Home » Contra Costa to Talk Fee Increases at Clerk-Recorder-Elections Office

Contra Costa to Talk Fee Increases at Clerk-Recorder-Elections Office

by CC News
Contra Costa County

On Tuesday, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors will hold a hearing to consider a cost recovery and fee evaluation report from the clerk-recorder-elections office.

According to the staff report, the fees charged by the Clerk-Recorder-Elections Department have not been formally evaluated in over 15 years.  The county worked with NBS Government Finance Group in October of 2023 to provide fee analyses and one time studies to the fee schedules related to services rendered.

The Department had two goals for this study:

  1. To ensure that existing fees do not exceed the costs of service, and
  2. To provide an opportunity for the Board of Supervisors to re-align fee amounts to account for increased costs and inflation.

According to the report, the clerk-recorder-elections department Currently, is collecting 62% of costs associated with providing user and regulatory fee related services. If approved by the Board of Supervisors, a new fee schedule estimated to gain an additional $231,000 in revenue, representing an 83% rate of cost recovery.

Here is a look at some of the fees set to increase:

Official Record Fees

  • Recorder Document Plain Copy – 1st page: Would jump from $1 to $5
  • Recorder Document Plain Copy – each additional page: New, would be $2
  • Certified Copy (Complete Document ONLY) (Plus Plain Copy Fee) – $2.50 to $6
  • Maps Plain Copy (18″x23″) – per page: $3.50 to $10
  • Certified Copy (18″ x 23″ Complete Map ONLY) (Plus Map Plain Copy Fee): $2.50 to $6

Fictitious Business Name (FBN) Fees

  • Fictitious Business Name (FBN) Fees: Jumps from $30 to $55
  • For EACH additional owner or business name: decreases from $7 to $5
  • Research name prior to filing: $7 to $10
  • File Abandonment of FBN: $30 to $45
  • File Withdrawal of FBN: $30 to $45
  • Certified FBN copies: $2 to $6
  • Plan FBN Copies: $1 to $5

Marriage License and Ceremony Fees

  • Public Marriage License: $86 to $95
  • Confidential Marriage License: $90 to $100
  • Amendments for Confidential Marriage Licenses: New, will be $80
  • Declaration of Marriage: $86 to $110
  • Duplicate Marriage License: $20 to $50
  • Civil Marriage Ceremony
    •  w/Appointment: $60 to $50
    • walk in: new, will be $65
    • After Hours: new, will be $75
  • Vow Renewal
    • w/Appointment: $60 to $55
    • walk-in: new, will be $70
  • Bring Your Own Officiant
    • w/Appointment: $60 to $40
    • Walk-in: new, will be $50
  • Expedited Ceremony at the Window: new, will be $35
  • Outdoor Ceremony: new, will be $75
  • Destination Wedding Ceremony: New, will be $120
  • One Day Deputy Commissioner: $50 to $20
  • Witness Fee: New, will be $20
  • Appointment Processing Fee: new, will be $10

Professional Filings

  • Registration of Notary Public: $15 to $36
  • Authentication of Notary Public: $5 to $10

Copy and Filing Fees

  • Preliminary 20-day Notice: $30 to $75

If approved, the fees would go into effect on January 1, 2025.


Documents:

  1. Attachment A – Clerk-Recorder-Elections Schedule of Fees and Charges 2024.pdf,
  2. Attachment B – User Fee Study and Cost Recovery Report.pdf,
  3. Clerk-Recorder-Elections Fee Study Presentation.pdf

If You Go
Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors Meeting
September 24 at 9:00 am
1025 Escobar St, Martinez CA
Full Agenda – click here


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1 comment

PattyOfurniture September 23, 2024 - 8:21 am

One would think that with all of the taxes we pay in this county and state (my $7K in yearly property tax as one example) these basic services would be taken care of…

It begs the question as to where and what all the money is going toward, and also begs why these services are not a priority to fund?

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