County amends sheriff’s eviction-fee structure to charge hourly and add half‑hour slot

The Winnebago County Board voted on Jan. 23 to amend county code language governing eviction fees and the sheriff’s office process, changing the fee structure to an hourly rate with multiple time slots and clarifying refund rules for timely cancellations.

County Board Member Arena, who spoke at length about the sheriff’s operational concerns, explained the ordinance responds to landlords scheduling sheriff assistance for evictions and then failing to cancel appointments — creating wasted sheriff time and staff costs. Arena said a prior flat fee of $85 did not reflect actual hourly costs and noted a past cost study placed the sheriff’s hourly cost near $135.

Nut graf: The ordinance replaces a flat fee with a $100-per-hour structure and explicitly adds a half‑hour time slot and refund rules intended to deter no‑shows and align fee revenue with staff time used.

Arena moved to amend the proposed text to include the half‑hour slot and adjusted paragraph language. The amendment changed paragraph 6 to read that a landlord “shall pay a fee of $100 per hour for either 1 half hour, 1, 2, or 4 hours of service,” and made a corresponding change to paragraph 8. The amended ordinance also provides that if a landlord cancels at least three days in advance, the fee will be refunded; landlords who fail to cancel forfeit payment and must pay again to reschedule.

The county board adopted the amendment and then voted to approve the amended ordinance. The clerk recorded the motion as amended and directed members to cast yes votes; no named opposition was recorded in the transcript.

Ending: The ordinance is intended to align fees with sheriff costs and to encourage timely cancellations; the county did not present a revised fiscal estimate of net revenue at the meeting.