107A.13 Development impact and in-lieu fees.

107A.13 Development impact and in-lieu fees.

107A.13.1 Definitions.

(a) The following definitions shall govern interpretation of this Section:

(1) “ City ” shall mean the City and County of San Francisco.

(2) “ Department ” shall mean the Department of Building Inspection.

(3) “ Development fee ” shall mean either a development impact fee or an in-lieu fee. It shall not include a fee for service or any time and material charges charged for reviewing or processing permit applications.

(4) “ Development impact fee ” shall mean a fee imposed on a development project as a condition of approval by the various departments and agencies of the City and levies against development projects by the San Francisco Unified School District under Section 17620 of the California Education Code and other provisions of State law to mitigate the impacts of increased demand for public services, facilities or housing caused by the development project that may or may not be an impact fee governed by the California Mitigation Fee Act (California Government Code Section 66000 et seq. )

(5) “ Development impact requirement ” shall mean a requirement to provide physical improvements, facilities or below market rate housing units imposed on a development project as a condition of approval to mitigate the impacts of increased demand for public services, facilities or housing caused by the development project that may or may not be governed by the California Mitigation Fee Act (California Government Code Section 66000 et seq. ).

(6) “ Development project ” shall mean a project that is subject to a development impact or in-lieu fee or development impact requirement.

(7) “ First certificate of occupancy ” shall mean either a temporary certificate of occupancy or a Certificate of Final Completion and Occupancy as defined in San Francisco Building Code Section 109A, whichever is issued first.

(8) “ First construction document ” shall mean the first building permit issued for a development project or, in the case of a site permit, the first building permit addendum issued or other document that authorizes construction of the development project. Construction document shall not include permits or addenda for demolition, grading, shoring, pile driving, or site preparation work.

(9) “ In-lieu fee ” is a fee paid by the project sponsor in lieu of complying with a City requirement that is not a development impact fee within the meaning of the Mitigation Fee Act.

(10) “ Neighborhood Infrastructure Seed Fund ” shall mean the fund or funds established by the Controller’s Office for the purpose of collecting the 20 percent pre-paid portion of the development fees intended to fund pre-development work on any neighborhood infrastructure project funded by any of the neighborhood infrastructure impact development fees listed in Subsection 107A.13.3.1.1. In addition, third-party grant monies or loans may also be deposited into this fund for the purpose of funding pre-development or capital expenses to accelerate the construction start times of any neighborhood infrastructure project funded by any of the neighborhood infrastructure impact development fees listed in Subsection 107A.13.3.1.1.

(11) “ Project sponsor ” or “ sponsor ” shall mean an applicant seeking approval for construction of a development project subject to this Section, such applicant’s successor and assigns, and/or any entity which controls or is under common control with such applicant.

(12) “ Unit ” shall mean the Department’s Development Fee Collection Unit.

(Amended by Ord. 193-23, File No. 230764, App. 9/15/2023, Eff. 10/16/2023)

107A.13.2 Collection by Department. The Department shall be responsible for collecting all development impact and in-lieu fees, including (a) fees levied by the San Francisco Unified School District if the District authorizes collection by the Department, and (b) fees levied by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, if the Commission’s General Manager authorizes collection by the Department, deferral of payment of any development fee, and/or resolution of any development fee dispute or appeal in accordance with this Section 107A.13.

107A.13.3 Timing of development fee payments and satisfaction of development impact requirements.

(a) Timing for payment and compliance.

(1) All development impact or in-lieu fees owed for a development project shall be paid by the project sponsor prior to issuance of the first construction document; provided, however, that the project sponsor may elect to defer payment of said fees under Section 107A.13.3.1.

(2) Any development impact requirement shall be completed prior to issuance of the first certificate of occupancy for the development project.

(b) Designated Residential Development Projects. Pursuant to California Government Code Section 66007, development impact fees for Designated Residential Development Projects, as that term is defined in Government Code Section 66007(c)(4), shall be paid on the issuance date of the First Certificate of Occupancy or first Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, whichever occurs first, unless the development impact fee qualifies for early collection pursuant to Subsection 66007(c)(2).

Code Section 66007, development impact fees for Designated Residential Development Projects, as that term is defined in Government Code Section 66007(c)(4), shall be paid on the issuance date of the First Certificate of Occupancy or first Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, whichever occurs first, unless the development impact fee qualifies for early collection pursuant to Subsection 66007(c)(2).

