The City of Tumwater Public Works Committee heard an informational presentation Dec. 4 from Finance Director Troy Niemeyer on the proposed 2026 fee resolution and voted to forward the item to the full city council’s Dec. 16 consideration calendar.

Niemeyer said the city prefers small, incremental fee adjustments each year instead of large, sporadic changes. He highlighted reductions in some zoning and building permit fees for more affordable housing types — discounts Niemeyer said range from about 10% to 50% — and said the adjustments were intended to help make housing development more affordable.

On public safety and recreation, Niemeyer noted increases intended to reflect the city’s cost of doing business. He specifically cited a fee for a third false alarm that aligns with recommendations from the Washington State Association of Fire Chiefs, and said event permit fees will rise (for example, an event permit moving from $10 to $50 in his slide).

Niemeyer also outlined utility‑related items. Table 7 proposes increases he summarized as: water up 5.5%, stormwater up 8%, sewer up 6.5% and the lot portion of sewer up 3%. He presented a comparison showing Tumwater’s average bill would still be lower than Olympia’s and Lacey’s for the example usage provided; he estimated the total average bill increase (including utility tax in the illustrative calculation) would be about $7.28 on a typical monthly bill.

Niemeyer highlighted the Lifeline program table (a 50% discount on utilities for qualifying low‑income residents) and noted the community‑funded Tumwater Hardship Program remains available for donations to assist utility customers.

Councilmember Jefferson asked for clearer, community‑ready explanations of why fees and taxes rise and requested Niemeyer provide additional detail and outreach material when the resolution returns to council Dec. 16. Niemeyer agreed to bring more information at that time.

The committee approved forwarding the resolution to the Dec. 16 council consideration meeting; if adopted by council, Niemeyer said the fee changes would be effective Jan. 1, 2026.

Next steps: Niemeyer will return to council Dec. 16 with recommended language and additional justification for the proposed fee and rate changes.