§ 3.08.020. Impact fees to fund capital improvements.

A.

Establishment of a standing impact fee advisory committee. The city shall maintain a standing impact fee advisory committee. This impact fee advisory committee shall include at least one representative of the development community and one certified public accountant. The committee shall review and monitor the process of calculating, assessing, and spending impact fees. The committee shall be provided with adequate financial reports on a semiannual basis, shall meet at least annually, and shall provide the city council with a report of its findings and recommendations. The city shall provide the committee with the appropriate advice and counsel of professional city staff and/or an appropriate professional consultant selected by the city. The city council shall not consider or adopt any impact fees that have not been first considered by the committee. The impact fee committee shall serve in an advisory capacity to the city council.

B.

Calculation and imposition of impact fees. Any impact fees to fund capital improvements of the City of Hamilton shall not be approved and adopted by the city council unless those fees have been calculated in accordance with MCA 7-6-1602 or as such statute may later be amended. Impact fees may not be imposed for remodeling, rehabilitation, or other improvements to an existing structure, or rebuilding a damaged structure, unless there is an increase in units that increase service demand as set forth by state law. If impact fees are imposed for remodeling, rehabilitation, or other improvements to an existing structure or use, only the net increase between the old and new demand may be imposed. The data sources and methodology supporting adoption and calculation of an impact fee shall be available to the public upon request.

C.

Collection and expenditure of impact fees. The collection and expenditure of impact fees must be reasonably related to the benefits accruing to the development paying the impact fees.

1.

Upon collection, all impact fees shall be deposited in a special proprietary fund, which shall be invested with all interest accruing to the fund.

2.

The city may impose impact fees on behalf of local districts.

3.

If the impact fees are not hereafter collected or spent in accordance with this section or are not in compliance with MCA 7-6-1602, any impact fees that were collected must be refunded to the person who owned the property at the time that the refund was due.

4.

The Hamilton Department of Public Works shall collect all impact fees imposed and shall collect them no earlier than the date of issuance of a building permit if a building permit is required for the development or no earlier than the time of wastewater or water service connection.

D.

Contributions in lieu of impact fee payments. The city may accept the dedication of land or the construction of public facilities in lieu of payment of impact fees if:

1.

The need for the dedication or construction is clearly documented pursuant to MCA 7-6-1602; and

2.

The land proposed for dedication for the public facilities to be constructed is determined to be appropriate for the proposed use by the City of Hamilton; and

3.

The value of the proposed dedication or construction has been established by an independent appraiser or construction engineer, which appraisal or estimate has been subject to peer review; and

4.

In the event the value of the proposed dedication or construction exceeds the impact fee due from an individual development, the city council, with the recommendation of the impact fee advisory committee, shall determine whether credits against a developer(s future impact fee obligations shall be granted or the city shall pay the developer for the excess value.

E.

Refunds/credits. The city may grant refunds or credits that it considers appropriate and that are consistent with the provisions of MCA Title 7, Chapter 6, including MCA 7-6-1602. The city may grant refunds or credits in accordance with a voluntary agreement between the city and the individual or entity being assessed the impact fees so long as the terms of such an agreement are consistent with MCA Title 7, Chapter 6, including MCA 7-6-1602.

F.

Appeal process. Any party upon whom an impact fee has been imposed has the right to appeal the imposition or amount of the impact fee. The appellant must perfect the appeal by giving written notice of the appeal to the public works department together with payment of all of the originally-required impact fee, in cash or cash equivalent, as an appeal bond. The form of the written notice shall be sufficient if it identifies the name and address of the appellant and a short statement giving the reason why the impact fee is wrongly imposed or in the wrong amount. Upon receiving the notice of appeal and cash bond, the public works department official shall, within twenty-four (24) hours, notify the mayor or administrative assistant who will place the matter before the city council at its next regularly scheduled city council meeting that is more than five days following the filing of the appeal. The city council shall hear evidence from the appellant and city staff and shall make the determination whether the impact fee imposed upon the appellant is compliant with state law and city ordinance. In the event that the city council determines that the imposition of the impact fee is not compliant with either state law or the city ordinance, the city shall return the cash bond paid by the appellant.

(Ord. No. 285, §§ I—VI, 3-20-07)

Editor's note

Ordinance No. 285, §§ I—VI, passed March 20, 2007, did not specifically amend the Code. Therefore, such ordinance has been added as § 3.08.020 at the editor's discretion.