Los Angeles County Municipal Code Ch. 17 Fees

17.01 - Purpose of chapter provisions.¶

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a schedule of fees to be charged and collected by the Los Angeles County Flood Control District from private parties and public agencies for miscellaneous services.

(Ord. 82-0193 FC § 1, 1982.)

Exceptions & meaning →

17.03 - Definitions.¶

Flood Hazard Report Definitions.

"Issuance of Flood Hazard Reports—Regular flood hazard report" means the process required to make an engineering analysis and issue a report commenting on the degree of flood hazard from rivers, streams, channels, and local drainage to which a subdivision, parcel of land, building, or proposed construction is subject. Said report may include recommendations for mitigating the flood hazard.

"Issuance of Flood Hazard Reports—Quarry flood hazard report" means the process required to make an engineering analysis and issue a report evaluating the degree of flood hazard caused by or to which a quarry operation is subject. Said report may include recommendations for mitigating the flood hazard and operating controls.

Plan Check Definitions.

"Plan Check for Work Affecting District Facilities—Minor modifications" means those plan checks requiring three hours or less for structural, hydraulic, or other technical reviews, as deemed necessary by the District. Minor modifications shall include, but not be limited, to the following:

Manhole modifications;

Overbuild proposals where structural analysis of footing loads on the District facilities are not necessary;

Fencing modifications;

Abandoning of catchbasins;

Grading over storm-drain facilities; and

Utility crossing (aerial and underground).

"Plan Check for Work Affecting District Facilities—Major modifications" means those plan checks requiring more than three hours for structural, hydraulic, or other technical reviews, as deemed necessary by the District. Case I shall consist of checks requiring three to eight hours, and Case II shall consist of checks requiring more than eight hours. Major modifications shall include, but not be limited, to the following:

Realignment or reconstruction of main-line storm-drain facilities;

Primary and secondary utility corridor-type installations;

Pipe connections greater than 24 inches in diameter or box equivalent where the connection requires a structural review; and

Catchbasin construction, relocation, or modification.

"Plan Check for Transfer Drains" means those plan checks required to determine the acceptability of a flood control or storm- drain project for transfer to the District for operation and maintenance under Section 13-3/4 of the District's Flood Control Act. Said checks may include, but shall not be limited to, a review of:

Engineering plans and construction drawings;

Hydrological maps and calculations;

Hydraulic and structural calculations;

Operational aspects and maintainability;

Conformance to District standards and criteria; and

Accuracy of rights-of-way.

"Plan Check for Work Affecting District Facilities—Minor revisions" and "Plan Check for Transfer Drains—Minor revisions" means those checks of revisions to previously approved plans requiring two hours or less per sheet for structural, hydraulic, or other technical reviews as deemed necessary by the District. Minor revisions shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

Manhole modifications;

Overbuild proposals where structural analysis of footing loads on proposed drains are not necessary;

Fencing modifications;

Abandoning or relocating catch basins; and

Correcting errors and omissions to approved plans.

"Plan Check for Work Affecting District Facilities—Major revisions" and "Plan Check for Transfer Drains—Major revisions" means those checks of revisions to previously approved plans requiring more than two hours for structural, hydraulic, or other technical reviews as deemed necessary by the District. Major revisions shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

Realignment or reconstruction of mainline storm drains, channels, or levees;

Pipe connections greater than 24 inches in diameter or box equivalent where the connection requires a structural review;

Modifications to debris or detention basins; and

Modifications to inlet and outlet structures.

Inspection Definitions.

"Inspection of Work Affecting District Facilities—Modifications of District facilities—Minor" means those inspections which can be completed upon the making of three or less individual inspections of projects of the following or similar types of improvements and/or structures:

Manhole modifications;

Catchbasin connections or modifications;

Fence relocations or modifications; and

Grading over storm drain facilities.

"Inspection of Work Affecting District Facilities—Modifications of District facilities—Major" means those inspections which because of the nature of the project affect District facilities to such an extent as to require more than three individual inspections or continuous supervision of the project by one or more inspectors during the phase of construction which involves District facilities, including but not limited to, cover slabs over channels, extensive overbuilding, or storm drain realignment.

"Inspection of Transfer Drains" means those inspections performed to determine the acceptability of a drainage facility proposed to be transferred to the District for operation and maintenance under Section 13-3/4 of the District's Flood Control Act.

Utility Corridor Installation Definitions.

