Impact fees have been in some parts of fast-growing Florida for decades.
These one-time fees are supposed to pay for future growth or as the name implies, the impact the new development, home or business will have on infrastructure and services.
Pro-impact fees or not, they do ease the burden off taxpayers from having to pay for new roads, fire stations and schools that will be needed because of new growth.
Some governments love the idea of passing the costs off to newcomers. But the decision to have them or not isn’t so simple, especially for slower-growth areas like rural Highlands County.
Highlands first implemented impact fees in 2006, but they were short lived. The county and many other governments suspended impact fees in the late 2000s when the housing crisis was bearing down on Florida. The idea behind the suspension was to try to spur growth.
As the market stabilized many fast-growing counties began re-implementing them.
Rural Florida governments have been more hesitant.
Hendry just re-implemented last year. Okeechobee’s fees will be kicking in soon. And now Highlands and Glades counties will be seeking public imput before deciding.
At a recent Highlands County Commission workshop on impact fees, it was clear commissioners were struggling to decide which way to lean in terms of re-implementing them or not.
“It's like a double-edged sword. It's something that we need in a fiscally constrained county," said commissioner Scott Kirauc, "but we are currently, not only statewide, but nationwide, in an affordable housing crisis, and it's a crisis the general person cannot afford to buy a home in today's world.
"Any fee that we adopt is going to be passed on to home buyers."
If the board adopts the plan as presented at the recent workshop, that fee would be $20,000 for an average-size new home in Highlands County. New businesses would pay significantly more in impact fees.
“This is a big concern to mine. We were getting further and further away from homes being affordable,” Kirauc said.
The first of two public hearings impact fees in Highlands County is June 2.
The 300 page study can be found on the Highlands County government’s homepage.
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