[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Round Lake 6-21-2023 by L.L. No. 5-2023. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
A.
This chapter is titled "Fees and Reimbursements of Costs and Expenses."
It is the purpose of this chapter to make it easier for those required
to pay fees or to reimburse the Village of Round Lake for costs and
expenses to find and accurately determine such amounts, and to assist
the Village of Round Lake in collecting such amounts. Where the fees
set forth in this chapter conflict with fees in other portions of
the Code of the Village of Round Lake, the provisions of this chapter
shall control. Fees and reimbursements appearing elsewhere in the
Code of the Village of Round Lake which do not appear in this chapter
are not eliminated by not appearing in this chapter. Nothing herein
shall be read to diminish any of the procedural or substantive rights
of the Village of Round Lake established elsewhere in the Code of
the Village of Round Lake. Unless otherwise stated, all fees charged
by the Village shall be deemed administrative fees.
B.
This chapter does not apply to penalties for code violations which
are determined or ordered by a court of law.
A.
In addition to any other tools or rights possessed by the Village
of Round Lake set forth elsewhere in the Code of the Village of Round
Lake, failure to timely pay any fees or to reimburse costs and expenses
by a person holding any right, permit, certificate or license issued
or administered by the Village shall give the absolute right to the
person, department or board of the Village which has issued such right,
permit, certificate or license to terminate or suspend the same by
either:
(1)
Mailing notice of such termination or suspension by certified mail,
return receipt requested, to such person (Note: Such mailing shall
be to the address left by the person having such right, permit, license
or certificate with the person, department or board within the Village
which issued the same. Service shall be effective whether or not the
mail receipt has been signed and returned by the intended recipient.);
(2)
Effectuating personal service (as defined in New York Civil Practice
Law and Rules §§ 308 through 312-a, inclusive, as the
same may from time to time be amended) of such notice upon such person;
or
(3)
Posting a copy of such notice on the real property which is the subject
of the right, permit, certificate or license.
B.
The Village may, on the same basis, refuse to grant further rights,
permits, certificates or licenses, or direct suspension of the provision
of services or expenses on behalf of the person, without prior notice.
Any suspension made under this section shall toll any period of time
in which a board is otherwise required to act or made a determination.
No person, department or board of or within the Village of Round
Lake may grant any variation in the amount of fees or reimbursements
of costs and expenses, except that the Village Board of Trustees may
vary or waive the same at a regularly scheduled or duly noticed public
meeting or hearing for a not-for-profit or charitable organization.
Any person may contest the accuracy of fees or reimbursements
of costs and expenses to the person, department or board imposing
such fees or reimbursements in writing. In addition to any other meeting,
correspondence or other informal efforts to resolve such a dispute,
the person, department or board imposing such fees or reimbursements
shall respond in writing, giving the basis for its calculation of
the amount due. If this does not resolve the dispute, any aggrieved
person may appeal to the Village Board of Trustees, stating that person's
position in writing.
Any cost, including court or County Clerk filing fees, reasonable
attorneys' fees, service-of-process fees, research fees, stenographic
fees, experts' fees, publication fees, and the like, which are
incurred by the Village of Round Lake in enforcing the payment of
fees or the reimbursements of cost and expenses as set forth in this
chapter, or elsewhere in the Code of the Village of Round Lake, shall
be paid by the person who has not paid such fees or the reimbursements
of cost and expenses.
B.
Persons asking the Village to incur direct costs (e.g., mailings,
publication) shall prepay such costs to the Village in an amount equal
to such costs as estimated by the department or office arranging for
the expenditure. If the estimate was more or less than the actual
expense, the Village shall promptly notify the person responsible
for payment and either reimburse such person the amount overpaid,
or the person shall reimburse the Village for the amount underpaid.
C.
Whenever a person making an application to any Village board, department
or office ("applicant") is required by the Village Code to pay the
Village's professional costs (which may include, but are not
limited to, engineering, architectural and legal fees), estimated
fees shall be paid into the Village to cover such costs as follows:
(1)
When the professional is not an employee of the Village, the Village's
professional shall submit an estimate to the Village Building Department
of its fees and other charges for reviewing the application, including,
but not limited to, compliance with all relevant laws and regulations,
any on-site inspections required to be made by the Village, and any
research and document generation, but excluding any time which the
professional may spend in regularly scheduled board meetings concerning
the application. An amount equal to the estimated costs of the professional
services shall be paid to the Village Building Department by the applicant
prior to the applicant being heard by any board or otherwise acted
upon. The Building Department will maintain a separate account for
all escrow deposits. The Village's professional shall bill the
Village monthly for its services on behalf of the applicant in reviewing
such application and performing inspections. These monthly billings
shall be charged against the applicant's escrow balance. If at
any time during the review and approval process the applicant's
escrow account shows a negative balance, additional funds must be
submitted to the Village Building Department before any further action
will be taken on the application. If at the conclusion of the review
and approval process the amount of such services is more than the
amount escrowed pursuant hereto, the applicant shall pay the difference
to the Village Building Department prior to final action on the application
(e.g., filing determinations, the issuance of a building permits or
certificate of occupancy), and in the event the amount held in escrow
by the Village Building Department is more than the amount of the
actual billing of the Village's professional, the difference
shall be promptly refunded to the applicant.
(2)
When the professional is an employee of the Village, the Village
Building Department, in consultation with the Village Treasurer and
the employed professional, shall estimate the Village's cost
for the time the professional will spend reviewing the application,
including, but not limited to, determining compliance with all relevant
laws and regulations, and conducting any on-site inspections he or
she deems appropriate, and any necessary research and document generation,
but excluding any time which the professional may spend in regularly
scheduled board meetings concerning the application. An amount equal
to the estimated costs of the professional services shall be paid
to the Village Building Department by the applicant prior to the applicant
being heard by any board or otherwise acted upon. The Building Department
will maintain a separate account for all escrow deposits. The Village's
employed professional shall maintain a record of the time spent in
the execution of his or her duties with respect to the application
and provide that information to the Building Department on a monthly
basis. The time so spent shall be charged against the applicant's
escrow balance by multiplying that time against the annualized salary
of the employed professional, including the cost of benefits and statutorily
required employer tax contributions. If at any time during the review
and approval process the applicant's escrow account shows a negative
balance, additional funds must be submitted to the Village Building
Department before any further action will be taken on the application.
If at the conclusion of the review and approval process the amount
of such services is more than the amount escrowed pursuant hereto,
the applicant shall pay the difference to the Village Building Department
prior to final action on the application (e.g., filing determinations,
the issuance of a building permits or certificate of occupancy), and
in the event the amount held in escrow by the Village Building Department
is more than the amount of the actual billing of the Village's
professional, the difference shall be promptly refunded to the applicant.
(3)
Any suspension of an application made for failure to make the payments
required by this section shall toll any period of time in which a
board is otherwise required to act or made a determination.
Fees set forth in the chapter or elsewhere within the Code of
the Village of Round Lake may be revised, amended, supplemented or
eliminated by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees. The Village
Administrative Fees Matrix annexed as Table A to this chapter[1] may be revised, amended or supplemented by resolution
of the Village Board of Trustees. Absent action by the Village Board
of Trustees, the fees set forth in the Village Administrative Fees
Matrix and elsewhere in the Code of the Village of Round Lake shall
be increased by 2.5% per year to account for inflation, on the first
of January, 2024, and on the first of January each year thereafter.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Village Administrative Fees Matrix
is on file in the Village offices.
