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Seattle council approves SDCI fee update after hours of debate over small-project burden
Summary
The Select Budget Committee approved an 18% SDCI fee increase for 2026 after a lengthy debate about whether rising permit fees will saddle small homeowners and builders while protecting the department's staffing levels. Council split 5–3 on the recommendation to send the ordinance to full council.
The Seattle City Council Select Budget Committee recommended passage of a Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) fee ordinance, sending the proposal to the full council after a 5–3 roll-call vote on Nov. 17.
The ordinance would update fee schedules to reflect both an inflationary adjustment and a partial ‘‘catch-up’’ to address a longer-term shortfall in permit-fee revenue. SDCI leaders told the committee that while construction volumes have risen modestly, total project valuation has fallen, shifting the department’s project mix toward many smaller, lower-value jobs and away from the high-value projects that historically subsidized regulatory services.
“Over the past decade we had a lot of larger, high-value projects that brought in much more revenue,” SDCI acting director Brooke Bellman said.…
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