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CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO - REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION
From: Valerie C. Ross, Director
Subject: Set a public hearing for Monday,
June 16, 2008 at 4:00 p.m. in the
City Hall Council Chambers to
consider a Resolution adopting
updated building permit and plan
review fees.
Dept: Development Services
Date: May 13, 2008
MCC Date: June 2, 2008
Synopsis of Previous Council Action:
Adopted 1991 Uniform Administrative Code fee tables in 1991 (MC-880)
Recommended Motion:
That a public hearing be set for Monday, June 16,2008 at 4:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council
Chambers to consider a Resolution adopting updated building permit and plan review fees.
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Valerie C. Ross
Contact person:
Tnc:."h T p~c:p., Rniltiing ()ffi,...i~l
Phone: 384-5171
Supporting data attached: StaffRq>ort & Resolution
Ward: All
. FUNDING REQUIREMENTS: Amount: N/A
Source: (Acct. No.)
(Acct. Description)
Finance:
Council Notes:
Agenda Item No.
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CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO - REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION
Staff Report
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Subiect:
Set a public hearing for Monday, June 16,2008 at 4:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers
to consider a Resolution adopting updated building permit and plan review fees.
Backl!round:
The Development Services Department charges regulatory fees for plan reviews and building
permits to cover the costs of providing the services associated with the enforcement of building
codes as mandated by state law.
The Department has undertaken a fee study (available from the Department or the City Clerk) to
review and update the fees charged for building and plan review services. One part of this study
was a time/cost analysis in regards to residential housing construction, both tract housing and in-
fill housing, in order to develop a schedule of fees specific to single-family housing. As is
clearly evident from the analysis, construction of homes in quantity, as is characterized by
typical tract developments, results in economies of scale and consequently reduced overall
inspection costs. As a result, separate fee schedules have been developed for tract homes
(Attachment A) and infill homes (Attachment B), since the costs associated with inspections of
each are significantly different.
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The proposed resolution includes these fee schedules in addition to other fee results from the
study. The minimum permit fee and the fully burdened hourly rates for building inspection and
plan review have been analyzed and updated. Fees are proposed for residential additions based
on a computed average inspection cost per square foot.
. The Department currently utilizes building construction valuation and fee tables that were last
updated in 1991. These tables do not reflect current construction .costs, but rather those that were
in effect in 1991. The existing level of fees based on 1991 building valuation rates are not
adequate to provide the personnel and resources that the Department requires to provide an
adequate level of service to the development community. Furthermore, the use of outdated
valuation rates does not accurately report the level of construction activity in current dollars.
The following chart compares the total costs of providing building inspection and plan check
services and the revenues associated with these activities over the past ten (10) fiscal years. The
total costs include departmental and general city overhead.
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COSTS VS. REVENUE
Bulldin!! Insnection and Plan Check
Fiscal Year Total Costs Total Revenue Shortfall or Surplus % Over or Under
Break Even Point
1998-99 $1,213 808 $868 634 ($345 174 - 28.4%
1999-00 $1,171,579 $860.719 ($310860 - 26.5%
2000-01 $1,130365 $919271 ($211,094 - 18.7%
2001-02 $1.290,114 $1,051,134 ($238,980) - 18.5%
2002-03 $1464,012 $1,235,800 ($228,212) - 15.6%
2003-04 $1,348,657 $1,266,569 ($82,088) - 6.1%
2004-05 $1,610,464 $1,913,092 $302,628 + 18.8%
2005-06 $1,842,616 $2,059,631 $217,015 + 11.8 %
2006-07 $1,982,957 $1,924,589 ($58 368) - 2.9%
2007-08" $2,295,325 $1,368,000 ($927,325) - 40.4%
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*projected values as of 3/31/08
Except for the two peak years (2005 and 2006) Building Division revenues have consistently
been below the cost recovery point.
The Department has developed an updated Building Valuation Table based on current
construction costs published in the February 2005 Edition of Building Safety Journal by the
International Code Council (Attachment C). The valuation table currently in use has not been
updated since August 1991 . The adoption of the updated Building Valuation Table will result in
an increase in the amount of fees charged, and revenues collected, the magnitude of which will
vary by the use (occupancy classification) and the type of construction of the buildings
constructed.
The average change in the amount of fees collected for various types of projects is estimated to
be minus 45 percent for tract homes, plus 33 percent for infill homes, plus 52 percent for
residential additions, plus 28 percent for miscellaneous electrical/plumbing/mechanical permits,
plus 20 percent for commercial projects, and plus 74 percent for industrial projects. The overall
increase in revenues would be dependent on the mix or proportion of residential, commercial and
industrial projects in future years. Given the current recessionary trend, it is anticipated that
construction levels and permit revenues will continue to fall in the coming year.
If approved at the public hearing, the fees would be effective on August 15, 2008. The
Government Code requires that all development related fees take effect no sooner than 60 days
after their adoption.
Financial Impact:
It is anticipated that these fee increases would result in increased revenues of $430,000, offset by
revenue losses of $315,000 due to lower construction activity, resulting in a net increase of
$115,000. However, given the current economic climate and uncertainty, this is highly variable
and dependent on the future level of construction activity.
Recommendation:
Refer to Ways and Means Committee, and set a public hearing for Monday, June 16,2008 at
4:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers to consider a Resolution adopting updated building
permit and plan review fees.
Attachments:
Resolution
A. Table lA. Building Permit Fees - Tract Homes
B. Table lB. Building Permit Fees - Infill Homes
C. Table 2. Building Construction Valuations
D. Table 3. Building Permit Fees