About once a day, Keizer police respond to a call to the Target store at Keizer Station.

The giant retail company since 2017 has been paying the same fee to support police work as a Keizer homeowner – $6.90 a month.

That would dramatically change under a move by the Keizer City Council to increase the fees to keep the Keizer Police Department running without cuts.

Under one proposal, Target would see its monthly fee go from the price of a pair of socks to $3,275 a month.

“Our businesses have gotten a free ride for 10 years,” said Councilor Lore Christopher. “Now it’s time to pay a fair amount.”

Christopher commented as councilors met in a special work session on Saturday, March 10.

Councilors agreed to a new fee structure aimed at underpinning police services but stopped short of acting on rates suggested by city executives.

The consensus was clear, though: Everyone in Keizer should expect to pay higher utility fees to help cover police fees.

What’s equally clear is that councilors expect to ask voters their opinion, likely through a ballot measure during the November general election.

The council met for more than three hours, sorting through a staffing report that examined details of the city police agency. The councilors also considered the recommendation from a subcommittee of the council that the fee go up.

READ IT: City fee presentation

The move is intended to plug a money gap looming for the city. The local government has been spending down its reserves – which acts like a savings account – and federal funding to cover day-to-day costs of fielding a police force. City officials have warned that’s no longer possible and an estimated $2 million is needed from some new source.

That’s where the utility fee comes in.

The city council in 2017 established the fee on its own. The rate was set at $6.90 for each home and business in Keizer. There was no public vote on the increase.

City Manager Adam Brown shared with councilors a new fee rate that would take hold in 2027.

The fee for each home would go up to $12.25 a month, or an increase totaling $64.20 a year. The city has about 10,717 houses.

Councilor Shaney Starr, who led the city Police Fee Task Force, said the group recommended a shift in the fee structure, but left it to staff to propose the rates for council consideration.

That recommendation will likely come in April as the council considers formal action. That’s also when the council is expected to consider seeking an advisory vote in November. Under the city charter, the council has the authority to impose a fee increase without a vote and would not be legally bound by the results of such a vote.

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