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Council adopts burial‑certificate fee changes after debate over fairness and staff time
Summary
Centerville approved Resolution 2025-14 on Sept. 16 to add fees for burial‑certificate administration: $100 for transfers by inheritance/trust, $50 for replacement of lost certificates and $0 for in‑hand assignments; staff will apply a single $150 fee when multiple spaces are assigned in one transaction.
The Centerville City Council voted Sept. 16 to amend the municipal fee schedule to add charges for burial‑certificate administration, aiming to recoup staff time for complex transfer or replacement requests.
City staff member Lisa told the council that transfers and replacements of burial certificates can be time‑consuming and often require review of trust or will documents and record searches. "We've developed some forms for this ... and the transfer by inheritance or trust is the one that takes the most time," Lisa said, explaining why staff proposed fees to cover administrative work.
Council members debated fee levels and whether routine assignments (when a resident brings the physical certificate to the treasurer) should carry a fee. One councilmember described an in‑office name change as a brief, five‑minute transaction and argued against charging for that service: "I just don't think we should charge $50 just to change the name over from one name to the..." another council member said.
After discussion, council amended the proposal and approved Resolution No. 2025‑14 with the following fee structure: transfer by inheritance/trust — $100; replacement (lost certificate) — $50; assignment when the certificate is in hand — $0. Staff also included a footnote that multiple assignments completed in a single transaction should be charged a single fee (the draft cites a $150 cap for multiple simultaneous assignments).
Council members said the goal is not to raise general revenue but to recover staff costs for time‑intensive legal/records work, while avoiding disincentives for simple in‑office transfers. Staff will update resolution text to correct minor drafting items and publish the amended fee schedule.
