County Environmental Health Services Proposes Raising Fees for Permits

Santa Barbara County plans to increase fees for permits administered by Environmental Health Services — some by hundreds of dollars — to help the department offset rising costs.

The Board of Supervisors approved the potential fee increases in a first reading of the proposal at its May 13 meeting.

Under the changes, everything from tattoo shops, waste systems and public swimming pools could see the cost of obtaining permits increase. The fee increases would differ based on the application, but could range from a $20 increase to $800.

For example, the annual fee for an underground petroleum storage tank would jump from $1,165 to $2,008 — an increase of $843. The fee for a new standard septic system would rise from $1,438 to $2,016.

Mouhanad Hammami, the director of the County Health Department, told the board that the adjustments were developed to consider how much time staff had to dedicate to the application. More intensive projects saw larger increases.

“It is noteworthy that our fees, these ordinances and resolutions are not going to change any of the programmatic services or the way we operate. It is just to ensure that funding is adequate to conduct these services,” Hammami said.

If the board votes to approve the increases, Environmental Health Services could see $775,000 in additional revenue. The department is expecting a deficit of $450,000 to $500,000 for the current fiscal year.

One of the biggest drivers of cost for the department is labor. The department has been using reserves to fund its services, but those reserves are beginning to run dry, staff said.

Environmental Health Services oversees about 91 fees. Out of that number, 66 would see an increase, 14 would decrease, six would remain the same and five new fees would be added.

In addition to the increases for specific services, the department also would be combining two different application fees into one with a flat cost of $145.

During the board’s comments, Fourth District Supervisor Bob Nelson acknowledged the value of public health and Environmental Health Services. However, he said he would not support the motion based on his concerns about passing the cost onto the applicant.

“I’m concerned about also fees impacting economic activity in our county as well,” Nelson said. “Again, Environmental Health is not the main culprit of this. There are other departments that are chilling business development in our county, but I do want to kind of stay philosophically consistent with this.”

The board voted to approve the fee increases in a 3-1 vote. Nelson was the lone vote against the item, and Steve Lavagnino was absent.

The vote did not automatically increase permit fees and counted only as a first reading of the proposal. Environmental Health Services is set to return next Tuesday for the board to vote again and officially approve the changes.

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