According to Propositions 218 and 26, the cost of a fee cannot exceed the “estimated reasonable cost of providing the service.” In accordance with Propositions 218 and 26, the City does not set rates to exceed the cost of service (to make a profit).  We conducted a Fee Study to determine the true cost of services.  This allows staff to determine the percentage of cost recovery for various services and develop recommendations for proposed fees.  

The Fee Study Report is published online (linked above), and you are welcome to review it, or you can use our widget to see the Current Fee and Actual Cost side-by-side:

1. Search for a specific fee by keyword;
2. Filter the results to drill into the studied “Departments” (work units), which include: Planning, Building (Divisions of Community and Economic Development, formerly Community Development), Engineering (a Division of Public Works), Utilities, Fire Prevention, Fire & EMS (divisions of the Fire Department), Police, or Parks & Recreation;
3. Filter the results to drill into the data based on the Study Result (or the outcome that the Study would indicate would be most appropriate to take): Increase, Decrease, Same, Add, Remove, Restructure, or Suspended; or
4. Filter by both 2 and 3 to narrow the results even further.

No, Propositions 218 and 26 apply specifically to User and Regulatory Fees; these are the items that were primarily studied.  Rents (like Facility Rentals) and Penalties are not subject to the same “estimated reasonable cost” limitation and were not studied; they are set at the City’s discretion (informed by CPI, market conditions, and similar considerations).    

You may also notice that some fees were not studied and are being removed.  Staff reviewed the Fee Schedule at the outset of the process to determine instances where fees were defined very narrowly (Central A/C, Central Heating, Wood Burning Stove, etc.) and identified similar fees that could be grouped to reduce the overall number of fees included in the Fee Schedule to make it more readable and manageable for staff and the public.   

Finally, it is important to note that the Fee Schedule should not be considered all-inclusive as it excludes certain fees and charges reviewed and approved outside of the typical citywide process, such as impact fees and Water Utility rates; these sorts of items fall outside the scope of the User Fee Study. 

No, the Fee Study determines the most the City can charge for fees. Staff from each Department will evaluate the Fee Study Results and other information, including public input, to develop fee recommendations, which will be presented to Council for consideration at a public hearing. 

Charges that were not studied (Rents and Penalties) are escalated annually by CPI and will be added in mid-May after the April CPI numbers are published. 

No, the Fee Study is both expensive and a lot of effort, so it is typically done every 5-10 years.  In between the City implements an annual inflation adjustment based on the Bureau of Labor Statistic's Consumer Price Index for all Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI) for the San Francisco Oakland Hayward area. The annual adjustment reflects the increase between May 1 of the preceding year and April 30 of the current year.  For example, the FY2026-27 Fee Schedule would be adjusted by CPI numbers as of April 30, 2026, which will be published in mid-May.

You can reach out to Crystal Fair Welty in Finance at Crystal.Welty@cityofvacaville.gov or by phone at (707) 449-5121 with questions or comments about the User Fee Study. 

Fees are presented to the City Council and the public for consideration in a public hearing with the annual budget process. In some instances, the City may set fees lower than the cost of service to achieve other goals including: maintaining access to public programs and staying competitive with comparable jurisdictions or market rates. 

The Fee Schedule is adopted each year with the Budget along with any proposed changes to fees by the departments. The proposed budget typically includes any CPI updates that have been applied to the fees.

Staff recommendations for each area will be developed by the City department that provides the service or administers the rental facility.  The appropriate department and the related telephone number for each grouping of services and each rental facility are listed for your use.  Comments and ideas regarding these services and facilities are always welcome. 

In advance of hearings to change the Fee Schedule, the City issues public notifications. This is completed within 14 days prior to the hearing date and is in accordance with State Law.  Notifications are sent/posted via newspaper, public facility postings, and the City’s website.