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Public Works committee backs $3 stormwater fee increase; mill levy adjustment included in budget
Summary
Committee approved language recommended in the budget to raise the stormwater ERU fee from $41 to $44 (plus returning mill levy toward 1.0) after staff said $3 meets near-term program needs while a $6 option would over-accelerate funds the city is not yet ready to spend.
The Overland Park Public Works Committee approved, as part of its budget recommendation, a $3 increase in the stormwater equivalent residential unit (ERU) fee from $41 to $44 and a modest adjustment of the stormwater property-tax mill levy toward 1.0 (current ~0.96), after staff laid out scenarios and program needs (staff member, speaker 9 and 6).
Staff said the $3 increase follows the Infrastructure Advisory Group recommendation for incremental fee adjustments and puts the city roughly in the middle of peer communities when accounting for both fee and mill-levy components. Staff noted some stormwater needs—pond dredging and additional BMP maintenance—were not fully included in earlier assessments; the committee discussed a larger $6 increase option but staff cautioned the city was "not ready to execute" a $6 jump because design and delivery capacity would lag. One council member argued for the moderated $3 step now and reevaluation next year: "keeping the $3 where it is is the right move right now... we are not ready to spend that $6," the council member said (council member, speaker 1).
Staff also noted the proposed change in mill levy will generate modest additional revenue (staff estimated the mill-levy move to 1.0 would produce about $225,000 for 2027 and that the average homeowner impact would be less than $2.50). The committee approved the recommended budget package, including the $3 ERU increase and the mill-levy adjustment, unanimously.
