While I appreciate the need to increase fees the suddenness and the amount of the increase is an extreme burden on the public fiduciaries. Public fiduciary offices are budget driven and our budget which is tax payer funded is virtually exhausted.

In the event the fee increase is approved I would request some consideration be given to public fiduciaries being exempted from the increased fees until 2022.

The recent notification by the Certification and Licensing Division regarding its proposed increase to fiduciary fees has the potential to cause significant hardship to our public fiduciaries. As a result of operating on a fiscal year, the county’s budget for expenses incurred through June 2020 was finalized in 2019. For my department this change would create an unanticipated expense of more than $8000. The proposed increase is staggering and difficult to absorb without planning.

I appreciate the potential need for a future increase given the rising costs and lack of previous increases. However, such a significant increase on short notice leaves little opportunity for licensees and departments to prepare and absorb the adjustments. Understandably, other licensed professions seem to have higher renewals. Though that may be the case, some of those professions also provide on-going training, resources and other services to its members. As an example attorney dues provide for monthly articles, on-going webinars (albeit not all free), and resources such as a hotline for attorney inquiries.

If the situation permits, it may be helpful to allow the profession to engage in a dialogue regarding increases and resources. If fee discussions could be tabled momentarily, fiduciaries could pay the amount anticipated for this year’s dues and engage in a dialogue with our licensing division regarding alternatives such as incremental increases, increased training or collaboration with our licensing division included in the fees, or at a minimum time to plan and budget for increases. It seems likely the licensees of our profession would welcome the opportunity engage in an effort to keep costs low, while ensuring our licensing board has the resources needed to conduct its affairs as well.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.
Sincerely,
Maricopa County Public Fiduciary Lina G. Garcia #20911