Mesa removes last public-safety development fee after debt target was reached

Mesa City Council adopted an ordinance July 27 removing the city’s Public Safety Impact Fee from its development-impact-fee schedule after collections covered the eligible pledged debt tied to the category.

The fee stopped being collected March 10, 2026. Ordinance 6020 formally amends Mesa’s Title 5, Chapter 17, and becomes effective 30 days after adoption, on August 26, 2026.

What changed

Ordinance 6020 removes the Public Safety Impact Fee category from Table 1 of Mesa’s development-impact-fee schedule. A city council report identifies the public-safety fee as the last remaining impact-fee category in that schedule.

For new development, the specified Public Safety Impact Fee is no longer being assessed. The change does not eliminate other city, county or utility charges that may apply to a project, and it does not end broader public-safety funding.

Collection ended before the code amendment

Mesa’s council report says the city received public-safety impact-fee revenue equal to the eligible pledged debt for that category on March 10. Under an earlier ordinance and the city code, collection automatically ended when that debt-related threshold was reached.

The July 27 council action therefore codifies a discontinuation that had already taken effect in practice. The fee did not remain active until August 26; March 10 was the practical end of collection.

No additional fiscal impact

The city report says the ordinance has no fiscal impact because no additional funds would be collected regardless of whether the code was amended. The report also states that Mesa is no longer charging development-impact fees because the Public Safety Impact Fee was the last remaining category on the schedule.

An attachment to the ordinance lists the former public-safety fee amounts, including $402 for a single-residence detached dwelling, $388 for single-residence attached and multi-residence dwellings, $84 per manufactured-home or recreational-vehicle pad or space, and $159 per hotel or motel room. Those amounts describe the discontinued schedule; they are not new charges.

What builders and residents should watch

Developers, property owners and residents reviewing project costs should use March 10, 2026, as the date the Public Safety Impact Fee stopped being collected. August 26, 2026, is the next formal milestone, when Ordinance 6020 takes effect in the city code.

The change concerns one specific development-impact-fee category. Projects may still involve other development-related costs, permits, utility charges or requirements outside this discontinued fee schedule.

Sources

• Mesa Ordinance No. 6020