2006 Utah Code - 11-36-202 — Impact fees -- Enactment -- Required provisions.

     11-36-202.   Impact fees -- Enactment -- Required provisions.
     (1) (a) Each local political subdivision wishing to impose impact fees shall pass an impact fee enactment.
     (b) The impact fee imposed by that enactment may not exceed the highest fee justified by the impact fee analysis performed pursuant to Section 11-36-201.
     (c) In calculating the impact fee, each local political subdivision may include:
     (i) the construction contract price;
     (ii) the cost of acquiring land, improvements, materials, and fixtures;
     (iii) the cost for planning, surveying, and engineering fees for services provided for and directly related to the construction of the system improvements; and
     (iv) debt service charges, if the political subdivision might use impact fees as a revenue stream to pay the principal and interest on bonds, notes, or other obligations issued to finance the costs of the system improvements.
     (d) In calculating an impact fee, a local political subdivision may not include an expense for overhead unless the expense is calculated pursuant to a methodology that is consistent with:
     (i) generally accepted cost accounting practices; and
     (ii) the methodological standards set forth by the federal Office of Management and Budget for federal grant reimbursement.
     (e) In calculating an impact fee, each local political subdivision shall base amounts calculated under Subsection (1)(c) on realistic estimates, and the assumptions underlying those estimates shall be disclosed in the impact fee analysis.
     (f) In enacting an impact fee enactment:
     (i) municipalities shall:
     (A) make a copy of the impact fee enactment available to the public at least 14 days before the date of the public hearing; and
     (B) comply with the notice and hearing requirements of, and, except as provided in Subsection 11-36-401(4)(f), receive the protections of Sections 10-9a-205 and 10-9a-801;
     (ii) counties shall:
     (A) make a copy of the impact fee enactment available to the public at least 14 days before the date of the public hearing; and
     (B) comply with the notice and hearing requirements of, and, except as provided in Subsection 11-36-401(4)(f), receive the protections of Sections 17-27a-205 and 17-27a-801; and
     (iii) special districts shall:
     (A) make a copy of the impact fee enactment available to the public at least 14 days before the date of the public hearing; and
     (B) comply with the notice and hearing requirements of, and receive the protections of, Section 17A-1-203.
     (g) Nothing contained in Subsection (1)(f) or in the subsections referenced in Subsections (1)(f)(i)(B) and (ii)(B) may be construed to require involvement by a planning commission in the impact fee enactment process.
     (2) The local political subdivision shall ensure that the impact fee enactment contains:
     (a) a provision establishing one or more service areas within which it shall calculate and impose impact fees for various land use categories;
     (b) either:
     (i) a schedule of impact fees for each type of development activity that specifies the

amount of the impact fee to be imposed for each type of system improvement; or
     (ii) the formula that the local political subdivision will use to calculate each impact fee;
     (c) a provision authorizing the local political subdivision to adjust the standard impact fee at the time the fee is charged to:
     (i) respond to unusual circumstances in specific cases; and
     (ii) ensure that the impact fees are imposed fairly; and
     (d) a provision governing calculation of the amount of the impact fee to be imposed on a particular development that permits adjustment of the amount of the fee based upon studies and data submitted by the developer.
     (3) The local political subdivision may include a provision in the impact fee enactment that:
     (a) exempts low income housing and other development activities with broad public purposes from impact fees and establishes one or more sources of funds other than impact fees to pay for that development activity;
     (b) imposes an impact fee for public facility costs previously incurred by a local political subdivision to the extent that new growth and development will be served by the previously constructed improvement; and
     (c) allows a credit against impact fees for any dedication of land for, improvement to, or new construction of, any system improvements provided by the developer if the facilities:
     (i) are identified in the capital facilities plan; and
     (ii) are required by the local political subdivision as a condition of approving the development activity.
     (4) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(b), the local political subdivision may not impose an impact fee to cure deficiencies in public facilities serving existing development.
     (5) Notwithstanding the requirements and prohibitions of this chapter, a local political subdivision may impose and assess an impact fee for environmental mitigation when:
     (a) the local political subdivision has formally agreed to fund a Habitat Conservation Plan to resolve conflicts with the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 16 U.S.C. Sec 1531, et seq. or other state or federal environmental law or regulation;
     (b) the impact fee bears a reasonable relationship to the environmental mitigation required by the Habitat Conservation Plan; and
     (c) the legislative body of the local political subdivision adopts an ordinance or resolution:
     (i) declaring that an impact fee is required to finance the Habitat Conservation Plan;
     (ii) establishing periodic sunset dates for the impact fee; and
     (iii) requiring the legislative body to:
     (A) review the impact fee on those sunset dates;
     (B) determine whether or not the impact fee is still required to finance the Habitat Conservation Plan; and
     (C) affirmatively reauthorize the impact fee if the legislative body finds that the impact fee must remain in effect.
     (6) Each political subdivision shall ensure that any existing impact fee for environmental mitigation meets the requirements of Subsection (5) by July 1, 1995.
     (7) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter:
     (a) a municipality imposing impact fees to fund fire trucks as of the effective date of this

act may impose impact fees for fire trucks until July 1, 1997; and
     (b) an impact fee to pay for a public safety facility that is a fire suppression vehicle may not be imposed with respect to land that has a zoning designation other than commercial.
     (8) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a local political subdivision may impose and collect impact fees on behalf of a school district if authorized by Section 53A-20-100.5.

Amended by Chapter 240, 2006 General Session
Amended by Chapter 257, 2006 General Session