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County staff present $21.7M fee study; Board weighs fee changes and equity protections
Summary
An MGT Consulting study presented Feb. 10 found $21.7 million in total costs for fee-based programs in three departments and suggested the county currently recovers about 35% via fees; county staff asked the Board for policy priorities to guide FY 2026-27 fee recommendations.
Orange County officials reviewed a comprehensive fee study at the Board’s Feb. 10 work session, outlining options for increasing fees to better align user charges with program costs while protecting access for low-income residents.
"The total cost to the County of operating fee-based programs in these three departments is $21.7 million dollars," the consultant’s presentation noted; the study found the County generated $7.6 million in fees (about 35% recovery), leaving roughly $14.1 million in county subsidy. Budget Director Kirk Vaughn asked the Board to signal priorities so staff could shape specific fee recommendations for the FY 2026-27 budget.
Commissioners and department directors discussed possible approaches. Vice-Chair Amy Fowler said the county should consider moving closer to full cost recovery in some areas given budget constraints, while Planning & Inspections Director Cy Stober cautioned that process streamlining may reduce workload but is unlikely to cut full-time positions immediately. Stober also warned that raising special-use permit fees could send a discouraging signal to potential applicants.
Officials discussed recreation fees at length. DEAPR Director David Stancil said youth programming has much higher participation (roughly 1,000 youth participants) than adult athletics (about 125 participants), which helps explain why adult athletics show a higher per-participant subsidy. Several commissioners expressed a desire to prioritize subsidies for youth programming and to avoid policies that would discourage participation from lower-income families.
Other topics included whether Orange County Schools have been paying inspection fees (staff characterized nonpayment as an item measured in the low thousands to the tens of thousands), the county hardship waiver program (about $40,000 annually), and EMS fee-recovery dynamics tied to payer mix and regional comparisons. Chair Jean Hamilton asked staff to return with fee schedules and data on likely impacts so the Board could make informed trade-offs.
The County Manager will use the Board’s feedback to propose fee adjustments as part of the FY 2026-27 budget process.
