Standard: There shall be an established revenue policy that is periodically updated regarding fees and charges for services and the strategies and methodologies for determining fees and charges and levels of cost recovery.
Suggested Evidence of Compliance: Provide the policy on fees and charges, the current fee schedules or cost-recovery procedures, and the most recent review or update.
Informational reference in the Management of Park and Recreation Agencies, (2010), 3rd Ed., Chapter 19 – Financial Management, pp. 500-515.
Agency Evidence of Compliance:
The Park District's Revenue Policy1 establishes the types of revenues the Park District will collect and is the basis of accounting. The policy on Fees and Charges2 further details the fees and charges that the Park District will administer. These policies are reviewed and updated as part of the review of the entire set of Park District policies, which last took place in December 2014 when they were approved by the Park District Board of Commissioners3.
Potential increases in fees and charges are reviewed on an annual basis. Increases to fees and charges are based on numerous factors including the consumer price index (CPI), changes in staff costs, and estimated increases for contractual services and material and supplies. These factors are weighted based on their percentage of the overall Park District budget to create a blended increase in fees and charges. This information is shared with staff as part of the Park District of Oak Park Budget Guidelines4. The most recent update of the budget guidelines was completed in July 2014 in preparation for the development of the 2015 budget.
During the budget process, staff enter notes5 regarding their proposed budgets, including an explanation of fee and charge increases. In this area, they outline fee increase amounts and explain any fee increases that are below or above the recommended organizational fee increase included in the budget guidelines.
Documentation of Evidence:
- 05.01.01_Revenue-Policy.pdf
- 05.01.01_Fees-and-Charges-Policy.pdf
- 05.01.01_Policy-Approval-at-December-2014-Board-Meeting.pdf
- 05.01.01_2015-Budget-Guidelines.pdf
- 05.01.01_Fee_Increase_Explanations_in_Budget.pdf
Agency Self Assessment: MET