Municipal Fees Appeals Process

The 2013-15 state budget creates an appeals process by which a citizen may challenge an unreasonably high municipal fee in the state Tax Appeals Commission (TAC).
By state law, a municipal fee must bear a reasonable relationship to the service for which the fee is imposed.
The budget provision allows a citizen to file a petition with the TAC within 60 days of the fee being imposed.  As part of the appeals process, the burden of proof is on the municipal or county government to demonstrate that a reasonable relationship exists between the fee and the service for which the fee is imposed.
Under the budget, “reasonable relationship” is defined that the cost charged for the service to the citizen does not exceed the reasonable direct costs associated with activities related to the fee.