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Sherburne County adopts unified fee schedule, raises select user fees after public hearing
Summary
After a public hearing, the Sherburne County Board of Commissioners adopted a unified 2026 fee schedule that raises multiple user fees, including a jump in the tax-forfeiture affidavit and certain permit fees. County staff said increases reflect higher staff time and statutory constraints; one resident questioned the scale of some increases.
The Sherburne County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday adopted a unified county fee schedule for 2026, approving a series of incremental increases to user charges and permitting fees after a public hearing.
County staff introduced the consolidated schedule during the board's public hearing, saying most changes were modest and had been presented previously in department budgets and the preliminary levy. Keisha (county staff) and Bruce (county administrator/staff) told the board that one fee — a community corrections fee adopted earlier this year — would become effective prior to January 2026 and that a stormwater and erosion-control permit fee would go into effect upon publication (roughly two weeks after the meeting).
The most notable public comment came from Brett Collier of Big Lake, who questioned several increases on the schedule. Collier pointed to a change on “page 17” that raised the tax-forfeiture land-affidavit fee from $10 to $75, calling it “an over 700% jump” and asking how the change had been calculated. Bruce and other staff said new state requirements for tax-forfeiture processing had substantially increased workload for county staff, and the fee was intended to better reflect staff time. Staff also said the revised amounts are generally aligned with neighboring counties.
Collier also highlighted an increase in the confession-of-judgment administration fee (from $10 to $75) and sharp rises in some building-permit–related fees — for example, some demolition, furnace, and fencing fees rose by about 33%. Officials said those permit fees are constrained by statute and must move toward full cost recovery.
Commissioner Hulse moved to adopt the fee schedule as recommended; Commissioner Felber seconded. The motion carried on an affirmative voice vote.
County staff noted that, while the county regularly seeks efficiencies, lowering fees is rare and most adjustments reflect the actual cost of providing services. The board did not identify any large, one-off fee hikes beyond those described by staff.
The approved unified schedule consolidates fees previously presented in department budget materials and becomes effective on the dates noted in the adopted document (some immediately upon publication, others in January 2026). The county will publish the final schedule to its website and update department fee pages accordingly.
