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San Diego supervisors adopt fee and rate ordinance for fire, health and county services; one supervisor objects
Summary
The Board approved consolidated fee and rate changes covering fire inspections, ambulance and several county services effective FY2026. Supporters said the updates bring fees closer to cost recovery; Supervisor Desmond opposed increases to residential building permit fees amid the housing crisis.
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted May 5 to adopt ordinances updating fees and rates for county services, including county fire inspections, ambulance charges, medical examiner and behavioral health fees, and the annual fire mitigation program for fiscal year 2026. The motion passed with three votes in favor and one opposed; Vice Chair McGomery Stepp was absent.
The board moved to bundle items 9–11 with Fire Protection District items 1 and 2 for a single public hearing and vote. County staff said the package was intended to align charges with the actual cost of providing services under board policy B29. The consolidated motion was made by Supervisor Anderson and seconded by Chair Pro Tem Paloma Agiri; Chair Lawson Reamer and Chair Pro Tem Agiri joined Anderson in voting to adopt the ordinances. Supervisor Desmond cast the lone dissenting vote.
Supervisor Desmond pressed for a narrower approach on residential building fees, urging the board to pause increases affecting home construction and refer the shortfall to the county budget. "I'd like to stop the increases of the residential building permits with and without the fire sprinklers and refer the balance to budget," Desmond said, arguing fee hikes would add to housing‑cost pressures during a housing crisis.
County Fire and administrative staff defended the changes as necessary to meet cost‑recovery standards and maintain staffing and inspection capacity. The county fire director told the board that keeping fees flat would create a revenue gap for fire operations and estimated the net impact as a modest shortfall if the board declined the increases.
Board discussion included tradeoffs between full cost recovery and policy choices to support housing affordability. After debate and consideration of an amendment proposed by Supervisor Desmond (which failed to garner a second), the board adopted the full package.
The ordinances take effect as specified in the board letter; the vote record shows Chair Lawson Reamer, Supervisor Anderson and Chair Pro Tem Paloma Agiri voting yes and Supervisor Desmond voting no. The board and staff said they would continue to monitor implementation and the effects of the changes on permit processing and service delivery.
The matter was procedural and administrative: no criminal or enforcement changes were made; the action updates local fee schedules and transmits implementation directions to departments.