"Primary" utility corridor type installations means those installations which involve parallel facilities of length greater than 1,000 feet.

"Secondary" utility corridor type installations means those installations which involve parallel facilities of a length of 1,000 feet or less.

Miscellaneous Services Definitions.

"Miscellaneous services" shall consist of, without limitation, searching of records, checking of maps and plans not otherwise defined, reviewing legal documents insofar as they affect District properties and/or interests, and temporary use of District right-of-way.

"Flood Control Permit" means the document issued by the District authorizing the use, modification, demolition, relocation, or construction of or connection to a flood control, storm drain or water conservation structure, facility or appurtenance, or any other property constructed, owned, controlled, used, or maintained by or on behalf of the District.

"Issuance of Flood Control Permit" shall mean the review of the permit application, the entry of the information into the permit system, the printing of the permit, the preparation of the permit package, and the distribution of the permit package, as applicable, to the appropriate District personnel and to other public agencies.

(Ord. 2011-0018 § 1, 2011; Ord. 96-0058FC § 1, 1996; Ord. 82-0193FC § 2, 1982.)

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17.05 - Fees for services—Cost determination and collection.¶

Before District approval of any items described in Section 17.03 above, or the commencement of any construction or improvement work that is proposed to be transferred to, or affects land, improvements and/or facilities of the Los Angeles County Flood Control District, for the benefit of another party, the person, party or agency doing such work or receiving the report, hereinafter referred to as "applicant," shall deposit with the chief engineer of the Los Angeles County Flood Control District the sums of money hereinafter set forth, and the District's chief engineer is hereby authorized to charge and collect such fees according to the following schedule:

Issuance of Flood Hazard Reports.

Regular flood hazard report—$52.00.

Quarry flood hazard report—Actual cost to District.

Plan Check for Work Affecting District Facilities.*

Connections:

One inch to six inches—$227.00.

Eight inches to 12 inches—$446.00.

Over 12 inches to 24 inches—$1,106.00.

Over 24 inches—Actual costs to District ($750.00 minimum).

Minor modifications—$227.00.

Major modifications:

(Case I)—Actual cost to District ($750.00 minimum).

(Case II)—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Minor revisions—$227.00.

Major revisions:

(Case I)—Actual cost to District ($750.00 minimum).

(Case II)—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Overbuilding—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Excavations—$888.00.

Bridge:

Clear span (no modification to District facilities)—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

All others (including any modifications to District facilities)—Actual cost to District ($1,800.00 minimum).

Landscaping:

Minor (0 to 1/2 acre)—Actual cost to District ($500 minimum).

Major (more than 1/2 acre)—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Temporary discharge—$2,421.00.

Letter of non-objection or concept review—Actual cost to District ($1,000.00 minimum).

* If a permit application involves more than one of the categories of work described above, the plan check fees shall be cumulative.

Plan Check for Transfer Drains. The fee for the checking of plans, studies, and supporting information for transfer drains shall be in addition to all other fees and charges required by law. These fees shall be payable upon submission or resubmission of the plans or supporting information and are as follows:

Hydrology Studies.

Each study with no detention/retention facilities—$2,353.00;

Each study with detention/retention facilities—$10,856.00;

Resubmissions—A resubmittal fee of $303.00 will be assessed beginning with the fourth submittal and each subsequent submittal;

Revisions—$303.00 for each submittal.

Storm drain plans and supporting data shall be based on estimated construction costs and number of resubmittals and are calculated as follows:

Original Submission.

Estimated Construction Cost	Base Fee Plus Percent of Construction Cost
$ 0.00—$ 10,000.00	$ 2,939.00
10,001.00—50,000.00	2,939.00 + 7.32 percent of excess over $10,000.00
50,001.00—100,000.00	5,867.00 + 4.41 percent of excess over 50,000.00
100,001.00—500,000.00	8,072.00 + 2.94 percent of excess over 100,000.00
500,001.00—1,000,000.00	19,832.00 + 1.10 percent of excess over 500,000.00
1,000,001.00—and up	25,332.00 + 0.52 percent of excess over 1,000,000.00

A resubmittal fee equal to 10 percent of the original fee will be assessed beginning with the third submittal and each subsequent submittal;

Minor revisions—$227.00 per sheet;

Major revisions—Calculate fee per Table a above.

Transfer Processing.