107A.13.3.1 Fee deferral program. A project sponsor may elect to defer payment of any development impact or in-lieu fee, excluding any fees that must be deposited into the Citywide Affordable Housing Fund (Administrative Code Section 10.100-49), collected by the Department to a due date prior to issuance by the Department of the first certificate of occupancy; provided, however, that the project sponsor shall pay 15 percent of the total amount of the development fees owed, excluding any fees that must be deposited into the Citywide Affordable Housing Fund (Administrative Code Section 10.100-49), prior to issuance of the first construction document. If a project is subject to one of the neighborhood infrastructure impact development fees listed in Subsection 107A.13.3.1.1, the project sponsor shall pay 20 percent of the total amount of the development fees owed prior to issuance of the first construction document. These pre-paid funds shall be deposited as provided in Subsection 107A.13.3.1.1 below. A project sponsor that has not obtained its First Construction Document prior to the Effective Date of the ordinance in Board File No. 230764 and has not yet paid a development impact or in-lieu fee may elect to defer payment under the provisions of this Section notwithstanding a condition of approval that required the fee to be paid prior to issuance of the First Construction Document.

This option to defer payment may be exercised by submitting a deferral request to the Department on a form provided by the Department prior to issuance of the first construction document. This deferral option shall not be available to a project sponsor who paid the fee prior to the Effective Date date [1 ] of the ordinance in Board File No. 230764; the project sponsor’s reapplication for a building or site permit after expiration of the original permit and refund of the development fees paid shall not authorize the project sponsor to elect the deferral option.

107A.13.3.1.1 Deposit of pre-paid portion of deferred development fees. If a development project is not subject to one of the neighborhood infrastructure impact fees listed below, the pre-paid portion of the development fees shall be deposited into the appropriate fee account. If there is

more than one fee account, the pre-paid portion of the fees shall be apportioned equally.

If a development project is subject to one of the neighborhood infrastructure impact development fees listed below, the entire 20 percent development fee pre-payment shall be deposited in the appropriate neighborhood infrastructure impact fee account. These pre-paid funds shall be dedicated solely to replenishing the Neighborhood Infrastructure Seed Fund for that specific neighborhood infrastructure impact fee account. In no event shall a neighborhood infrastructure impact fee specific to one Area Plan be mixed with neighborhood infrastructure impact fees specific to a different Area Plan. lf the 20 percent development fee pre-payment exceeds the total amount owed for the neighborhood infrastructure impact fee account, the remaining pre-paid portion of the 20 percent development fee pre-payment shall be apportioned equally among the remaining applicable development fees.

The neighborhood infrastructure development fees subject to the 20 percent pre-payment provision of this Subsection 107A.13.3.1.1 are as follows: (1) the Rincon Hill Community Infrastructure Impact Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 418.3(b)(1); (2) the Visitacion Valley Community Facilities and Infrastructure Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 420.3(b); (3) the Market and Octavia Community Infrastructure Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 421.3(b); (4) the Balboa Park Community Infrastructure Impact Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 422.3(b); (5) the Eastern Neighborhoods Infrastructure Impact Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 423.3(b); (6) the Van Ness and Market Neighborhood Infrastructure Impact Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 424.3(b)(ii); and (7) the Central SoMa Infrastructure Impact Fee, as set forth in Planning Code Section 433.

107A.13.3.2 Reserved.

(Amended by Ord. 193-23, File No. 230764, App. 9/15/2023, Eff. 10/16/2023; Ord. 196-25, File No. 250657, App. 10/24/2025, Eff. 11/24/2025)

CODIFICATION NOTE

1. So in Ord. 193-23.

107A.13.4 Development Fee Collection Unit. There shall be a Development Fee Collection Unit established within the Department. The Unit’s duties include: (1) receiving and organizing information from various City agencies concerning the amount of development fees owed or specific development impact requirements imposed under various sections of the San Francisco Municipal Code or other legal authority, (2) working with the project sponsor and relevant agencies to resolve any disputes or questions concerning the development fees or development impact requirements applied to specific development projects, (3) ensuring that the first construction document, or First Certificate of Occupancy or first Temporary Certificate of Occupancy if the project is a Designated Residential Development Project or if the sponsor elects to defer payment, is not issued prior to payment of all development fees that are due and owing, (4) confirming with the Planning Department that any outstanding development impact requirements are satisfied prior to issuance of the first certificate of occupancy for projects subject to such requirements, (5) generating Project Development Fee Reports, (6) processing any development fee refunds, (7) publishing and updating the Citywide Development Fee Register, (8) initiating lien proceedings to collect any unpaid development impact or in-lieu fees, and (9) performing such other duties as the Building Official requires. The fee for the Department’s services shall be as provided in Section 107A.13.14.

(Amended by Ord. 196-25, File No. 250657, App. 10/24/2025, Eff. 11/24/2025)

107A.13.5 Citywide Development Fee Register. The Unit shall publish a Citywide Development Fee Register that lists all current San Francisco development impact and in-lieu fees. The Unit shall update the Register whenever a development impact or in-lieu fee is newly enacted, rescinded or amended. The Unit shall make the Register available to the public upon request, including but not limited to posting it on the Department’s website.

