Columbia County |
Code of Ordinances |
Chapter 56. IMPACT FEES |
Article I. COMPREHENSIVE IMPACT FEE ORDINANCE |
Division 5. ROAD IMPACT FEES |
§ 56-87. Use of monies.
(a)
The board hereby establishes separate trust accounts for the road impact fee to correspond with the road impact fee districts established in section 56-84. These trust accounts are designated as the "Zone 1 Impact Fee Trust Account," the "Zone 2 Impact Fee Trust Account," and the "Zone 3 Impact Fee Trust Account," which accounts shall be maintained separate and apart from all other accounts of the county.
(b)
Road impact fees shall be deposited into the appropriate trust account for the road impact fee district from which the fees were collected immediately upon receipt. All road impact fees and all interest accruing thereto shall be used solely for the road impact fee district from which such fees were collected or to provide a capacity improvement to an arterial road that provides a countywide benefit.
(c)
Funds on deposit in the road impact fee trust accounts, as established in subsection (a) above, shall be used solely for the purpose of providing growth-necessitated capital improvements to the county road system in the appropriate road impact fee district or to provide a capacity improvement to an arterial road that provides a countywide benefit, including, but not limited to:
(1)
Design and construction plan preparation;
(2)
Any permitting or application fees necessary for the construction;
(3)
Right-of-way acquisition, including any costs of acquisition or condemnation;
(4)
Construction of new through lanes;
(5)
Construction of new turn lanes;
(6)
Construction of new bridges;
(7)
Design and construction of new drainage facilities required by the construction of new roads;
(8)
Purchase and installation of traffic signals;
(9)
Construction of new curbs, medians and shoulders;
(10)
Relocating utilities to accommodate new roadway construction;
(11)
Construction management and inspection;
(12)
Surveying and soils and material testing;
(13)
Repayment of monies borrowed from any budgetary fund of the county which were used to fund growth-necessitated capital improvements to the county road system as provided herein;
(14)
Payment of principal and interest, necessary reserves and costs of issuance under any bonds or other indebtedness issued by the county to fund growth-necessitated improvements and additions to the county road system subsequent to the effective date of this article;
(15)
Transportation planning, development and engineering; and
(16)
Costs related to the administration, collection and implementation of road impact fees.
(d)
The monies deposited into the road impact fee trust accounts shall be used solely to provide capital improvements or additions to the county road system as necessitated by growth as projected in the road impact fee study and shall not be used for any expenditure that would be classified as a maintenance or repair expense. A report will be prepared annually by the county reflecting the collection and expenditures of road impact fees by the county during the previous year.
(e)
Any road impact fee funds on deposit which are not immediately necessary for expenditure shall be invested by the county. All income derived from such investments shall be deposited in the appropriate road impact fee trust account and used as provided herein.
(f)
The county may retain up to one percent of all road impact fees received or the actual costs of administration and collection, whichever is less, as an administrative fee to defray the costs of administering the road impact fees.
(g)
The road impact fees collected pursuant to this article shall be returned to the then current owner of the property on behalf of which such fee was paid, if such fees have not been expended or encumbered prior to the end of the fiscal year immediately following the eighth anniversary of the date upon which such fees were paid. Refunds shall be made only in accordance with the following procedure:
(1)
The then present owner shall petition the county for the refund within six months following the end of the calendar quarter immediately following eight years from the date on which the road impact fee was received.
(2)
The petition for refund shall be submitted to the county manager and shall contain:
a.
A notarized sworn statement that the petitioner is the present owner of the property on behalf of which the road impact fee was paid;
b.
A copy of the dated receipt issued for payment of the road impact fee or such other record as would evidence payment;
c.
A certified copy of the latest recorded deed or a copy of the most recent ad valorem tax bill.
(3)
Within 60 days from the date of receipt of a petition for refund, the county manager will advise the petitioner and the board of the status of the road impact fee requested for refund, and if such road impact fee has not been expended or encumbered within the applicable time period, then it shall be returned to the petitioner. For the purposes of this section, fees collected shall be deemed to be spent or encumbered on the basis of the first fee in shall be the first fee out.
(Ord. No. 2007-40, § 5.07, 10-18-2007)