Construction fees in Idaho
This state has a general impact fee enabling act. Local governments here charge under a statewide statute, which means there are written limits on what can be charged, how it must be calculated and when it must be refunded.
Idaho Code § 67-8201 et seq.
Guiding standard in the act: proportionate share; reasonably relates. That phrase is the ceiling on what may be charged, and it is the cheapest argument a fee payer has.
Your fee stack in Idaho
Answer four things and get the list of every body that can bill this project, what each one is allowed to charge for, and the rights your state's law gives you before you pay.
What Idaho says about your project
Idaho has one of the more demanding planning packages: written analysis, service areas, project list, growth projections and explicit level of service standards are all required.
A 2002 amendment on revenue credits, written with one large taxpayer's dispute in view, left real uncertainty about how credits should be calculated for an existing business that expands.
Local governments can enter agreements with fire, water, sewer and irrigation districts to plan and spend fee money jointly.
What the fees may pay for
7 of 10 facility categories are eligible here. A charge for anything not on this list is resting on some other authority, and that is a fair question to ask.
| Facility type | Eligible for impact fees |
|---|---|
| Roads and transportation | Yes |
| Water facilities | Yes |
| Wastewater and sewer | Yes |
| Stormwater and drainage | Yes |
| Parks and recreation | Yes |
| Fire | Yes |
| Police | Yes |
| Libraries | Not listed |
| Solid waste | Not listed |
| Schools | Not listed |
What the jurisdiction had to do first
These are the homework requirements in the act. Where one is required and missing, that is a procedural defect you can raise without a lawyer.
| Planning requirement | In the act |
|---|---|
| Written analysis required | Yes |
| Service areas required | Yes |
| List of projects required | Yes |
| Growth projections required | Yes |
| Level of service standards required | Yes |
Timing, credits, refunds and waivers
| Provision | What the act says |
|---|---|
| When the fee may be collected | building permit |
| Recoupment of prior costs allowed | Yes |
| Waivers expressly authorized | affordable housing; taxing districts |
| Waived fees must be backfilled | yes |
| Advisory committee | 5 or more |
| Development industry representation | at least 2 members |
| Notice before a new or increased fee | 2 weeks |
| Spend-or-refund window | 8 years (11 with a finding of cause; up to 20 for wastewater and drainage) |
| Required update frequency | 5 years |
| Administrative share allowed | study cost |
What to do next in Idaho
- Confirm whether your parcel is in a city or unincorporated, then pull the taxing district list from the assessor's record. Why that list is the real fee list.
- Request the current adopted fee schedule and a written fee estimate for the address. The six-step sequence.
- Call each utility separately. Tap fees usually sit outside the act, and are often the largest line.
- If you are dedicating land or building improvements, request the credit in writing before assessment. How to ask.
- Calendar the refund date. Unspent fees here come back after 8 years (11 with a finding of cause; up to 20 for wastewater and drainage). Almost nobody claims these.
- Pay under protest if you intend to dispute anything at all. What that preserves.