Impact Fee Position

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Crane Island Timucuan Extension Impact Fees Recycling Nassau County Traffic Crashes Amelia Island Association (AIA) Impact Fee Position AIA POSITION The Amelia Island Association (AIA) position on impact fees is that impact fees for new developments should be sufficient to recover the additional costs driven by new developments; including such things as roads, sidewalks, water and sewage, schools, county staff, county buildings, conservation and recreation. Existing homeowners should not have to pay to subsidize new development through increased property taxes or suffer degradation in government funded infrastructure due to new development. The county hired an expert consultant to recommend the appropriate impact fees and the expert consultant recommendation was made to the Board of County Commissioners in 2006. Unfortunately, the consultant recommendations to increase new development impact fees have not been implemented by the County Commission; in fact the Commission has done the opposite and reduced them. AIA Position is that the Board of County Commissioners should implement the expert consultant 2006 recommendations to increase Impact Fees. In addition, the County should change its own rules to ensure there are no barriers to spending these Impact Fees for needed infrastructure improvements to support new developments. REASONS SUPPORTING AIA POSITION 1. Nassau County already has an above average growth rate. 2. Above average growth rates result in above average increases in taxes due to the higher government costs to build new infrastructure for roads, schools and services (based on over 700 studies, including many Florida studies) OR a degradation of the overall infrastructure provided to all homeowners. 3. Amelia Island is just 3% of the Nassau County area with 40% of the Nassau County population, but Amelia Island pays about 65% of the Nassau County property taxes. 4. 90% of new development in Nassau County is now taking place between Amelia Island and Rt. 95. If the impact fees are not at the level that can cover all the additional costs caused by new homes, then the existing homeowners will pay the short fall, OR suffer a degradation in the current infrastructure ability to support the population. Amelia Island property owners, who pay 65% of county property taxes, will be the primary ones paying for any shortfall. In effect, existing Amelia Island residents will be subsidizing off-island new development, if we do not have appropriate impact fees. 5. Amelia Island, because it is a tourist and vacation attraction, consists of about 50% of homeowners who are not homesteaded. For the 50% who are not homesteaded (2^nd homes or rental property) they have faced very significant increases in their home appraisal, which adds substantially to the increase in property taxes. The new off- island developments will likely be homesteaded residents and will continue to pay lower taxes over time than Amelia Island residents. 6. A significant portion of Amelia Island homes are owned by retirees, who live on a fixed income. 7. Application of an appropriate impact fee on new development may also have the beneficial effect of slowing growth to the average for the surrounding communities, allowing an opportunity for the county infrastructure to catch-up to the already approved growth. 8. A recent study done by a University of Florida law professor for the City of Fernandina Beach showed the average Florida impact fee is $5,000, with some counties as high as $13,000. Nassau County impact fees new homes are less than half the state average. December, 2008