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Health department proposes targeted fee changes to cover testing costs, board review required
Summary
Middletown health staff presented proposed environmental and water/sewer fee adjustments for 20252026, including increased charges to cover laboratory and water-sampling costs; food-service fees were not recommended for increases this year.
Health department staff presented a draft schedule of proposed environmental fees for fiscal 20252026 and explained why some fees were recommended to rise while others would be held steady.
Staff said the department compared local peer rates and cost components before recommending changes. Food-service fees, mobile vending and temporary permits were not recommended for increases this year because the program had been inconsistent and staff had just raised fees the previous year.
For water and sewer-related permits and services, staff recommended increases largely to cover the direct cost of water sampling and laboratory analysis. Staff gave the example of a real-estate water survey, which the presenter said would increase from $100 to $300 in part because routine water samples now run about $100 and several tests also require lab fees that can exceed previously budgeted amounts. "The water samples are about $100," the presenter said.
Staff also recommended adding a 12-month septic O&M inspection fee and revising site-review and permitting fees that had not been updated in decades. The presenter said the department has not increased some fees in 25 years and needs to align charges with time and lab costs.
Board members asked whether neighboring jurisdictions were raising similar fees and were told Butler County and Hamilton City use comparable fee frameworks; vital-statistics fee decisions at the county level may prompt a future local change. The presenter reminded the board that health-department fees require Board of Health approval before taking effect.
The item was presented for the board's review and questions; no formal vote to adopt the fee schedule was recorded during this meeting. Staff said they will return any recommended final fee schedule to the board for action once peer comparisons and lab-cost estimates are finalized.
