Travis County Commissioners Court
March 25, 2008
Item 22
Are we ready for 22? Consider and take appropriate action on waving septic permit fees for Margaret untied's property at 1709 saracen road. I will have one or two questions for legal. We'll go into executive session to ask those.
>> stacy shuffle, transportation natural resources department. Basically this is about a septic permit that we issued in 2001. The system was constructed and we've done everything but do the final inspection and issue the license to operate. Unfortunately our permits expire in one year. That means all the inspections, license to operate had to be issued in that one-year time period and that did not happen. The current owner of the home now wants to have a license to operate, which she legally needs to operate a septic system in Travis County. The problem comes in as our $450 fee. Basically we would have to reprint the permit for $450. So they are asking that the fees be waved--waived.
>> all we have to do is what now?
>> well, I think, this probably has some bearing on the legal thing here, the applicant has actually gone through the process, paid the fee, but the permit wasn't issued because all the documents had not been done. So it expired. So basically she is having to come back a second time merely to pay $450. All the work has been done. She has done everything she had to do. But because it expired we're having to legally go back and charge her another $450 just to get a piece of paper printed out. So that is on the surface not really fair because we are not doing any additional work for that money. We have done the work. That is why she is seeking the waiver and why we are recommending it.
>> we have previously done this twice in the past in the past year for similar circumstance.
>> what put her behind the eight ball scheduling wise?
>> change in ownership. She purchased from the property owner who had originally paid for and installed the septic system. But she wishes to have a license to operate. And that was not done during the time period.
>> we were advised by legal counsel in the previous two occasions in this in fact meets the legal requirements? Was that in executive session question?
>> I think so.
>> judge, document me to help answer the legal question or go to executive session?
>> if it's really easy you can answer now. If this is behind closed door question and answer.
>> whatever you would like, judge. I think, document plea --me to go into it right now? Whatever you all want. I think the legal question, if I have understood the facts correctly, is whether the waiver would con take it a gift that would be prohibited through constitution.
>> that's my question.
>> the work has already been done and paid for. We not giving anything away.
>> et may be part of the answer.
>> it might be part of the answer. The thing is, as I understand, dnr doesn't have a policy about waiving. I don't know if this is something y'all have done in the past with respect to other people besides these two to three instances.
>> not on septic. We have a policy for flood victims if they are 90 percent of poverty level, dnr can waive the fees to repair the home of it's similar in that the county gets to set the fees it charges for these types of permits and that is the fee that we are asked to waive. But other than the other two we have not on septic.
>> do we take this up in executive to discuss the policy and the different scenarios?
>> that's fine. I’m sure if you have some legal questions we ought to ask. From my standpoint, these are the kind of deals that if y'all think that this is fine the fact that this person has paid $450 already for this and it really is a procedural thing that could be a legal question, then let's by all means get the questions answered that you have in executive session. But I mean the right thing to do here is clearly to follow recommendation of tn r. If we have legal questions and executive session, by all means.
>> my legal question is not whether to do it, it's how to do it.
>> okay. I respect that.
>> then john, before going to executive session in 30 seconds, we may as well take two or three other items in. So we will take item number 22 into executive session under the consultation with legal counsel open meetings act to get legal advice.
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Last Modified:
Wednesday, March 26, 2008 8:51 PM