Rathdrum council adopts updated fee schedule, asks staff to review 65% plan‑review multiplier

The Rathdrum City Council voted to adopt an updated fee schedule for fiscal year 2026, taking effect Oct. 1, while asking staff to review and report back on the plan‑review multiplier used to calculate building permit fees.

At a public hearing, staff said the proposed fees were based on department expenditures and comparisons with nearby jurisdictions. A change to the permit multiplier was presented in the packet (the documents show calculations that produced a multiplier reported as 0.008099). Council members questioned whether some fees — especially the commercial plan‑review charge set at 65% of the total plan‑review fee — reflect actual local costs or simply mirror other jurisdictions’ practices.

One council member said the city should “only be charging what it actually costs us and not using it as a revenue source” for plan reviews and requested the math behind the multiplier. Staff agreed to provide the detailed calculation and a cost‑comparison analysis and the council included that follow‑up as part of its approval motion.

The resolution adopting the fee schedule includes direction that staff return with a comparative cost analysis of plan‑review fees at the next council meeting; until that review, the council left the 65% plan‑review rate in place. The resolution was approved following a motion and second and passed on roll call.

Council and staff also explained increases to some parks and pavilion fees, attributing the changes primarily to newly measured water and sewer costs and recent staff wage adjustments. Staff noted the city has begun more complete meter reading and is discovering leaks and higher usage that affected the estimates.

Next steps: staff will send the requested permit‑fee calculation to the council and bring a written cost‑comparison report to the next meeting for council consideration.