CCP 08-09-1999 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 II =..,.-- 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 SD-16. Building Code Department Special Revenue Accounts (rs) [significant revisions needed] e Issue: Several interest groups have indicated they may be recommending legislation to require municipal building code and inspection departments to be self sufficient either through the establishment of special revenue accounts or other mechanisms to guarantee the provision of services paid for by fees. This stems, in part, from a belief in the building community that plan check fees and other municipal fees for service do not reflect the actual benefits received. Response: Building permitting and the related inspection and enforcement services are best funded out of a city's general fund. While some cities may------ ~ experience a surplus to their general fund during a growth boom, cities that have a- building code and inspections department often recognize those departments are not . self-sufficient and supplement those departments' budgets from other general fund revenue sources. In addition, special revenue accounts may remove some accountability since departments' funded by such an account would not need to rely on a city's general fund and would subsequently be removed from proving their value during the normal budgetary process. The state should not interfere in the simple budgetary decision-making performed by cities. The League opposes any move to legislate to cities specific methods to pay for municipal building inspection services. e SD-17. Municipal Administrative Penalties (as) [eliminate policy] Issue: Several Cities have been successfully operating administrative processes to deal with local ordinance violations under the theory that the power to adopt ordinances inherently implies the authority to enforce them. Within the narrow scope of ordinance violations, this type of system has the potential advantage of providing a more effective alternative to formal district court proceedings. The Nonfelony Enforcement Advisory Committee's 1997 report contained a recommendation to provide express statutory authorization for cities to create processes to administer municip:u administrative penalties. Response: The Legislature should provide express statutory authorization for cities to create processes to administer municipal administrative penalties. SD-18. Reforestation.(rs) [eliminate policy] (> " Issue: Cities throughout Minnesota have experienced a devastating loss of the public forest by natural disasters. It is estimated the cost to replace the forest is beyond the means of Minnesota's cities. In the past, the Legislature has assisted cities in reforestation necessary due to natural causes. e 9