Is a membership to our local Fire Dept deductible?

[ScottM2]

Rural Metro provides Fire Dept service for our County area under contact.  They have a "membership" you can pay, that if they ever come to your house, you will not be billed for the response.  The amount is based on the value of the house.  Is this deductible?

[DanielV01]

Maybe.  It seems to fit the statutory definition of a type of real estate tax.  Such taxes exist for the taxation for the land/property itself, as well as for services for residents based on the value of the property (such as school tax, which is commonly included in real estate taxes).

One issue, however, could be if the membership is voluntary as compared to mandatory.  A mandatory membership would in essence make this a deductible real estate tax.  Voluntary membership is more of a gray area.  Please click on this link which gives a more detailed consideration to this topic: Are Volunteer Fire Dues Tax-Deductible? | Pocket Sense