Transfer processing—$1,035.00 per transfer drain plan;

Right-of-way processing—$5,138.00 per instrument.

Inspection of Work Affecting District Facilities.

Connection to District facilities:*

Pipe Size or Box Equivalent.

Eight inches or less—$888.00.

Over eight inches to 12 inches—$1,327.00.

Over 12 to 24 inches—$1,882.00.

Over 24 inches to 33 inches—$1,987.00.

Over 33 inches to 60 inches—$2,329.00.

Over 60 inches—$3,035.00.

* For outlets requiring flap gates or cover plates during construction, add $340.00 for open channels; or add the actual cost to District ($2,265.31 minimum) if underground inspection is required.

Modifications of District facilities:

Minor—$340.00.

Major—Actual cost to District ($750.00 minimum).

Crossings of District facilities:

Aerial (communications and power lines)—$888.00.

Pipelines (requiring no modification of District's facilities or its use thereof)—$1,690.00.

Bridging of District facilities:

Clear span (no abutments in District right-of-way)—$2,207.00.

All others (major construction)—Actual cost to District ($1,800.00 minimum).

Utility corridor (parallel) type installations, if amount has not been agreed to between parties by separate agreement—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Inspection of construction, modification, or relocation of catchbasins to be maintained by District. The following fees apply to basins located at one street intersection or in the immediate vicinity thereof; basins at more distant locations shall be considered as separate units and separate/or individual charges will be as hereinafter provided:

One basin—$888.00.

Two basins—$1,217.00.

Three basins—$1,657.00.

Four basins—$2,097.00.

Five basins—$2,333.00.

Overbuild—Actual cost to District ($1,500.00 minimum).

Landscaping—Actual cost to District ($600.00 minimum).

Temporary discharge—$677.00.

Underground inspection of any District facility—Actual cost to District ($2,265.31 minimum).

Inspection of the manufacture of pipe and other materials at the point of manufacture—Actual cost to District ($1,000.00 minimum).

Excavations—Actual cost to District ($1,000.00 minimum).

Inspection of Transfer Drains. The fee for transfer drain inspections in unincorporated areas of the County or in incorporated cities for which the District provides full inspection for such drains shall be based on the estimated construction cost and are calculated in accordance with the schedule below.

The inspection fee for all other transfer drain inspections will be the actual cost of providing inspection.

1. Estimated Construction Cost	Base Fee Plus Percent of Construction Cost
$ 0.00—$100,000.00	$1,384.00 plus 28.31% of construction cost over $2,000.00
$100,001.00—$500,000.00	$29,128.00 plus 9.39% of construction cost over $100,000.00
$500,001.00 and up	$66,688.00 plus 7.09% of construction cost over 500,000.00

Fees for Excessive Inspection Requests. Should the cost of inspecting any transfer drain, for which fees are set in accordance with Table 1 above, exceed 135 percent of the established fee and the work has not been completed, and the District's chief engineer determines that the cause of the inspection cost overrun is the result of the actions of the applicant and/or his contractor(s) and/or subcontractor(s), then, the chief engineer may require that the applicant pay additional inspection fees for the facility being inspected in the amount equal to the actual cost incurred.

Providing Miscellaneous Services.

Issuance of Flood Control Permit—$174.00.

Searching of records—$140.00.

Checking of maps—Actual cost to District ($225.00 minimum).

Reviewing legal documents—Actual cost to District ($225.00 minimum).

Other related services affecting District's properties and/or interests—Actual cost to District ($225.00 minimum).

Amendment to permits—Actual cost to District ($150.00 minimum).

Extension of time of permits—$120.00.

Vehicle testing or any other temporary use of District right-of-way—$111.00/day plus $317.00 for inspection and $1,286.00 for plan check.

Taking of motion, TV or still pictures—$1,181.00/day.

Use of District rights-of-way to gain temporary access to adjoining lands—$1,268.00 for review to determine permit conditions plus $340.00 for inspection of permitted activity. If fencing must be removed, a security deposit shall be required in an amount equal to the estimated replacement cost of fencing.

Apiary—$227.00/year includes inspection (50 hives maximum per location).

Transfer Drain (Private Drain and Miscellaneous Transfer Drain) processing—$705.00.

Actual Cost.

Whenever fees for the foregoing services are based upon the actual cost to the District, the actual cost shall be determined according to rates established by the chief engineer of the District.

