Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
17 <br /> Recommendations <br /> MGT's recommendations for Orange County are grounded in the cost-of-service analysis <br /> completed for DEAPR, Planning and Inspections, and Emergency Services and are designed to <br /> be practical and implementable. The overarching objective is to align the County's fee structure <br /> and fee levels with the cost and beneficiaries of service,while honoring policy choices around <br /> accessibility, equity, and public safety. <br /> ♦ Orange County should build on its investment in this detailed user fee study by treating <br /> the cost models as living tools rather than one-time exercises. Whether maintained by <br /> County staff or updated periodically with outside support,the models for DEAPR, <br /> Planning and Inspections, and Emergency Services should be refreshed and reused to <br /> evaluate new fees,test policy scenarios, and support future budget decisions. Once the <br /> County has a clear picture of full cost, it is important to keep that picture current as <br /> service design, staffing, and demand evolve. <br /> ♦ Orange County should repeat this level of detailed fee analysis at least every three, but <br /> not more than every five,years, with minor schedule and rate adjustments in the <br /> intervening years. This cadence will allow the Board to recalibrate cost recovery targets <br /> as conditions change, including development activity, recreation participation, EMS call <br /> volumes, and broader fiscal pressures, while avoiding large, disruptive adjustments that <br /> can result from long gaps between studies. <br /> ♦ Orange County should incorporate an annual inflationary adjustment into its ongoing fee <br /> management practices, particularly once it adopts explicit cost recovery targets by <br /> program area. Applying a standard index, such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or <br /> another locally relevant indicator, during each annual budget cycle will help keep fees <br /> aligned with underlying labor, benefit, and operating cost trends. This is especially <br /> important for departments like Planning and Inspections, where the policy direction is to <br /> move development review toward full cost recovery, and for DEAPR and EMS,where <br /> fees are intentionally set below full cost but should still keep reasonable pace with rising <br /> costs. <br /> MCAT PAGE 13 <br />