107A.13.6 Required City Agency or Department Notice to Development Fee Collection Unit. Prior to issuance of any building or site permit for a project, any department or agency responsible for calculating a development fee collected by the Unit or imposing a development impact requirement shall send written or electronic notification to the Development Fee Collection Unit that (i) identifies the development project, (ii) lists which specific development fees and/or development impact requirements are applicable and the legal authorization for their application, (iii) specifies the amount of the development fee or fees that the department or agency calculates is owed to the City or that the project sponsor has elected to satisfy a development impact requirement through the direct provision of public benefits, and (iv) lists the name and contact information for the staff person at each agency or department responsible for calculating the development fee or monitoring the development impact requirement.

ee or fees that the department or agency calculates is owed to the City or that the project sponsor has elected to satisfy a development impact requirement through the direct provision of public benefits, and (iv) lists the name and contact information for the staff person at each agency or department responsible for calculating the development fee or monitoring the development impact requirement.

107A.13.7 Project Development Fee Report. Prior to the issuance of the building or site permit for a development project that owes a development fee or fees or is subject to development impact requirements, and at any time thereafter, the Development Fee Collection Unit shall prepare and provide to the project sponsor, or any member of the public upon request, a Project Development Fee Report. The Report shall: (i) identify the development project, (ii) list which specific development fees and/or development impact requirements are applicable and the legal authorization for their application, (iii) specify the amount of the development fee or fees that the department or agency calculates is owed or that the project sponsor has elected to satisfy a development impact requirement through the direct provision of physical improvements, (iv) list the name and contact information for the staff person at each agency or department responsible for calculating the development fee or monitoring the development impact requirement, (v) identify the fee dispute process pursuant to Section 107A.13.9, and (vi) state by when the development fee or fees are due and payable pursuant to Section 107A.13.3, and note the status of payment. A copy of the Project Development Fee Report shall always be made available to the project sponsor immediately prior to issuance of the site or building permit for a development project subject to any development fee or fees to provide adequate notice of the proposed development fee or fees. The Development Fee Collection Unit shall not issue a Final Development Fee Report and the respective site or building permit for a development project until it has received written confirmation from the First Source Hiring Administration (FSHA) that the project sponsor has executed a first source hiring agreement(s) with the FSHA consistent with Administrative Code Section 83.11.

(Amended by Ord. 196-25, File No. 250657, App. 10/24/2025, Eff. 11/24/2025)

107A.13.8 Failure to give notice of a development fee owed or development impact requirement. The failure of the Unit or a fee-assessing department or agency to give any notice of a development fee owed or development impact requirement shall not relieve the project sponsor of the obligation to pay the development fee when it is due. The procedure set forth in this Section is not intended to preclude enforcement of the development fee or development impact requirements pursuant to any other section of this Code, the Planning Code or other parts of the Municipal Code or under the laws of the State of California.

107A.13.9 Development fee dispute resolution; appeal to Board of Appeals.

107A.13.9.1 Procedure for resolution by Development Fee Collection Unit. If a dispute or question arises concerning the accuracy of the final Project Development Fee Report, including the mathematical calculation of any development fee listed thereon, the Development Fee Collection Unit shall attempt to resolve it in consultation with the department or agency affected by the disputed fee and the project sponsor. A person protesting the accuracy of the Report must submit the issue or issues in writing to the Unit with a copy to the department or agency whose development fee is in dispute. Any public notice of the issuance of the building or site permit shall notify the public of the right to request a copy of the Project Development Fee Report and of the right of appeal to the Board of Appeals under Section 107A.13.9.2.

107A.13.9.2 Appeal to Board of Appeals.

(a) If the Development Fee Collection Unit is unable to resolve the dispute or question, the project sponsor or a member of the public may appeal the Project Development Fee Report to the Board of Appeals within 15 days of the issuance of the building or site permit under Article 8 et seq. of the San Francisco Business & Tax Regulations Code.

(b) In cases where a project sponsor is not using the site permit process and is required to pay a development fee or fees prior to issuance of the development project’s building permit, and chooses not to defer payment under Section 107A.13.3.1, the sponsor may pay a disputed fee under protest and file an appeal within 15 days of the issuance of the permit.

(c) In order to appeal to the Board of Appeals under this Section, a project sponsor appellant must first have attempted to resolve the dispute or question by following the procedure in Section 107A.13.9.1. Evidence of this prior attempt must be submitted to the Board of Appeals in order for the Board to accept the appeal. Members of the public may file an appeal under this Section without providing such evidence.

(d) Promptly after an appeal has been filed, the Board of Appeals shall notify the department or agency whose development fee or development impact requirement is at issue of the fact that an appeal has been filed and the date scheduled for hearing. A representative of the Department of Building Inspection and of the department or agency whose development fee or development impact requirement is in dispute must be present at the appeal hearing.

