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Erie council adopts 2026 fee schedule but removes business late fees for further review
Summary
Council adopted the town's 2026 fee schedule — including cemetery, water deposit and meter changes — but voted to strike proposed business‑license late fees and asked staff to return with a refined proposal later.
Erie — The Town Council adopted the 2026 municipal fee schedule after staff described routine annual updates, but council voted to remove proposed business‑license late fees for further study.
"The departments are asked to update their fees every year with the budget," Finance Director Sarah Hancock said, explaining that fees typically reflect inflation or results from recent rate studies. Hancock and department staff reviewed cemetery fee increases (including an option for nonresident plots), adjustments to water meter/hydrant deposits and water service charges in line with the town’s recent rate study, and a new business‑license late‑fee structure.
Director of Economic Development Julian Jackwin told the council that the licensing program was reinstated in recent years to keep better contact with local businesses and that late fees were proposed to improve compliance. He said the town had some 280 commercial business licenses and about 120 home‑occupation licenses but still lacked full compliance and that staff had consulted legal counsel and peer cities in setting late‑fee parameters.
Several council members expressed concern that the proposed late‑fee multipliers (which could make commercial and home‑occupation late fees several times larger than the base license fee) were not closely aligned with underlying license amounts and asked staff to revisit the structure and the renewal timeline. Jackwin said staff were open to adjustments and were working on moving the renewal deadline later in the year to ease holiday impacts for business owners.
Councilmember O'Connor moved to adopt Resolution 25‑189 with the explicit exclusion of the proposed business‑license late fees so staff can revisit the structure; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
What’s next: staff will continue to refine late‑fee proposals and return to the council for further consideration; other fee changes (cemetery, water meter/hydrant deposits) were adopted as presented.
