Town Won't Charge Late Fees on Business Licenses

After business owners descended on the Fairfax Town Council in February, , the council . 

But, because the contract takes 60 days to come to an end and license registration was due by March 15, many business owners faced either being forced to pay a late fee or having to renew their license with Muni Services, paying the $25 fee to the company.

"I am disgusted with how this issue has been and continues to be handled," said Fairfax business owner Jory Prum, who has also done an analysis of the amount of money it should be costing the town to process the licenses.

The town council agree to a staff recommendation at its special meeting on March 16 not to charge late fees for business license renewals and registrations this year, "because of the end of the contract [with Muni Services]," said Town Manager Michael Rock.

Rock said over 70 percent of the license registrations have already been collected. Some of the business owners who haven't yet paid their registration fee, said Rock, are waiting until the contract with Muni Services expires on May 6.

Business owners who wait will still have to pay the $25 fee in fairness to those business owners who already paid their license registration, but, said Rock, the $25 won't go to Muni Services as an administrative fee, but directly to the town.

Prum has said he's happy to pay his licensing fee, but that he wants to keep him money in the town and that he doesn't think the estimates of just over $100 in costs to the town to process each license are accurate.

"If the town council truly feels they did the wrong thing in hiring Muni Services, they should be returning the $25 fee to every business owner who has paid it, stop collecting it from renewals and new applications, and have the town, which is supposedly already saving $85 per business, pay that $25 fee to Muni Services," said Prum in an email.

The council hasn't yet decided how it will handle business licensing next year.