Palm Coast council waives ACH autopay fees for utility auto‑pay; city estimates $30,000 annual cost

The Palm Coast City Council directed staff to waive third‑party processing fees for residents who pay utility and related bills through ACH autopay, a move the city estimated would cost about $30,000 a year.

Acting City Manager (staff) told the council that the city “receive[s] about 40% of our collections through autopay,” and staff can choose whether to absorb fees for all autopay methods or only for ACH. After clarifying costs and options, council members reached a consensus: waive the fee for residents who enroll in ACH autopay.

Why this matters: Staff outlined trade‑offs: absorbing all autopay and credit‑card processing fees would be far more expensive—staff estimated the city could face roughly $200,000 per year if it absorbed all autopay fees (including credit‑card surcharges). Staff and council agreed limiting a waiver to ACH method would be a lower‑cost approach and could encourage residents to shift from credit cards to lower‑cost bank ACH payments.

What council decided: Vice Mayor Panieri closed the discussion by summarizing the council’s consensus: “Okay. So we’re going to waive the fee for anybody on autopay using ACH.” City staff estimated the fiscal impact of that ACH‑only waiver at about $30,000 per year and said the cost would be spread across utility, stormwater and solid‑waste enterprise funds.

Implementation and next steps: Staff said the change would require administrative updates and that any decision to absorb additional payment types (for example, credit‑card autopay) would require budgeting for a larger amount. Staff also noted customers can avoid third‑party fees today by mailing checks or using bank bill‑pay services that some banks provide.

Ending: Staff will proceed with administrative steps to implement an ACH autopay fee waiver and return budget adjustments or further direction to council if the scope changes.