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The county last updated its impact fee structure in 1997. According to an analysis, the largest increases could come for roads and schools.
By JEFFREY S. SOLOCHEK
© St. Petersburg Times, published August 1, 2001
BROOKSVILLE -- It's time to re-evaluate impact fees in Hernando County, and it looks as if most could rise.
The biggest increases could come in the fees supporting roads and schools. A decrease is projected for the library impact fee.
County commissioners need not charge the maximum amount justified by an economic analysis. They must, however, lower any fee that cannot be supported by the cost benefit review.
"The library fee would need to be amended," Planning Director Larry Jennings told commissioners Tuesday.
He recommended that the board allow staff to develop the appropriate ordinances reflecting the proposed new charges. After public forums, he said, the commission would have hearings before setting the final figures.
"I would anticipate it would be some time in the fall we would come back here," Jennings said.
Without comment, commissioners directed Jennings to take the next steps outlined. Outside the commission chambers, members of the Hernando Builders Association promised lively debate in the coming months.
"Let's get it clear and get the sugar-coating off it," said Bob Eaton, who heads the group's legislative issues team. "It meets every single criteria of the definition of a tax, and not one single part of the definition of a fee."
Eaton said the state must take responsibility for adequately funding school construction, rather than placing the burden upon owners of new homes. He also questioned how the road "impact tax" could go up when homeowners should gain credits for local taxes they pay toward the program.
Before offering more specifics, though, Eaton wanted to see the estimates circulated by the Planning Department.
"We've not been privy to anything, as usual," he said.
In a memo to the commission, concurrency coordinator Paul Wieczorek explained that the review of the roads impact fee shows a significant increase -- about 49 percent for a single-family detached home -- because the cost to construct a mile of roadway has increased.
Also, he wrote, the average trip length used in the roads impact fee formula was updated to reflect updated national standards.
Moreover, Wieczorek wrote, the credit for gas taxes paid has dropped by 26 percent from the last time impact fees were set.
The school impact fee, which could rise up to 105 percent for a single-family detached home, can be attributed to a substantial increase in the cost of school construction as compared to the level used to calculate the fees last time.
Carol MacLeod, the school district's finance director, said she has presented data to the county. The School Board has not taken a position on the impact fee amount, MacLeod said.
"It is an item we budget from," she said. "As our homes increase, our school needs increase."
The other impact fees charged by the county are for law enforcement, parks and public buildings. The revenue generated by impact fees are used, by district, for capital improvements in each of the defined areas.
Hernando County last updated its impact fee structure in 1997. Commissioners revised the fire-rescue impact fees earlier this year, and a review of wastewater and sewer impact fees is under way.
Impact fees are charged against new construction. The rates differ for each type of construction, including single-family detached, mobile home, industrial building, medical offices and retail.
- Times staff writer Jeffrey S. Solochek covers Hernando County government, and can be reached at 754-6115. Discuss this and other issues in our Web-based discussion forum at www.sptimes.com/hernandoforum.