Budget squeeze? Add on fees

Cross-country skiing isn't free anymore in Dakota County.

Neither is electronics recycling.

Shakopee hiked the cost of recreational programs for nonresidents. And the cost of renting the ice at Farmington Civic Arena has gone up.

Those are just some things that south-metro residents and some visitors will pay for this year through new or increased fees. As budgets tighten, local governments turn to fees to cover the cost of some services.

The Dakota County commissioners added four new fees this year, with cross-country ski permits being the one likely to be noticed by the general public.

The money from the adult ski passes -- $5 for a daily pass or $15 for a season pass -- will go toward grooming and maintenance of the county's trails. The parks department used to pay those costs.

Other fees are more obscure: $35 for processing a temporary intoxicating liquor license application and up to $650 for a background check and licensing fee for corporate foster care operators.

Many county fees already in place saw increases of 5 percent for personnel expenses and 2 percent for materials. The electronics recycling fee, now 35 cents per pound, was added by a county contractor to offset revenue that was lost when electronics manufacturers recycled enough materials to meet quotas set in state law.

"Our general approach at this point in time has been to not use this as a revenue generator but as a cost recovery mechanism," said Brent Gustafson, the county budget director.

But as the state budget deficit puts pressure on county budgets, more fees are a possibility to avoid raising property taxes.

"There's the potential that a budget squeeze raises this issue of ... are there costs that we can recover from users that we don't currently or can't currently?" Gustafson said.

In Shakopee, the city council has changed the structure of fee collection for nonresidents -- mainly folks from nearby townships -- taking part in recreational programs such as exercise classes at the community center.

Annual memberships for adults are $189.96 for residents and $267.60 for nonresidents. There were differences before, but the city changed the formulas in such a way as to bring in more revenue from outsiders. Shakopee's city budget has been particularly hard hit by a steep dropoff in building activity.

Farmington also raised the fee for a recreational facility. The cost of one hour of ice at Farmington Civic Arena rose from $170 to $200. City Administrator Peter Herlofsky said the fee went up to help the arena cover maintenance and operational costs.

Lakeville Finance Director Dennis Feller said the city has long used fees as a way to keep property taxes down.

"To the extent reasonably possible, we use fees where you have a property owner or a person who benefits from those services," he said. "We try to pass along the cost of those services in fees."

The city council goes through the list of fees line-by-line each year to make sure the amount charged covers the cost of the service provided, Feller said. In some cases, the fee is more of a disincentive.

"Hopefully we will never have to use that," Feller said.