Springfield City Council on Monday considered an updated fee schedule that calls for increasing 76 of the city's 104 existing fees and adding 17 new ones.
City ordinance states that the city can only set fees at a level to recover the cost of administering the associated service and can only raise fees at a level equal to the consumer price index plus 10 percent.
Some fees, however, continue to be met with opposition - notably, restaurant health inspection fees that were implemented in fiscal 2009. The new fee schedule for the coming year would increase the fee for high-risk and medium-risk establishments by about 15 percent.
Both Councilman Nick Ibarra and citizen Tom Martz expressed concern that the inspection fee violates Missouri's Hancock Amendment, which states that cities aren't allowed to pass "any tax, license or fees, not authorized by law ... without the approval of the required majority of the qualified voters ..."
City Attorney Dan Wichmer, however, said state courts have consistently ruled that the law applies only to taxes and not to fees charged for specific services. He noted that the city restaurant inspection fee is based on the eatery's risk level - higher-risk establishments are charged more because more work is involved.
"If you handle a lot of raw poultry, or if you have a buffet where there's a lot of interaction between people and raw food, the fee is higher because there are three inspections a year," Wichmer told council.
Among the new fees are charges for tanning salon background checks, air quality control services and zoning and subdivision case review.
Council could vote on the fee schedule at its June 29 meeting.
After months of discussion and debate, council also approved the city's fiscal 2010 budget during its busy Monday night meeting.
The $273.7 million budget for fiscal 2010, which starts July 1, includes $71.4 million in general revenue spending, a 3 percent decrease from the fiscal 2009 budget. Staff was forced to cut $5.7 million from the budget due to sales tax revenue expected to be down more than 3 percent from the current budget.
Among the new budget's cuts are continued personnel freezes, reduced transfers to the parks, transportation and health departments, and elimination of nearly all funding for the city's nonprofit service partners.
The Commercial Street Community Improvement District also received council approval. Registered voters living in the district will be able to vote on a proposed 1/2-cent sales tax, which would be used to fund infrastructure improvements and upkeep. The district board, which is yet to be approved by council, will set a date for the vote.See SBJ's June 22 issue for more City Council news.
This installment of Springfield Business Journal’s Architects & Engineers Project Report showcases 26 endeavors by area design and engineering professionals.
