Fees for Services to Be Considered

Ventura County could soon begin charging fees to monitor rent in mobile home parks, answer questions from the public over the telephone and research queries about illegal land divisions.

Those fee proposals are among several being considered to replace subsidies and reduce the county Resource Management Agency’s budget by $517,000. The Ventura County Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on the measures today.

To make up for the $50,000 cost of administering the mobile home rent review program, Thomas Berg, director of the Resource Management Agency, has proposed charging park owners $3 per space per month.

Berg’s other proposals include billing two water districts $18,000 for a public education program teaching conservation and increasing the cost of permits issued to companies that film movies in Ventura County.

In addition to proposing eight immediate changes, Berg also gave the supervisors a long-term list of ideas for saving money.

Among the suggestions was setting specific fines for violating building code regulations and instituting a 900 phone number that would charge residents who call the agency seeking information.

If the cuts are not made, 12 positions will be eliminated from the Resource Management Agency, which includes planning, environmental health and the Air Pollution Control District. With the implementation of fees, three positions would be cut.

Supervisor Maggie Kildee said the county must charge the fees or eliminate the services.

“There simply isn’t enough money to keep on doing the things we’ve traditionally done,” she said. “When you cut services, you cut good things.”