The chief engineer of the District shall estimate said cost and may demand from applicant an amount equal to such estimate, and the applicant shall deposit such amount.

If, upon completion of the District's work, the actual cost is less than the amount deposited, the District shall refund to the applicant the portion of the deposit above the actual cost.

If upon completion of the District's work, the actual cost is greater than the amount deposited, the applicant, upon demand of the chief engineer of the District, shall pay to the District an amount equal to the deficiency. If the applicant fails or refuses to pay such deficiency upon demand, the District may recover the same by appropriate legal action. Until such deficiency is paid in full, the District's approvals, reports or miscellaneous service cannot be considered as complete and final.

The fees and charges set forth in this section shall not be applicable in the event fees and charges are set out in a formal instrument in writing referring to the particular improvement, report or service, executed or approved by the board of supervisors of the District. Fees may also be expressly waived if the particular improvement, report or service is in the interest of the District as determined by District's chief engineer.

The fees and charges set forth in subsections B and D of this section 17.05 for plan checking and inspection for work affecting District facilities, will not be charged in the event said plan checking and inspection charges are part of the plan checking and/or inspection for a transfer drain.

The fees set forth in subsections A through F of this Section shall be reviewed annually by the District's chief engineer. Beginning on July 1, 2011, and thereafter on each succeeding July 1st, the amount of each fee shall be adjusted as follows: Calculate the percentage movement between March of the previous year and March of the current year in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all urban consumers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim areas, as published by the United States Government Bureau of Labor Statistics, adjust each fee by said percentage amount and round up to the nearest dollar. No

adjustment shall increase or decrease any fee to an amount more or less than the amount necessary to recover the reasonable cost of providing the services for which the fee is imposed. When it is determined that the amount reasonably necessary to recover the cost of providing the services for which the fees are imposed is in excess of this adjustment, the District's chief engineer may present fee proposals to the Board of Supervisors for approval.

If the District's chief engineer determines that, due to the complexity of the work proposed by the applicant or other unusual circumstances, any fee specified in this Chapter will be insufficient to recover the District's reasonable costs of providing the corresponding services, the District may require a deposit in lieu of the fee, from which the actual costs of services will be deducted.

Whenever any person, firm, corporation, municipality, or district connects any structure or facility to, or alters or modifies, or uses in any manner whatsoever any flood control, storm drain or water conservation structure, facility, appurtenance, or any other property owned, constructed, maintained, or controlled by or on behalf of the District, without first having obtained a permit therefore in accordance with Section 20.94.030 of Title 20 of the Los Angeles County Code and any other pertinent ordinance, resolution, rule, or regulation of the District, the District shall conduct a special investigation of said connection, alteration, modification or use, and the person, firm, corporation, municipality, or district shall pay an investigation fee to the District in addition to all other fees required by this Chapter. The amount of the investigation fee shall be equal to the total amount of all other fees applicable to the connection, alteration, modification or use, authorized by this Chapter. The District's chief engineer, or his/her designee, may waive the investigation fee if the District's chief engineer or his/her designee determines that the connection, alteration, modification or use was urgently necessary and that it was not practical to obtain a permit before the commencement of the work. In all such emergency cases, a permit shall be obtained as soon as it is practical to do so, and if there is an unreasonable delay in obtaining the permit, an investigation fee shall be charged as provided in this subparagraph. Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed as authorizing any person, firm, corporation, municipality, or district to begin work without the required permit except in case of an emergency.

The fees set forth in subsections B, D, F1 through F7, and F10, of this Section shall be subject to a twenty percent (20%) reduction if charged for services rendered by the District in connection with a project involving one single-family residence or one structure with a building footprint of 10,000 square feet or less. The reduction described in this subsection M shall be applied to eligible fees charged through and including April 26, 2014, after which time the reduction shall cease and no further reduction shall be applied.

(Ord. 2011-0033 § 1, 2011; Ord. 2011-0018 § 2, 2011; Ord. 96-0058FC §§ 2-4, 1996; Ord. 82-0193FC § 3, 1982.)

* Editor's note: Fee changes in this section were made by the director of public works due to increases in the Consumer Price Index and are effective July 1, 2025.

Exceptions & meaning →

17.07 - Deposit of collected moneys.¶

All moneys received under this chapter shall be deposited with the county treasurer and credited to the general fund of the Los Angeles County Flood Control District.

(Ord. 82-0193FC § 4, 1982.)

Exceptions & meaning →