MORGANZA – Voters in the Batchelor and Morganza areas on Saturday rejected separate votes on property taxes that would have benefited their local fire districts.

Near Batchelor, voters in Fire Protection District No. 1 turned down a 6.8-mill property tax that would have raised about $239,500 a year through 2036. Morganza-area voters considered a 15-mill property tax that would have run through 2035. It would raise about $285,000 a year.

Complete but unofficial returns showed both proposals falling by 17-vote margins. In Batchelor, it failed 179-162. The separate vote in Morganza fell 166-149.

The tax on a home valued at $100,000 in Batchelor would have been $68 a year. At Morganza, the tax bill for a house of the same value would be $150 annually.

Since the last tax renewal, the districts have seen a drop in revenue.