City of Gonzales
PUBLIC WORKS / CITY ENGINEER DEPARTMENT
STAFF REPORT
TO: Honorable Mayor Rios and City Council
DATE: June 2, 2025
FROM: Patrick Dobbins, Public Works Director/City Engineer THROUGH: Carmen Gil, City Manager
SUBJECT: Resolution No. 2025-28 Establishing the FY 2025-2026 Cost of Services Fee Schedule
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council approve Resolution No. 2025-28, A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Gonzales Establishing the Cost for Services Fee Schedule for Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
BACKGROUND
Gonzales City Code 1.44.020 “General Fee Schedule Established” states “The City Council shall by resolution adopt and may by resolution from time to time amend, a schedule of fees and charges applicable to City services and functions not otherwise specifically provided for in this code. Said schedule shall be known and designated as the General Fee Schedule of the city.” Every year, staff present an updated Cost for Services Fee Schedule to the City Council for inclusion in the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year beginning July 1st. Staff proposes fees that are legal, applicable, cost effective, and cover the expected cost for city provided services. The adoption is publicly noticed as evidenced by the attached legal notice.
AGENDA
ITEM
21 REVIEW AND ANALYSIS
Staff performed a comprehensive review of the various city fees for this update. Staff collected the current fee schedules for the cities of Soledad, Greenfield and King and reviewed their fees to ensure our fees were in line with neighboring cities. And all departments were asked to review their respective fees and some adjustments were made, such as:
1. Building and Planning fees were cross checked with rates from 4Leaf to ensure that the City is receiving cost recovery.
2. Recreation fees were revised to support cost recovery and to be more in line with surrounding cities.
3. Mitigation Rates for the Fire Department Emergency Response were updated to reflect the rates approved at the March 17th City Council Meeting.
The proposed fees were increased by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Price Index (CPI) as of February 2025. This year, the index is 2.7% as shown on the attached document from the State’s website. This is the same index used each year. On January 1, 2026, water and wastewater fees will increase per Resolution No. 2023-67.
For the impact fees, pursuant to Gonzales City Code Section 1.48.050 C1: the appropriate index to use is the Engineering-New Record Construction Cost Index from December of the prior year, which would result in an adjustment of 2.9% as shown in Attachment 2.
Solid Waste collection fees are established by the Salinas Valley Solid Waste Authority (SVSWA) and Tri-Cities Disposal (franchise hauler). Tri-Cities’ rates are changing under a new franchise agreement that is going before Council on June 16, 2025. SVSWA pass-through fees include a 5.15% increase to its organics processing fee, along with its annual AB939 fee adjustment which resulted in a 11.96% increase.
Attachments to this staff report are the adopting resolution, the proposed fees for Fiscal Year 2025-26, with any increases in bold, the Consumer Price Index increases, the Construction Cost Index for the impact fee increases and the explanation of the fees including current and proposed fees. This item is a Public Hearing and the published Public Notice is also attached (Attachment 3).
Explain Recommendation and How it Supports the Vision
Gonzales will continue to be a safe, clean, family-friendly community, diverse in its heritage, and committed to working collaboratively to preserve and retain its small-town charm.
Explain: Collecting appropriate fees provides the needed resources to maintain and improve Gonzales’ safe, clean, and family-friendly community.
Explain how the Recommendation Directly Implements the Mission The City Council and Staff of the City of Gonzales will realize our Vision by providing the leadership, commitment, and resources necessary to provide excellent services that enhance the quality of life of our diverse community.
1 “Annual Adjustment of Fees: Notwithstanding substantive adjustment of impact fees based on reconsideration or updated analyses of those matters set forth in subsection A of this section, the fees established in subsection B of this section shall be adjusted every year on July 1, commencing July 1, 2007, to reflect the annual percentage change in the construction cost index for San Francisco as of December 1 of the previous year as reported in the ‘Engineering News-Record’.”
Explain: The attached fee schedule provides only the needed resources for continued excellent services. Fees do not provide the full cost of services but try to recover reasonable fees.
City services will be delivered in a cost-effective, respectful, and friendly manner to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the residents and the promotion of business, recreational, housing and employment opportunities in an environmentally sustainable manner.
Explain: Using this updated fee schedule is a cost-effective way to provide services and recover reasonable costs for those services.
Strong fiscal policies allow us to provide appropriate infrastructure for:
• Public Safety X Yes No N/A
• Housing X Yes No N/A
• Recreation X Yes No N/A
• Environment X Yes No N/A
• Education Yes No X N/A
Explain: Service and impact fees allow services to continue and improve. Keeping cost of living increases reasonable allows Gonzales to be more sustainable.
ALTERNATIVES
The City Council could direct staff to modify the recommended fees or leave fees at last year’s values.
Staff recommends against this option to keep fees and costs aligned as much as possible to avoid the need for future larger increases.
BUDGET IMPACT
The recommended fees are incorporated into the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2025-26.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommends the City Council approve Resolution No. 2025-28, A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Gonzales Establishing the Cost for Services Fee Schedule for Fiscal Year 2025-26.
Attachments:
1. Resolution No. 2025-28
2. Fee Schedule FY 2025-2026
3. ENR as of Dec 2024
4. Public Hearing Notice