City Council Agenda Report
Meeting Date: April 7, 2026
From: Alice Hui, Director of Finance/City Treasurer
Department: Finance
Submitted by: Alice Hui, Director of Finance/City Treasurer Subject
Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-2027 General Fee Schedule
Recommendation
A. Conduct a Public Hearing; and
B. Adopt Resolution No. 2026-013 authorizing and adopting the FY 2026-27 General Fee Schedule.
Background
The City provides services to individuals or businesses for a fee. When fees do not fully recover the cost of providing a service, it results in a subsidy that may affect the City’s ability to fund programs and services relied upon by the community. Examples of City services for which fees are charged include the issuance of building, development and health and environmental control permits.
As part of the annual budget process, the City’s General Fee Schedule is reviewed to ensure that the fees are established in accordance with applicable federal and State laws and accurately reflect the scope and cost of services provided. A draft fee schedule is then prepared for presentation to the Business and Industry Commission (BIC) and the City Council.
In March 2025, the City engaged Willdan Finance Services (Willdan) to conduct a User Fee Study. The study calculated the full cost of service and developed fee schedules for activities in the Building, Engineering, Health and Environmental Control, Police and administrative service areas. Fees related to Fire Prevention Services were not reviewed, as those services are provided by and approved through the Los Angeles County Fire Department. The proposed General Fee Schedule for FY 2025-26 based on the results of the User Fee Study, dated March 13, 2025, was adopted on April 1, 2025.
The proposed General Fee Schedule for FY 2026-27 includes revisions to Engineering and Health and Environmental Control permit fees to better align with the cost of service. Engineering fee updates include revisions to grading fees and fees related to type of work performed and the addition of transportation permit fees, including overload hauling permits established by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Health and Environmental Control permit fee changes include revisions to food plan check and CUPA plan check fees, as well as the addition of local agency oversight services fees, such as environmental site assessment review fee and a miscellaneous fee. A redline of the proposed changes is attached to this report for reference (Attachment 2).
To ensure that the public has access to the most updated Fire Prevention Service fees, which are administered and controlled by the Los Angeles County Fire Department, the proposed Fee Schedule includes a link to the Los Angeles County Fire Prevention Fee website rather than a detailed listing of fees.
Fees structures may vary among cities due to differences in community needs, organizational structures, and service delivery responsibilities. As a result, direct fee comparisons across jurisdictions can be challenging. Where feasible, the City’s proposed fees were compared with those of similar cities to confirm that the fees are reasonable and consistent with the level and type of service provided. Ongoing annual reviews and adjustments to the fee schedule, particularly to reflect increases in labor-related costs, will help ensure the City is appropriately reimbursed for the cost of services provided.
On February 19, 2026, staff presented a draft of the proposed FY 2026-27 General Fee Schedule to the BIC. The Commission expressed support for the proposed General Fee Schedule and requested that staff present it to Council for adoption.
Public Hearing
As required by California Government Code Sections 6062(a) and 66016, a notice of public hearing for the proposed General Fee Schedule for FY 2026-27 was published in the Huntington Park Bulletin on March 19, 2026, and March 26, 2026. The notice included the date, time, and location of the public hearing scheduled for April 7, 2026, information on how to access relevant documents prior to the hearing, and instructions for providing written comments. The publication schedule complied with Government Code requirements that the notice be published twice in a newspaper of general circulation, with at least five days intervening between publications. A copy of the published notice has been included (Attachment 3) to this staff report.
Fiscal Impact
The fiscal impact of the proposed changes is expected to be minimal, as the changes are limited to targeted adjustments and the addition of select fees intended to recover the cost of providing services rather than generate additional revenue.
Attachments
1. Resolution No. 2026-013 – FY 2026-27 General Fee Schedule
2. Redline of Proposed FY 2026-27 General Fee Schedule
3. Proof of Publication – Notice of Public Hearing – FY 2026-27 General Fee Schedule