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Carmel-by-the-Sea staff present proposed fee schedule, recommend 2.4% CPI update and comprehensive cost study
Summary
City staff presented a proposed fee schedule for fiscal 2025–26, recommending a 2.4% CPI adjustment, adding previously omitted community and library fees, aligning ambulance charges with county rates and launching a comprehensive cost study; council discussion focused on fee burdens and possible waivers.
Carmel-by-the-Sea — At its May 6 meeting, city staff presented the proposed fee schedule for fiscal year 2025–26 and recommended a 2.4% Consumer Price Index adjustment to bring service fees up to date.
The presentation said the update would include community activities and library fees that had not been published previously, align city ambulance service charges with Monterey County’s fees and put the existing schedule into effect while the city launches a comprehensive time-and-cost study across departments.
City staff said the amounts on the current draft come from a 2023–24 study updated for the Bay Area CPI of 2.4%. Jamie, a city staff presenter, told the council the staff intends to start a full department-by-department cost study next year rather than waiting another three years. The study will capture current operations and any efficiencies new department heads have introduced.
Council members pressed staff on specific omissions and on how expensive fees might burden residents and applicants. Staff said some fees remain unset because time studies are not yet complete; those items will return after the studies. The presentation also said staff is exploring a process to grant fee waivers in some instances to reduce financial hardship.
City staff said the fee update process began about two months ago and, if adopted, will take roughly two additional months to implement so collections and billing can be adjusted. The transcript does not record a formal motion or roll-call vote on final adoption at this meeting.
Details in the staff presentation included: the CPI adjustment of 2.4%; inclusion of previously omitted community and library fees; a directive to mirror ambulance fees to the county’s ambulance fee schedule; and an instruction to launch a comprehensive cost study to identify additional recoverable activities, particularly in planning when late or after-the-fact work requires substantially more staff time.
Council members and staff agreed to return with the outstanding time studies and with a proposed waiver process before any further implementation steps.
