New Planning & Building permit fees will go into effect on January 1. These adjustments are designed to better align each permit’s fee structure with the true cost of processing the permit.

Most permit fees will increase to better reflect actual staff time spent on that type of permit. In some cases, fees will decrease. A complete list of new fees is available on the City’s website at piedmont.ca.gov/permits.

Other key changes include:

• New and expanded categories: New permit types have been added to reflect recent changes in State law. Certain existing fees, such as solar permits, will be expanded into separate categories for residential and commercial projects.

• Added valuation tiers: The new fee schedule adds two new valuation tiers for very large construction projects ($10 million and $25 million), scaling fees proportionally with the complexity of review.

• Flat-fee conversions: Many common building permits (such as water heaters, HVAC systems, and EV chargers) will be converted from valuation-based to flat fees, making costs more predictable and aligned with the service provided.

The goal is not to raise revenue, but to ensure each permit type is charged fairly and in proportion to the staff time and resources required to process it.

Fee updates part of a broader effort to modernize permit services

The fee updates were adopted by City Council in September, following a comprehensive study. Considered a best practice in municipal operations, fee studies compare the cost of providing services to the fees charged to ensure they are fair, transparent, and based on data. Piedmont’s fee study found that the fees were only recovering 73% of the cost of permit services, resulting in an under-recovery of more than $400,000 per year.

The fee study was initiated by the City Council during the FY24-25 budget process, along with an organizational assessment. Together, these reviews aim to strengthen the Planning & Building Department’s capacity to provide timely, high-quality service to the community.

The City has taken other steps to improve permit services in recent years:

• In 2023, the City launched its first major digital service with the introduction of online permitting
• A large backlog of building permits that began accumulating during the COVID-19 pandemic was fully cleared last year

The fee updates are the next step in aligning operations with best practices, ensuring services are delivered efficiently, equitably, and sustainably.