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Winnebago County Board of Health approves modest increase to local licensing fees
Summary
The Board approved a county licensing fee schedule that raises local base fees about 2.5% (plus a 1% state reimbursement increase) to cover program costs and keep local inspections in place; staff will forward the ordinance package to the county board.
Winnebago County's Board of Health voted to approve a new licensing fee schedule that raises local base fees by about 2.5% effective July 1, a move staff said is designed to cover program costs and prevent larger future jumps.
Director (speaker 3) told the board the department reviewed labor, travel, supplies and state reimbursement requirements before recommending a 2.5% across-the-board local increase in addition to a 1% state fee change. "We're recommending a 2 and a half percent increase on [the] local fee in addition to the 1% increase in state reimbursement," the director said, adding that the combined effect results in roughly a low 2% increase in most license fees.
The worksheet staff presented broke fees down by license type, permits issued in the previous year, current fee, proposed fee and expected revenue and reimbursements. Staff noted a new state lodging code created tourist rooming-house (TRH) categories; for some TRH tiers that created a much larger percentage jump because the state added inspection requirements. "That [TRH] reason jumped up so much was because of the increased burden of work with the new lodging code," the director said, noting the county's local fee for that category still remains lower than the state's published fee.
Board members asked whether the new TRH definitions meaningfully differ from hotels and motels; staff explained the TRH designation is keyed to unit access and administrative burden rather than bedroom count. Staff also offered to prepare a simplified packet for the county board that highlights the bottom-line revenue and a short public-facing explanation: local fees are rising modestly to cover the cost of locally provided inspections and services and remain generally lower than state rates for comparable work.
A motion to approve the 2026'27 fee schedule was made from the floor and seconded; the motion carried. Staff will include the worksheet and the ordinance language in the county board packet so the county board can take the next formal step.
Votes and formal paperwork: board members approved the fee schedule at this meeting; the packet and ordinance will proceed to the Winnebago County board for final ordinance adoption and publication.
