Board sets May 21 hearing on DEHQ fee ordinance after first reading; average increase 5%

Vice Chair Lawson Reimer and the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on May 7 approved a motion to set a May 21 public hearing and to give first reading to an ordinance that would adjust fees charged by the Department of Environmental Health and Quality (DEHQ).

The DEHQ presentation, given by Deputy Director Steven Tamayo, said the department oversees more than 40 programs and proposed an average fee increase of 5% across its programs. Tamayo told the board the package includes adjustments and changes intended to meet operational needs, recommended findings that the proposed actions are exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and requested a waiver of Board Policy B-29. The presentation also included a recommendation to end (sunset) an existing annual permit fee reduction for food, housing and pool facilities. If approved after the ordinance's second reading, DEHQ's proposed fees would become effective July 1, 2025.

Tamayo said: "The average fee fee increase across all fees for DEHQ is 5%."

Vice Chair Lawson Reimer supported the approach as a matter of cost recovery, saying the policy “makes sense because it makes sure that the services we’re providing, to the extent feasible, are recovering the cost of providing those services.” The motion to move the item forward passed unanimously, with all supervisors present voting aye.

Supervisor Desmond noted that about 250 veteran-owned businesses benefit annually from DEHQ's veterans fee-waiver program and asked staff to work with building and septic stakeholders to identify additional ways to offset fees for those businesses. That request was treated as direction to staff rather than a formal amendment to the ordinance.

Public comment on the fee package drew nine callers by phone and one e-comment in opposition. Several callers criticized the department’s work and questioned the need for higher fees; multiple callers made statements challenging public health programs and environmental testing, including claims dismissed by board staff as outside the scope of the fee discussion. One public commenter, Peggy Walker, urged consideration of a point-of-sale user fee to fund disposal programs for e-cigarette and vaping waste, citing environmental concerns for disposable vape products.

The board voted to set the May 21 public hearing and to approve the ordinance's first reading, with final adoption to occur only after the second reading at the May 21 hearing. The board record shows the motion passed unanimously.

Procedural notes: the item required two hearings under the county fee-ordinance rules; the board's action on May 7 approved the first reading and set the hearing for May 21. Staff said proposed fees would take effect July 1, 2025 if the ordinance is adopted after the second reading.