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City of Santa Ana I California
<br />understand by non- finance oriented individuals and facilitates discussion. Mr. Fisher has coordinated or
<br />participated in numerous public and staff workshops regarding fees and cost of service based charges. As
<br />previously mentioned, our objective is to provide useful, detailed information to the Council and City staff,
<br />necessary to make important decisions. Our experience ensures that we can meet this objective.
<br />User - friendly Models and Reports: Willdan prides itself on creating user - friendly Excel -based models that
<br />the City can retain, and conducting our analysis and developing the model collaboratively with City
<br />staff. With City staff's immediate input and collaboration; Willdan will design an extremely flexible, intuitive
<br />Excel -based model. In the future, as the City assumes new responsibilities, modifies existing processes,
<br />and /or eliminates unnecessary services or programs, the model will be capable of adding or deleting funds,
<br />objects, departments, programs, staff positions, and activities. Willdan understands that issues facing the City
<br />are unique; consequently, we design our model to match your immediate and desired needs to ensure that
<br />end results exceed staff expectations. This model is then the City's to retain, after our study is
<br />completed, and allows us to create revenue projections, highlight potential new revenues and current
<br />levels of subsidy.
<br />Experience with Development Service Processes: A unique aspect of our firm is our relationship with our
<br />Engineering Division. For many agencies throughout California and other Western states, this division
<br />provides contracted services in planning, engineering, and building and safety. When conducting cost
<br />recovery studies, we regularly consult with our engineering and land - development staff of experts on
<br />development - related issues. By working with our planners, engineers, and building officials, we understand
<br />development - related agency service procedures and workflow functions, which often make the entire user
<br />fee study process smoother for your staff.
<br />A key element of this study is presenting results and recommendations in a straightforward mannerthat allows
<br />Council and staff to confidently make fee setting policy decisions, and understand the impacts of those
<br />decisions. Rather than using an inflexible proprietary software program, we construct our models from the
<br />ground up, and as previously discussed, mirroring the City's budget format wherever possible. As a result,
<br />the information contained In our models is easy for City staff to Interpret, and the familiar software
<br />ensures ease of navigation. As the model is being designed and constructed, we will work together with
<br />City staff to determine the best and most effective features to include, such as Index links and color- coding to
<br />identify input cells and protected formulas.
<br />After the project is completed, we will provide training, so that your staff can independently and efficiently
<br />evaluate the effects of changes in certain factors. Created directly from the models, our reports clearly and
<br />graphically illustrate bases for the allocation of costs, the full cost recovery level of fee programs, provide
<br />projections of revenue from fee programs, both at full cost recovery and at recommended levels, break down
<br />the costs into direct and Indirect overhead categories, and present the fee methodologies.
<br />User Fee Study Approach
<br />In order to comprehensively and regularly update fees, the City should develop a comprehensive user fee
<br />schedule that accurately accounts for the true cost of providing services. Once the study is complete, the user
<br />fee study model must be flexible so that the City can add, delete, and revise fees in the future. To meet this
<br />goal, we will bring our expertise and unique perspectives to your fee study by approaching the project with
<br />these four principles:
<br />1) Technical Expertise
<br />The City's fee and rate study requires a professional firm possessing years of user fee study experience. Our
<br />staff has performed user fee studies for agencies ranging in size from the City of Rolling Hills (population
<br />1,500) to the City of Phoenix (population 1,500,000). These studies presented unique opportunities for our
<br />staff to incorporate enhancements into each fee model's capabilities. Willdan staff members assigned to this
<br />project developed user fee expertise through the completion of dozens of such projects, which will benefit the
<br />City as they evaluate the fees associated with the services delivered.
<br />2) Defensibility
<br />Our user fee projects have not been legally challenged since the inception of this practice area in our firm.
<br />We have accomplished this by closely working with legal counsel familiar with user fee studies, our
<br />Comprehensive, lnnovative. Trusted.
<br />911, 11 City of Santa Ana
<br />. 250 -15 User fee Study
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