The City Council unanimously approved an update June 23 that adopts a 5.7% increase to most city user fees while adding several new fees for services, ranging from public records requests to refuse contamination and late fire inspections.
The annual update affects fees paid by residents and businesses for specific city services rather than taxes or utility rates. The schedule includes inflationary adjustments, new department-specific fees and several fee restructurings.
Deputy Finance Director Sergio Aguilar said user fees help ensure the people using certain city services — not the general public — cover the costs of providing them.
"For the most part, general tax dollars like property tax and sales tax are used to fund essential core services available to all citizens like police, fire protection or parks," Aguilar told the council at the meeting. "However, user fees are charged to individuals and businesses requesting additional specific services and activities to ensure that those individuals and businesses that benefit from these specific services contribute to their cost. And this in turn reduces the burden on general taxpayers who may not utilize these services."
Examples include building permits, dog licenses, fire safety inspections and city-sponsored recreation programs.
The city is proposing a 5.7% Consumer Price Index adjustment for most fees because the last comprehensive fee studies were based on 2023-24 costs, Aguilar said.
Since then, inflation has increased the city's cost of providing services.
"Costs have continued to grow without a corresponding increase in fees," he said. "So the general fund would, in essence, pick up additional subsidy costs of these services if there were no changes in fees."
Aguilar described the adjustment as "in essence a catch-up of about two years," adding that it is intended to maintain the cost-recovery levels previously adopted by the council rather than replace the city's comprehensive fee studies, which are conducted every three to five years.
The proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27 assumes about $862,000 in additional revenue from the CPI adjustment. Aguilar warned that rejecting the increase would require the council to identify other ways to close the city's budget gap.
The fee schedule also adds two new City Clerk fee categories for notary services and public records duplication, updates Parks and Recreation programming fees, creates a new $18.02 contamination fee for recycling and organics bins after three documented contamination incidents, establishes late fees for parking citations and revises several animal services fees.
The Fire Department also added a new escalating late-payment penalty structure for defensible space inspections and fire safety inspections. Property owners who fail to pay inspection fees within 30 days will be charged an additional 20 percent of the base fee, increasing to 40 percent after 60 days and 60 percent after 90 days.
Councilmember Clarissa Cervantes asked Fire Marshal Kevin Shin how residents would be notified before penalties begin accumulating.
"Our inspectors go out and conduct the inspections. If there is a violation, they're provided the bill... and the report," Shin said during the meeting. "They're given a 30-day window to make those corrections, and if they continue to not make those corrections, this is where we're looking to capture that staff time, recovery time for the inspections."
Much of the council's discussion centered on the new refuse contamination fee, which is intended to help the city comply with California's organic waste recycling requirements under Senate Bill 1383.
Councilmember Sean Mill said he understood the city's need to comply with state law but questioned whether fines were the best approach.
"I understand our desire, we need to comply with SB 1383, but I'm skeptical that this fee is the right approach," Mill said.
Mill questioned how contamination would be documented, how residents would be educated before fines were issued and what appeal process would be available.
Public Works staff said residents will receive a warning letter after the first documented contamination, followed by tags placed on the cart after subsequent violations before any fee is assessed. Collection drivers photograph contaminated bins and upload the images into the city's tracking system.
Asked whether the fee was intended primarily to generate revenue, Public Works staff responded, "It is definitely about behavioral change."
During public comment, resident Aurora Chavez urged the council to avoid relying on higher fees while trying to attract businesses to Riverside.
"If we have lowered our charges because we were trying to attract businesses... then it must be something else that we need to improve on. Probably our policies," Chavez said. "Charging us more is not going to help."
Resident Jason Hunter asked the city to clarify that the new public records duplication fee applies only to physical copies rather than digital records sent by email. He also urged the city to conduct extensive public outreach before implementing the refuse contamination fee.
"Before you get a thousand angry phone calls," Hunter said, "probably at least... get something in there a couple of times before you start fining people."
Councilmember Cervantes also asked Parks Director Pamela Galera whether financial assistance would remain available for residents affected by increased recreation fees.
Galera said the department carefully considered affordability while developing the fee schedule.
"We really considered our users," Galera said. "We do have a scholarship program through our Riverside Foundation, and so we do give scholarships to families, youth and seniors that need that extra help."
Cervantes said the council was mindful of residents facing rising living costs.
"I think we are trying to be very mindful as a council as we look at these user fees and don't take it very lightly during these challenging times," she said.
