Fees for Island County Public Health services like septic inspections and water quality testing jumped by 8 percent as part of a comprehensive fee schedule change.

Other than fees related to food service, public health fees haven’t been increased since 2006, according to Keith Higman, Island County public health director.

The 8 percent increase in environmental services was accounted for in the 2015 budget and approved by the Island County Board of Health.

Public Health struggled in recent years as service costs increase and fees stay static, Higman said.

The 8 percent increase will bring an additional $50,000 to Higman’s 2015 budget.

The county issues approximately 200 septic permits each year, but this can vary widely depending on how the building market is performing.

In addition, state and federal grants, which comprise 45 percent of his budget, can be “volatile” and unpredictable, he said.

In the short term, Island County commissioners agreed to assist public health to maintain current services by paying the difference out of general fund dollars.

For 2015, the amount is $490,000.

Higman is advocating for some type of dedicated funding source for public health moving forward.

In addition to the Board of Health’s increase in service fees, Island County commissioners adopted a new fee schedule Monday that primarily impacts the planning department but also lists some public health and public works services where the requirements overlap.

These fees include those for building inspections, building permits and design reviews.

“Some fees are going up, some are going down, and we’ve eliminated some that were simply redundant,” said Planning Director David Wechner, who added that fees are updated on a three-year cycle.

Among the main changes are the inclusion of a $300 pre-application fee, which would be applied to any permit fees if approved, he said.

Commissioner Rick Hannold expressed concern about how the fee changes will impact consumers.

Wechner estimates that the county will capture $44,965 in additional revenue annually to  cover the cost of services and that planning takes in roughly $500,000 in fees each year.

Hannold said he is satisfied that the increase is “actually keeping up with inflation.”

“What I think this does it better align the revenue capture to the work that’s being done,” said Commissioner Helen Price Johnson. “What you’ve done is take an in-depth look and I appreciate that. What we need to be doing is charging for the cost and not charging for the things that are duplicate.”

Price Johnson said she appreciates outreach conducted by Wechner with the local building community to ensure the permitting fees are fair.

“They were supportive of the fee schedule as amended,” Wechner said.

Commissioner Jill Johnson said she would support the updated fee schedule both because it keeps up with inflation and because there was a reduction of fees that should not have been in place.

However, now that there is an overall increase in fees, Johnson she expects service levels to increase as well.

“That expectation is there is a correlation … more costs equals the right level of service,” Johnson said.

Wechner said his staff is also working on an administrative manual to help interpret and apply the fee schedule but could not give a completion date.

The changes to the planning department’s fees were first unveiled in September and include in some instances combined fees for public health and public works.

Updated fee schedules can be viewed at www.islandcountyhealth.org and www.islandcounty.net/planning