We received a question from a historic site/historical society in a local town.  As expected, they do not pay real estate taxes. However the area has instituted a “fire district” with connected fees, rather than have the fire department expenses included in property tax.  The historical society has been required to pay this fee which, of course, keeps rising each year.

They consider this a “hidden real estate tax” and wondered if other historic sites or NFP have had to deal with this, and if anyone has been successful in fighting this in their area.

What’s your opinion or experience with this?