Correction, July 8, 2026 9:59 am: This story was updated at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 8, to report that the July 13 City Council meeting will not include a public hearing on the ordinance, although there will be an opportunity for public comments. Also, funds raised through the fee will not go entirely toward police salaries but police operations.
The Philomath City Council plans to vote this coming Monday on an ordinance that would create a new police services fee and write it into city code, city officials said.
Under the city charter, Ordinance 895 needs a unanimous vote to take effect immediately. If even one councilor votes no, the ordinance would not go into effect unless and until it comes back for a second reading and second vote — likely at a July 27 meeting — which would not need to be unanimous to pass.
Notably, the ordinance itself does not set a dollar amount for the fee or an effective date for collection. Those details are left to a follow-up resolution the council would take up separately. City officials have discussed a $5 monthly fee as part of the 2026-27 budget process, but that figure is not written into Ordinance 895.
According to Mayor Christopher McMorran, the city attorney recommended structuring it this way so the fee’s framework is built into the Philomath municipal code while the dollar amount and collection details can be adjusted through a resolution as needed, without requiring a change to the code itself.
The proposed fee would apply as a surcharge on city utility bills for every developed residential, commercial and industrial property inside city limits. The ordinance presumes that all such properties use and benefit from police services, and it directs the council to review the fee amount annually — once set — to decide whether an adjustment is warranted.
The fee has undergone several changes since it was first floated as part of the city’s 2026-27 budget process. The city initially proposed a $14 monthly city services fee as a way to close a structural gap between revenues and expenses, citing property tax limitations under state law, inflation and improving the city’s competitiveness in public safety compensation.
The Budget Review Committee, over roughly 3-1/2 hours of deliberation on June 11, approved a package of budget cuts that allowed the proposed fee to drop from $14 to $5 per month, with the full amount directed toward police operations.
The City Council formally adopted the city’s $34.7 million budget for fiscal year 2026-27 on June 23, on a 6-1 vote, with a proposed $5 fee built into the spending plan even though the council had not yet enacted it by ordinance. Councilors that night also debated giving the fee a new name to make clear the money would support the police department specifically.
Under the proposed ordinance, the fee would be billed monthly as a line item on city utility statements. Whoever is normally responsible for a property’s water and sewer bill would pay for the new fee as well, though the ordinance also lays out billing procedures for properties without water or sewer service. A late charge — to be set separately by council resolution — would apply to any fee not paid within 16 days of billing, and unpaid balances lasting more than two months could result in water shut-off.
If a customer’s utility payment isn’t enough to cover the full bill, the ordinance directs the city to apply the funds first to the police services fee, then in order to the street utility fee, storm drain fee, sewer charges, water charges and finally any interest or penalties.
The ordinance also would build in a 50% discount for income-qualified households, regardless of what dollar amount the council ultimately sets. Single-family residential customers who fall at or below 50% of the area median income for Benton County — as defined annually by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development — would pay half the standard rate.
The city’s finance director would be tasked with creating an application process for the reduced rate, and residents who disagree with a means-eligibility determination could appeal. The city would have 90 days to respond to a formally filed appeal.
The council has discussed $5 a month as the anticipated fee during the 2026-27 budget process — which would mean $2.50 for qualifying low-income households — and city officials estimated in June that a $5 fee would generate approximately $144,000 a year for police operations.
A resolution setting that $5 figure will reportedly be included in Monday’s meeting packet alongside the ordinance, according to Assistant City Manager Chelsea Starner. But that resolution’s fate depends on the ordinance.
The fee has been a point of contention among councilors and residents throughout the budget process. Councilor Jessica Andrade voiced continued reservations during budget deliberations but ultimately supported the $5 figure over the originally proposed $14. Some Budget Review Committee members had also floated pursuing a dedicated police levy instead of a general fee, arguing it would offer voters more transparency and assurance that the money stays tied to police funding. City Manager Chris Workman was skeptical a levy could be put together in time for this budget cycle, telling the committee in June that successful levy campaigns typically take a year or more to prepare.
Because the ordinance carries an emergency clause meant to let it take effect immediately, it requires a unanimous vote Monday to do so. Philomath’s council has not been unanimous on every aspect of the fee so far — Councilor Teresa Nielson cast the lone dissenting vote on the 2026-27 budget in June — so a split vote on the ordinance itself appears to be possible. If that happens, the ordinance would need to come back for a second reading and vote, which McMorran said would likely happen July 27 and would not require unanimity to pass.
The July 13 meeting is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start at Philomath City Hall. The agenda will include time set aside for public comments.
