Bountiful could lose its seat at the table on a fire district budget that just sought a 16% property tax increase, City Manager Gary Hill warns in a staff report headed to the council Tuesday.
Hill's report, the lead item at the Bountiful City Council's 6 p.m. work session on Tuesday, Aug. 11, lays out three governance problems with the South Davis Metro Fire Administrative Committee and asks council members to weigh in before a Board of Trustees subcommittee finalizes changes the cities won't get to vote on.
The Administrative Committee, made up of city managers from Bountiful, Centerville, North Salt Lake, West Bountiful, Woods Cross and Davis County, was created when the fire district became an independent taxing entity in 2015. Its purpose: keep cities involved in budget development after they gave up direct control of fire services. The committee chair also serves as the district's budget officer.
Three problems Hill identifies
First, dual oversight. The fire chief must answer to both the Board of Trustees, which includes representatives from each member city and a Davis County commissioner, and the Administrative Committee. Hill's report says interviews with former chiefs and district staff found that navigating both groups can be cumbersome and a source of stress for district leadership.
Second, the committee chair rotates annually among the six city managers, meaning each brings a different budgeting style and the district loses continuity year to year. As of April 2026, Woods Cross City Manager Bryce Haderlie held the chair.
Third, tension over annual member assessments. Each city has different financial capacity and tolerance for increases. As of an April 2023 budget review, Bountiful's share had declined from 42% to 39% of the total assessment pool, which at that time stood at $7 million.
What's at stake for Bountiful
Bountiful is the district's largest member by population and assessed valuation. Hill frames the central risk in his report: "What are the risks to a community the size of Bountiful if its member 'rotates off' the administrative committee for a year or two? Is that acceptable to the Bountiful City Council?"
The timing matters. South Davis Metro Fire is pursuing a 16.3% property tax increase that would yield roughly $1.32 million in new revenue, according to a KSL report citing the Utah Taxpayers Association. The district held its Truth-in-Taxation hearing Monday, Aug. 3.
Reform options on the table
Hill poses three questions for the council:
- Should the chair's term extend to three years, with a learning year, a solo year and a mentoring year?
- If the committee shrinks, how does Bountiful ensure it always has a representative?
- Should city managers retain any budget role at all, or should that shift entirely to district staff?
Hill recommends no formal vote Tuesday. Instead, the work session is designed to give council members a chance to shape the positions Mayor Kate Bradshaw and Hill carry into the subcommittee process. Bradshaw serves on both the Board of Trustees and the subcommittee reviewing the Administrative Committee's future.
Under current bylaws, changes to the Administrative Committee are solely at the discretion of the Board of Trustees. Individual city councils no longer have a formal vote on governance changes.
The SDMFA Board of Trustees meets next on Monday, Aug. 17. Whether the subcommittee will present recommendations at that meeting has not been confirmed. The work session is open to the public at Bountiful City Hall, 795 S. Main St.
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