 42001