Hundreds of Clay County property owners filled the boardroom and an overflow room Tuesday, Aug. 25, to oppose a proposed stormwater assessment that could add $51 to $161 a year to single-family tax bills starting Thursday, Oct. 1.

The hearing at 477 Houston St. in Green Cove Springs lasted more than five hours. Speaker after speaker spoke against the fee, with one resident calling it "a scam!" from the podium.

Orange Park, Green Cove Springs, Keystone Heights and Penny Farms are exempt. The assessment would apply only to property owners in unincorporated Clay County, including Middleburg, Fleming Island and other unincorporated communities, who have more than 400 square feet of impervious surface on their land.

What the fee would cost

The charge is based on impervious area, surfaces like roofs, driveways and sidewalks that prevent rainwater from soaking into the ground. Each Equivalent Residential Unit is assessed at $85 per year, according to the county's business impact estimate. Homes with more or less impervious coverage would pay proportionally more or less, producing the $51-to-$161 range for typical single-family properties.

The fee is not a property tax. It would appear as a non-ad valorem assessment on property tax bills, collected through the Clay County Tax Collector's Office.

The proposed ordinance would also repeal existing hardship assistance and veterans exemption provisions in the county code.

Why the county says it needs the money

An audit and review of the county's stormwater management program found the system needs more than $30 million in capital improvements and that the county lacks funding to meet its regulatory obligations, Action News Jax reported. The county estimates it would collect about $8.2 million in the first fiscal year to fund stormwater management services and improvements across unincorporated areas. Regulatory and collection costs would consume roughly $624,000 of that total.

About 93,500 parcels are identified for the assessment: 85,048 residential and 8,466 non-residential.

What residents said

Some speakers blamed rapid development in Clay County for worsening stormwater runoff and questioned why existing homeowners should foot the bill. Others challenged the logic of charging rural property owners whose water does not drain to a county-owned ditch or pond.

Notices about the proposed assessment were mailed to affected property owners in early August.

What happens next

If the Clay County Board of County Commissioners votes to approve the ordinance, the fee would take effect Thursday, Oct. 1. No vote date has been publicly scheduled. The proposed ordinance would create a new Chapter 20 in the Clay County Code establishing a Stormwater Utility and Assessment.

Residents with questions can contact the county at [email protected] or 904-269-6300.