REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Action to Approve a Resolution Establishing a Citywide Payment Acceptance and Processing Fees Policy to Charge Processing Fees and Set Transaction Limits
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Deliver and Enhance High Quality Efficient Services and Infrastructure
BACKGROUND
The City of Santa Clara ("City") accepts payment cards, credit and debit, as a form of payment for most fees at eleven Point of Sale (POS) locations citywide: City Hall Municipal Services, City Hall Permit Center, Police Administration Building, Fire Permits Division, Central Park Library, Mission Branch Library, Northside Branch Library, Community Recreation Center, Youth & Teen Center, Senior Center, and Mission City Memorial Park. In addition to on-site locations, the City also offers customers the following payment methods online for utility bills, business taxes and fees, development related permits, police and fire related permits, recreation classes, and library fees and fines: (1) automatic credit card payment programs (auto-pay), (2) payment cards, and (3) eChecks.
The City also accepts other payment methods, including cash onsite, checks onsite and via mail, and electronic fund transfers directly to City bank accounts.
While payment card transactions have become an increasingly convenient option for customers, these transactions result in additional costs to the City due to the processing fees associated with accepting payment cards. City's payment processing fees ten years ago (Fiscal Year 2014/15) totaled approximately $1.8 million and increased to approximately $2.2 million in Fiscal Year 2019/20. For Fiscal Years 2022/23 and 2023/24, payment processing fees totaled $3.9 million and $4.0 million, respectively, with the majority attributed to industrial and commercial utilities customers, followed by development related permit issuances, and business license applications and renewals.
Currently, the City absorbs all payment card and eCheck processing fees...
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