City Council
259 N. Wilma Avenue
Ripon, CA 95366
MEMO
To: Honorable City Council
From: Ken Zuidervaart, Planning Director
Date: 09/09/2025
Subject: Building Department Fees
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the resolution approving the Building Department Fee Schedule and the indexing of those fees, beginning January 1, 2027.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Ripon Building Department is responsible for safeguarding the health, safety, and welfare of those who live and work in the City by enforcing building safety standards established in the California Building Code, as well as local municipal codes and policies. The Building Department staff reviews and approves building plans and conducts field inspections to ensure all construction performed under a building permit complies with the approved plans and applicable regulations. The revenue that funds these tasks is collected through the various permit fees.
The City of Ripon Building Department currently does not maintain a formally published fee schedule for its services. Instead, permit and inspection fees are determined by referencing Tables 3-A through 3-H of the 1994 Uniform Administrative Code, which were adopted by Ordinance No. 557 in 1996 and have remained unchanged since then. Since that time, the Building Department has experienced significant increases in operational expenses due to rising labor costs, overhead, and new regulatory requirements. The current fee schedule no longer collects sufficient revenue through fees to offset the cost of the Building Department.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
The purpose of this report is to seek City Council approval for an updated building permit fee schedule. The adjustments are designed to ensure that those individuals and entities that are utilizing the Building Department services are paying the appropriate fee base. This will ensure the Building Department is able to continue to provide timely, high-quality service, while keeping Ripon’s fees competitive with those in nearby jurisdictions.
The City’s Building Department Fee Program includes the following fee tables:
Table A - Building Permit Fee Table: applies to valuation based building permits. Table B - Plan Review Fees: applies to plan reviews.
Table C - Additional Fees and Surcharge Fees: applies to all other required fees and miscellaneous fees.
Table D - Residential Permits and Inspections: applies to building permits for all residential construction.
Table E - Commercial Permits and Inspections: applies to building permits for all commercial construction.
Table F - Schedule of Fees for Plumbing Permits and Inspections: applies to building permits for all plumbing construction related activities. Table G - Schedule of Fees for Mechanical Permits and Inspections: applies to building permits for all mechanical construction related activities Table H - Schedule of Fees for Electrical Permits and Inspections: applies to building permits for all electrical construction related activities. Table I - Miscellaneous Permits and Inspections: applies to miscellaneous construction activities that don’t fall under any other categories.
The attached justification study evaluated the staff time in order to process, review, and inspect the various permits included in each fee table and recommends an updated permit fee to recover 90% of the Building Department expense through these fees.
JUSTIFICATION:
1. Cost Recovery and Department Expenses:
A detailed analysis of Building Department expenses, including labor, overhead, plan checks, and inspections, shows that current fees recover only 57% of actual costs. The proposed fee schedule is structured to achieve a 90% cost recovery rate, consistent with best practices for building departments in California. This adjustment will allow the department to maintain appropriate staffing and meet community needs efficiently, while continuing to provide responsive and knowledgeable customer service.
2. Adoption of Industry Standards:
The new fee structure is based on nationally recognized valuation data from the International Code Council (ICC). This approach promotes fairness, simplifies the fee calculation process, and enhances transparency for applicants by closely tying fees to construction project value and/or a time based approach.
3. Regional Comparison:
Staff conducted a thorough comparison of Ripon’s proposed building permit and plan check fees for Table A – Building Permit Fee Table, which is typically the highest fee, against those in surrounding cities and counties for homes at a variety of sizes and valuations. Even after the proposed adjustments, Ripon’s fees remain among the lowest when compared to neighboring jurisdictions as can be seen in the following comparison charts.
Building Permit and Plan Check Based on a
2,930 sq. ft. home with a valuation of
$344,000
1 Lathrop $ 3,665.19
2 Ripon $ 3,741.14
3 Escalon $ 3,765.99
4 Stockton $ 3,882.32
5 San Joaquin County $ 4,017.58
6 Stanislaus County $ 4,790.15
7 Tracy $ 6,028.38
8 Lodi $ 8,095.69
Building Permit and Plan Check Based on a
3,793 sq. ft. home with a valuation of
$659,000
1 Ripon $ 6,013.19
2 Escalon $ 6,086.99
3 Lathrop $ 6,089.39
4 Stockton $ 6,918.14
5 Tracy $ 7,744.16
6 Stanislaus County $ 8,701.19
7 San Joaquin County $ 11,246.43
8 Lodi $ 13,091.41
4. Ongoing Adjustments:
To ensure that building permit fees keep pace with changes in costs over time, staff recommends annual adjustments as follows:
Permit fees to be adjusted each year on January 1st starting in 2027 using the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Technology Maintenance and Program Recovery Fee (IT Fee) to be increased by 5% each year on January 1st starting in 2027.
