Idaho Falls City Council to vote on new fees and fee increases
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IDAHO FALLS — The Idaho Falls City Council will vote on several new fees and fee increases during a meeting on Thursday.
The proposed new fees and increases are set to begin with the start of the upcoming fiscal year on Oct. 1.
The Idaho Falls City Council held a public hearing for the fee schedule on Aug. 11 to address 16 new fees and several fee increases of over five percent. According to the documentation provided at the meeting, eight departments requested significant fee changes.
Among the fees proposed by Idaho Falls Municipal Services are changes surrounding animal control. Currently, the full-service boarding fee is $19 per day for animals. This fee would increase to $25 per day but also add an alternative of $15 per day if the owner provides food.
Fees for animal microchips would increase from $20 to $25, and two new fees include an animal surrender fee of $25 per animal and a cremation fee of $15 per animal (in addition to the ashes return fees, which depend on animal weight).
Fee changes are also on the table for cemetery services. There is a newly proposed propane fee of $50 for ground thaw for winter burials. Additionally, the cost of an infant burial would increase from $200 to $350, a 40 percent increase.
At the Idaho Falls Zoo, Junior Zoo Crew member and nonmember fees are proposed to increase by 20 percent each. At city golf courses, golf passes, green fees, and golf cart rentals are proposed to increase by an average of 3.85 percent.
If the fee schedule is approved, water rates in Idaho Falls would rise by roughly 7.5 percent across the board.
Other changes of note in the fee schedule include increasing the airport parking fee to a maximum of $15 per day and a new site plan bonding application fee of $150.
Typically, during a public hearing, council members question a presenter about fee increases, and the public is given an opportunity to weigh in before the matter is deliberated and adopted. During the Aug. 11 public hearing, no council members asked any questions, and the only comment from residents looked for clarification regarding the new site plan bonding application fee.
During the hearing, several council members mentioned that although there had been minimal public input, any comments they received before Thursday’s hearing would be considered by the council.
“We’ve worked hard to make sure that there is this process so that we can hear from the community,” Councilman John Radford said.
He added that all the council members have emails on the city’s website.
“We’d be happy to hear from people so we can continue this conversation,” Radford said.
The fee schedule will be discussed and voted on during the Thursday, Aug. 25, city council meeting. It will be held at 680 Park Avenue in the City Annex Building at 7:30 p.m. Residents can review the fee changes here. Contact information for council members and Mayor Casper is on the city website here.