TITLE
Recommendation to receive and file the results of the user fee and cost recovery studies for the Police, Fire and Health and Human Services Departments, and associated departmental recommendations. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
At the direction of the City Council, City of Long Beach (City) staff initiated a Citywide Fee Study (Study) in 2019 to conduct a comprehensive cost of service analysis for the City’s numerous fees and charges for services across various City departments. Conducting this Study complies with the City’s adopted Financial Policy on User Fees and Charges. That policy indicates that “User Fees and Charges will be set at the cost of the service,” and “Fees will be set to fully recover costs, except where there is a greater public benefit through use of a lower fee, such as where full recovery may adversely impact overall revenue or may discourage participating in programs where the participation benefits the overall community. The City Manager will establish a process for in-depth review of all fees over time. The review, while eventually covering all fees, should emphasize those that have or may have significant subsidies (may not be at full cost).”
On August 20, 2019, the City selected the consultant Revenue and Cost Specialists (RCS) to work closely with City staff to identify services offered by each department, calculate the full cost of service including labor, benefits, materials, supplies, and overhead/administrative expenditures, and calculate subsidy levels for each service. In addition, the Study for each department reports:
· The current fees compared to a proposed fee based on the actual cost of the services;
· Recommendations for potential new or adjusted fees and charges for service; and
· Recommendations for alternative or adjusted fee structures.
Following the completion of each study, a cost of service model will be available for each department to update on a move-forward basis to annually assess the cost of service and s...
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