(A) Impact fee accounts. An impact fee account is established by the county for each public facility for which impact fees are imposed. The accounts shall clearly identify the category, account, or fund for which the impact fees are imposed. Subaccounts may be established for individual impact fee districts and subdistricts. All impact fees collected by the county shall be deposited into the appropriate impact fee account or subaccount, which shall be interest bearing. All interest earned or monies deposited to the accounts or subaccounts shall be credited to and shall be considered funds of the account. The funds of each account shall not be commingled with other funds or revenues of the county. The county shall establish and implement necessary accounting controls to ensure that the impact fee funds are properly deposited, accounted for, and appropriated in accordance with these procedures, and any other applicable legal requirements.
(B) Appropriation of impact fee funds.
(1) In general. Impact fee funds may be appropriated for public facilities identified in the capital improvement plan, as may be amended from time to time, of the public facility and for the payment of principal, bonds, contracts, and other obligations issued by or on behalf of the county to finance the public facilities.
(2) Restrictions on appropriations. Impact fees shall be appropriated only (a) for the public facility for which they were imposed, calculated and collected, or included within, provided for in, or authorized by an amended capital improvements plan; (b) within the impact fee district or subdistrict where collected. They shall be appropriated and expended within three years of the date they were scheduled to be expended in the capital improvements plan or any amended capital improvements plan. Impact fees shall not be appropriated or expended for funding maintenance or repair of public facilities nor for operational or personnel expenses associated with the provision of the public facility.
(3) Appropriation of impact fee funds outside of district or subdistrict where collected. Except for public education facilities impact fees, impact fee funds may be appropriated for a public facility located outside of the district or subdistrict where collected, if the demand for the public facility is generated in whole or in part by the new development or if the public facility will serve the new development.
(C) Procedure for appropriation of impact fee funds.
(1) The county shall, each year, identify public facility projects anticipated to be funded in whole or in part with impact fees. The public facility recommendations shall be based upon the impact fee annual review set forth in § 153.57(B) and such other information as may be relevant, but shall not be part of the annual budget and capital improvements programming process.
(2) The recommendations shall be consistent with the provisions of these procedures, the fee setting impact fee ordinance for the public facility, applicable legal requirements, and any guidelines adopted by the County Council.
(3) The County Council may include impact fee-funded public facilities in the county’s annual budget and capital improvements program. If included, the description of the public facility shall specify the nature of the public facility, the location of the public facility, the capacity to be added by the public facility, the service area of the public facility, the need/demand for the public facility and the anticipated timing of completion of the public facility.
(4) The County Council shall verify that adequate impact fee funds are or will be available from the appropriate impact fee accounts for the specified public facility.
(D) Refunds.
(1) Eligibility for refund.
(a) Expiration or revocation of permit or approval. An applicant or a successor-in-interest who has paid impact fees for new development for which an approval or permit has expired or been revoked is eligible to apply for a refund of impact fees paid.
(b) Failure of county to appropriate impact fee funds within time limit. The county shall notify the owner of record of a development that has been paid impact fees if the county has failed to appropriate and expend the impact fees collected from the applicant within the time limits established in division (B)(2), and the owner of record is eligible to apply for a refund of impact fees paid. The accounting shall be based on a first-in, first-out basis.
(c) Reduction in density or intensity of new development. The applicant or a successor-in- interest who paid impact fees is eligible for a refund if the density or intensity of the development for which the impact fees are paid is reduced after payment of the fees, and the fees are not appropriated and expended.
(2) Refund application for expiration or revocation of permit or approval. Applications for a refund due to expiration or revocation of a permit or approval of the development shall include: (a) evidence that the applicant is the property owner or the duly designated agent of the property owner, (b) the amount of the impact fees paid and receipts evidencing such payments, and (c) documentation evidencing the expiration or revocation of the permit or approval. Failure to apply for the refund within 60 days following expiration or revocation of the permit or approval shall constitute a waiver of entitlement to a refund. No interest shall be paid by the county in calculating the amount of the refunds.
(3) Refund application for failure of county to appropriate and expend funds. Applications for refunds due to county failure to appropriate and expend fees collected from an applicant within the time limits established in division (B)(2) shall be initiated by the owner-of-record within 120 days after the county has notified the owner of a right to a refund. To receive the refund, the owner-of- record shall submit (a) evidence that the applicant is the property owner or the duly designated agent of the property owner, and (b) the amount of the impact fees paid and receipts evidencing the payments. Refunds shall include any interest earned on the impact fees being refunded.
(4) Refund application due to reduction in density or intensity. Applications for refunds due to a reduction in density or intensity of development shall include (a) evidence that the applicant is the property owner or developer who paid the impact fees or, if the applicant is the current owner, evidence that the developer has waived rights to a refund, (b) the amount of the impact fees paid and receipts evidencing payments, and (c) documentation evidencing a reduction in density or intensity of the new development. No refund shall be approved until a revised new development plan is approved by the county; with any right to a refund being waived unless a written request for a refund is initiated within two years of the county approval of the revised new development plan, or final construction is completed, whichever is later. The refund shall be paid to the current property owner or developer, as appropriate. The refund shall be calculated in accordance with the following formula:
(SU1 x F) - (SU2 x FI), where:
SU1 = public facility demand generated originally by the new development;
SU2 = public facility demand currently generated by the new development;
F = impact fee in effect at the time of original approval of the new development;
F1 = impact currently fee in effect at the time of approval of the new development.
(5) Method of refund. The county may, at its option, make refunds of impact fees by direct payment, by offsetting such refunds against other impact fees due for the same public facility for new development on the same property, or by other means subject to agreement with the person receiving the refund.
(‘77 Code, § 14-35) (Ord. 7196, passed 12-16-96; Am. Ord. 2718, passed 7-16-18; Am. Ord. 6322, passed 12-19-22)