Attachments:
1. Exhibit "A" - Building Permit Fee Schedule
Building Permit and Plan Check Based on a
3,027 sq. ft. home with a valuation of
$528,000
1 Ripon $ 5,148.59
2 Escalon $ 5,169.99
3 Lathrop $ 5,198.59
4 Stockton $ 5,655.63
5 San Joaquin County $ 6,478.16
6 Stanislaus County $ 6,762.62
7 Tracy $ 7,542.62
8 Lodi $ 11,819.14
Building Permit and Plan Check Based on a
5,889 sq. ft. home with a valuation of
$1,001,000
1 Ripon $ 8,263.80
2 Lathrop $ 8,425.20
3 Escalon $ 8,634.00
4 San Joaquin County $ 9,377.84
5 Stockton $ 10,204.56
6 Tracy $ 10,554.01
7 Stanislaus County $ 12,652.81
8 Lodi $ 16,404.49
2. Fee Justification Study
3. Notice of Public Hearing
RESOLUTION NO. 25-29
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
RIPON APPROVING THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT
PERMIT FEE SCHEDULE WITH ANNUAL INDEXING
WHEREAS, pursuant to Ripon Municipal Code Chapter 17.16 and Government Code sections 66013, 66014, and 66016, the City Council of the City of Ripon is authorized to adopt a resolution approving a Building Department Permit Fee Schedule for the processing of various permits submitted to the Building Department; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Ripon finds it necessary to establish a formal Building Department Fee Schedule to recover the costs associated with providing building permit processing, plan review, inspections, and related services; and WHEREAS, in accordance with Government Code section 66016, for at least ten days prior to the noticed public hearing, the City has had on file in the City Clerk’s office, and made available to the public, the report calculating the costs of services and justifying the various fee amounts set forth in this resolution; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with Government Code sections 66016 and 66018, on September 9, 2025 the City Council of the City of Ripon conducted a public hearing regarding establishment of fees and charges by the Building Department of the City and provided notice to the public of said meeting by publication at least 10 days before the meeting; and WHEREAS, in accordance with Government Code section 66016, the City of Ripon has mailed notice at least 14 days prior to adoption of the increased fees to all interested parties who have filed written requests to the City regarding proposed fee increases; and WHEREAS, the City of Ripon aims to achieve a 90% cost recovery rate for Building Department services to ensure fiscal sustainability while maintaining fair and competitive permit fees; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to provide for annual adjustments to the fee schedule to account for changes in inflation, labor costs, and technology expenses; and WHEREAS, the City Council has reviewed and desires to accept the proposed fee schedule and indexing methodology.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Ripon as follows:
Section 1. Findings. The City Council of the City of Ripon finds and determines as follows:
(a) The foregoing Recitals are true and correct;
(b) The Building Department Permit Fee Schedule and the fee indexing methodology produced by staff are acceptable to the City Council and provide a fee schedule that does not exceed the estimated amount required to provide the services for which the fees are levied.
Section 2. Adoption of Fee Schedule.
The City Council hereby adopts the Building Department Permit Fee Schedule attached hereto as Exhibit “A” and incorporated herein by reference.
Section 3. Annual Indexing of Fees.
Beginning January 1, 2027, the City shall annually adjust the permit fees using the following provisions to maintain the cost recovery target and reflect actual cost changes:
1. Permit Fee:
Permit Fees shall be adjusted each January 1 to reflect the percentage change in the “Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), All items – Bay Area Cities”, as published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The adjustment shall use the 12-month percentage change ending on June 30 of the previous year.
2. Technology Maintenance and Program Recovery Fee (IT Fee):
The IT Fee shall increase by 5%.
Section 4. Administration and Notification.
The Director of Planning, Building and Economic Development or their designee is authorized to implement the fee schedule, calculate the annual fee adjustments provided for herein, publish updated fee schedules, and notify the public accordingly.
Section 5. Severability.
If any provision of this resolution or the fee schedule is held invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the remaining provisions, which shall remain in full force and effect.
Section 6. Effective Date.
This resolution shall take effect 60 days after its adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Ripon this 9th day of September, 2025, by the following vote:
RESULT: ADOPTED [UNANIMOUS]
MOVER: Leo Zuber, Council Member
SECONDER:Michael Restuccia, Council Member
AYES: de Graaf, Barton, Uecker, Restuccia, Zuber
THE CITY OF RIPON,
A Municipal Corporation
By ________________________________
DANIEL DE GRAAF, Mayor
ATTEST:
By: ___________________________
LISA ROOS, City Clerk