REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Public Hearing - Annual Review of Fees and Charges for Fiscal Year 2014/15
Report
REPORT IN BRIEF
The fees and charges of the City are reviewed and adjusted each year in accordance with Council Fiscal Policy. This annual evaluation ensures that all fees and charges of the City are aligned with the cost to provide each service, except for those fees that are legally limited, market based, or subsidized per Council direction.
After a detailed staff review of fees, necessary adjustments have been made to the proposed Fee Schedule. Fees that are legally limited remain unchanged. Fees that are intended to recover the cost of service were reviewed and adjusted by the increase in labor costs of the work unit that provides the service if necessary. In general, labor costs, including salaries and benefits rose 4.5%, and this is the default increase used for labor related fees. In some cases, staff from the appropriate department reviewed the fees in more detail and made further adjustments. Fees related to construction price are changing in accordance with the Construction Cost Index (CCI), which was 2.9%. The Recommended FY 2014/15 Fee Schedule (Attachment 1) details all proposed fees. Most fees become effective at the start of the new fiscal year, with the exception of development processing fees which become effective 60 days after adoption.
Each year the City Council reviews recommended changes to the City's fees and charges. Tonight's public hearing is to allow public input and comment on fees and charges that will be effective for FY 2014/15. This hearing on the proposed fees will be followed by formal action to adopt updated and new fees on June 24, 2014.
BACKGROUND
The attached Fee Schedule references all City fees, except the proposed utility rates and fees for recreation services. Fees related to utility services (water, refuse, and sewer) are also being adopted tonight by a separate Council action when...
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