Fee deferrals, zoning waivers extended

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved the extension of fee deferrals and zoning

waivers which are intended to aid local businesses adversely affected by the coronavirus

quarantine.

A 5-0 vote, Tuesday, Oct. 27, directed the county’s chief administrative officer to continue the

deferral of permit and plan check fees, export certification and direct marketing fees for local

agriculture and price verification and scale devices registration fees. The fees will be deferred

until March 31, 2021. The supervisors also continued the zoning waivers for restaurants which

are utilizing outdoor seating or other measures to mitigate the restrictions on indoor dining, and

no expiration of those waivers was specified. The rent deferral period and eviction moratorium

for renters of county-owned commercial or residential property was extended to March 31, 2021,

and the beginning of the repayment period was deferred until April 1, 2021.

“This is maintaining business stability,” Supervisor Jim Desmond said.

The county health order issued March 12 prohibited gatherings of more than 250 people. On

March 16, the order was amended to prohibit gatherings of more than 50 people, and that order

also closed all bars which did not serve food while prohibiting dining in restaurants which are

still allowed to provide pickup and delivery service.

Health permits issued by the county’s Department of Environmental Health are required for all

food facilities in San Diego County, including those in incorporated cities, but not those on

sovereign Indian reservations, which have their own system. More than 15,000 retail food

facilities exist in the county including more than 8,100 restaurants. The cost of the permits,

which must be renewed annually, ranges from $200 to $1,930.

A 5-0 Board of Supervisors’ vote March 24 directed the county’s chief administrative officer to

defer the date for the payment of health permit fees, plan check fees and late fees to Sept. 1. The

chief administrative officer was also directed to utilize general fund money to cover any revenue

shortfall caused by the delay in fee payments and to seek federal and state funding to assist in the

recovery of the food, beverage and hospitality industries. The supervisors also directed the CAO

to analyze any county policies which may inhibit the immediate reopening of food facilities after

the quarantine is lifted and to report back to the board of supervisors with possible solutions

within 30 days. The payment deferral includes plan check correction fees associated with plan

checks submitted before March 1. On May 5, the board of supervisors directed the chief

administrative officer to implement the deferral of various fees and to stay enforcement of

zoning regulations which prevented the use of parking areas for restaurant customer seating and

dining or curbside pickup for dining establishments.

In addition to extending the enforcement stay for restaurants and other businesses which are

accommodating customers through outdoor service, the Oct. 27, action directed the chief

administrative officer to add criteria for restaurants and other businesses to use parking areas for

customer dining and seating and to add criteria for curbside pickup for dining establishments.

The waiver for building permit and plan check fees for remodels was also extended, and for

ministerial permits the waiver of centerline ordinance review costs was also extended.

The fees deferred until March 31 whose repayment period will begin April 1 may or may not be

eligible for federal or state financial aid for the coronavirus emergency. If the deferrals are

eligible for federal or state funding programs and the waived payment amounts are not recovered

the federal or state funding should be the first source of funding. If the deferrals are not eligible

for federal or state funding or if that funding is exhausted a previous-year balance in the county’s

general fund will be used to recover the lost revenue. The six-month deferral is expected to delay

$21,386,647 of cash flows.

The Oct. 27 action deferred the Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures agricultural

export certification fees, hazardous material permit fees for agricultural operations, direct

marketing fees and price verification and weights and measures device registration fees. The

Department of Environmental Health swimming pool permit fees, hazardous materials facility

permit fees, small drinking water systems permit and plan check fees, and annual permit fees for

body art, massage, and camp inspections were also deferred. The deferrals also cover

Department of Animal Services kennel application fees, San Diego County Regional Fire

Authority fire safety site plans and special events fees and Air Pollution Control District permit

renewal fees.

Joe Naiman can be reached by email at [email protected].