Town of South Hadley, MA Article V Fees

§ 305-29 Fee schedule.

The fees required under the bylaw are separate from the fees required under the Wetlands Protection Act. These fees shall be submitted as a separate check made payable to the Town of South Hadley, with a note on the check that it is a "Wetlands Bylaw Fee." Administrative fees are payable at the time of application and are nonrefundable. The administrative fees shall be calculated by the Commission or its agent according to the schedule listed below. Town projects are exempt from fees. These fees are for applications where a filing fee is not already required under the WPA regulations.

A. Advertising fee. The fee for legal notices in the Town Reminder are the responsibility of the applicant, and should be paid directly to the newspaper.

B. Penalty for late filings. Fees for permit filings after work has commenced shall be double the fee listed below in Subsection C. For those filings that already have a fee under the WPA regulations and are therefore not listed below, such as a notice of intent, there shall be a late filing fee under the bylaw of $300. A late filing is any filing that is submitted to the Commission after the start of activity that is subject to these regulations.

C. Administrative fees. The following administrative fees shall be applied to pay for the costs of administering the Wetlands Protection Act and the bylaw:

(1) Request for determination of applicability:

(a) For activities associated with existing single-family residences: $50.

(b) For all other projects: $100.

(2) Request for amendment to an order of conditions: $200. Fee to be applied cumulatively for each amendment item of request.

(3) Request for extension of order of conditions: $100.

(4) Request for duplicate original of an order of conditions: $50.

(5) Certificate of compliance (partial or complete): $100.

(6) Emergency certification: $100.

(7) Request for local administrative appeal: $200.

§ 305-30 Failure to pay fees.

A. Failure to pay the fees required by the regulations shall cause the application to be deemed incomplete and the time period for the Commission to act under the bylaw shall be stayed. The Commission, after notifying the applicant in writing, shall take no further action on the filing until the fee is paid.

B. In the event the correct fee as required by the WPA regulations, 310 CMR 10.03(7), has been paid but the fee required by the bylaw regulations has not been paid, the Commission shall act to sever the proceedings, if previously consolidated, and proceed as described in Subsection A above for the bylaw review. The applicant is reminded that in spite of the issuance of a favorable decision under the WPA, work on the project in question may not go forward until the requirements of the bylaw regulations have been met and favorable decisions under both the bylaw and the WPA have been rendered.

§ 305-31 Consultant fees.

As provided by MGL c. 44, § 53G, the Commission may impose reasonable fees for the employment of outside consultants, engaged by the Commission, for specific expert services deemed necessary by the Commission to come to a final decision on an application submitted to the Commission pursuant to the requirements of the WPA, the bylaw, Conservation Commission Act (MGL c. 40, § 8C), or any other state or municipal statute, bylaw or regulation, as they may be amended or enacted from time to time. Applicants should refer to the procedures described in the Rules for Hiring Outside Consultants under MGL c. 44, § 53G adopted by the Commission in 2005. Failure to pay the consultant fee shall be deemed sufficient grounds to stay the specified time period requiring the Commission to act under the bylaw or to deny a decision until payment is made.