(e) In hearing any appeal of the Project Development Fee Report, the Board’s jurisdiction is strictly limited to determining whether the mathematical calculation of the development fee or the scope of a development impact requirement is accurate and resolving any technical disputes over the use, occupancy, floor area, unit count and mix, or other objective criteria that calculation of the challenged development fee or development impact requirement is based upon.

e Board’s jurisdiction is strictly limited to determining whether the mathematical calculation of the development fee or the scope of a development impact requirement is accurate and resolving any technical disputes over the use, occupancy, floor area, unit count and mix, or other objective criteria that calculation of the challenged development fee or development impact requirement is based upon.

(f) If a decision by the Board of Appeals requires a refund of all or any portion of the disputed development fee, the refund shall be processed promptly by the Development Fee Collection Unit under Section 107A.13.11. If a decision requires a new determination regarding the scope of a development impact requirement, such new determination shall be made by the relevant City agency or department prior to issuance of the first certificate of occupancy. Where the Board determines that an additional amount of the fee or fees is due and owing, the additional amount shall be paid prior to issuance of the first certificate of occupancy for the development project.

107A.13.10 Violation of this section deemed a violation of the Building Code. In addition to the lien proceedings authorized Section 107A .13.15, a violation of this Section 107A .13 shall be deemed a violation of the Building Code and subject to the provisions of Section 103A and any investigation or other fees authorized under other sections of this Code to compensate the Department for the cost of abating violations.

107A.13.11 Development fee refunds. Upon notification by the property owner or project sponsor and confirmation by the applicable department or agency that a fee refund is due, the Unit shall process the refund. The fee for processing the refund shall be as set forth in Table 1A-D – Other Building Permit and Plan Review Fees.

107A.13.12 Development fee information a public record. Any notice of development fees due or development impact requirements imposed sent to the Development Collection Unit by any fee-assessing departments and agencies, the Project Development Fee Report issued by the Unit, and any development fee refunds or development impact requirement revisions made are a matter of public record.

107A.13.13 Administrative fee. The fee for services provided by the Department under this Section 107A .13 shall be the standard hourly rate for administration set forth in Table 1A-D of this Code. The administrative fee is payable within 30 days of the Department’s notice that payment is due.

107A.13.14 Administrative procedures. The Building Official is empowered to adopt such administrative procedures as he or she deems necessary to implement this Section. Such administrative procedures shall be generally consistent with the procedural requirements set forth in this Section 107A

.

107A.13.15 Wrongful issuance of first construction document or certificate of occupancy; assessment lien; notice. In addition to any other remedy established in this Code or under other authority under the laws of the State of California, if DBI inadvertently or mistakenly issues the first construction document or first certificate of occupancy, whichever applies, for a development project that has not paid a development fee that is due and owing and payment has not been received within 30 days following notice that payment is due, or, in the case where a sponsor has elected to satisfy a development impact requirement through direct provision of physical improvements and where non-compliance with any such requirement is not corrected within 30 days following notice, the Department shall initiate proceedings in accordance with Article XX of Chapter 10 of the San Francisco Administrative Code to make the entire unpaid balance of the fee that is due, including interest at the rate of one and one-half percent per month or fraction thereof on the amount of unpaid fee, a lien against all parcels used for the development project. The penalty fee provisions of this section shall also apply to projects that have elected to provide physical improvements in lieu of paying a development fee, as if they had elected to pay the relevant development fee.

The Department shall send all notices required by Article XX to the owner or owners of the property and to the project sponsor if different from the owner. The Department shall also prepare a preliminary report, and notify the owner and sponsor of a hearing by the Board of Supervisors to confirm such report at least ten days before the date of the hearing. The report shall contain the owner and sponsor’s names, a description of the development project, a description of the parcels of real property to be encumbered as set forth in the Assessor’s Map Books for the current year, a description of the alleged violation of this Section, and shall fix a time, date, and place for hearing. The Department shall mail this report to the sponsor and each owner of record of the parcels of real property subject to the lien.

Any notice required to be given to an owner or sponsor shall be sufficiently given or served upon the owner or sponsor for all purposes in this Section if personally served upon the owner or sponsor or if deposited, postage prepaid, in post office letterbox addressed to the owner or sponsor at the official address of the owner or sponsor maintained by the Tax Collector for the mailing of tax bills or, if no such address is available, to the sponsor at the address of the development project, and to the applicant for the site or building permit at the address on the permit application.

Except for the release of the lien recording fee authorized by Administrative Code Section 10.237, all sums collected by the Tax Collector under this Section shall be held in trust by the Treasurer and deposited in the City’s appropriate fee account.