Boise proposes wide fee increases, impact fee updates and enterprise rate changes; public hearing set July 15
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Summary
City staff proposed changes to roughly 1,385 fees, with most increasing; notable enterprise increases include a 9.9% water renewal rate rise and 9% residential solid waste increase; impact fee changes (1.6%) were also presented and will require a separate public hearing July 15.
City staff told the council that the FY26 budget includes a broad fee update across many departments and funds, and that the changes will be the subject of a public hearing scheduled for July 15.
Alicia (city staff member) said citywide there are 1,385 fees; in the proposed fee update 712 fees would increase, 605 remain unchanged, 23 would be eliminated and 42 would be new. Staff explained that state law requires fees to reflect the actual cost of service and that most departmental revenues are reimbursement‑based and not available for general purposes.
Why it matters: departmental and enterprise fee changes affect users of parks, water, solid waste and other city services. The council heard that some enterprise funds follow mandated or previously adopted rate trajectories (for example, the water renewal fund increase aligns with a previously approved bond trajectory), while solid waste adjustments seek to move toward full cost of service across rate classes.
Selected fee items discussed - Water renewal fund: staff presented a proposed 9.9% increase tied to a previously approved bond rate trajectory. - Solid waste: proposed increases of 9% for residential fees, 4% for commercial trash and 3% for industrial recycling; staff said fee classes are adjusted over time to align with cost of service and that shifts between classes can create differing percentage increases. - Parks and recreation and zoo: staff flagged fee increases driven by cost recovery and market comparisons; staff said scholarship funding for Parks and Rec remains available and that state code restricts charging more than the cost of service. - Impact fees: city staff said the proposed development impact fee increase is 1.6% (approved by DFAC) and will require a separate public hearing on July 15.
Discussion and council comments Council members asked for more details on specific large jumps in some fees and suggested a strategy of smaller, consistent annual increases rather than large periodic ‘catch‑up’ increases. Staff said the FY27 fee schedule could smooth increases and that they perform market comparisons for categories exposed to competition. Some council members asked staff to examine whether rental rates for event facilities (for example the depot) could be increased modestly to offset other admission fee pressures.
Ending: staff reiterated that the public hearing on fees is July 15 and said they will provide more detailed breakdowns of revenue impacts for specific fee lines when requested.
