HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 27978-09-2025ORDINANCE NO. 27978-09-2025
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 2 "ADMINISTRATION," OF
THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS (2015), AS
AMENDED, TO ENACT A NEW SECTION 2-11, "CONVENIENCE FEES
AND SERVICE CHARGES"; MAKING THIS ORDINANCE
CUMULATIVE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING
A SAVINGS CLAUSE; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, credit cards provide a convenient method for members of the public to pay
amounts owed to the City of Fort Worth such as water bills, court fines, and permitting fees; and
WHEREAS, when an individual makes a payment with a credit, financial institutions
known as merchant processors handle the transaction and charge fees for their services, with such
fees generally ranging from 1.5 percent to 3.5 percent of the transaction amount; and
WHEREAS, based on its review of recent years' data, staff has determined that the City
is currently charged merchant processing fees that average 2.5 percent of the amount of payments
made by credit card; and
WHEREAS, when two customers pay identical bills to the City and one uses a credit card,
which imposes a merchant processing fee, and the other uses a form of payment such as cash or a
bank transfer/automated clearing house (ACH) transaction, the City receives less revenue from the
individual using a credit card, meaning the second customer is paying the City more; and
WHEREAS, Section 132.002 of the Texas Local Government Code authorizes
government entities, including cities, to accept electronic means of payment such as credit cards
and authorizes cities to collect a reimbursement fee for processing payments by credit card; and
WHEREAS, staff recognizes the convenience that credit cards provide for customers but
recommends that the costs of such convenience be passed on to the customer who chooses to use
that payment method; and
WHEREAS, other payment methods such as cash and ACH are available for customers;
and
WHEREAS, staff recommends that, in accordance with Section 132.002, the City Council
adopt an ordinance imposing a 2.5% convenience fee for any payment made to the City utilizing
a credit card in order for the City to be reimbursed the costs associated with that payment type.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF FORT WORTH THAT:
SECTION 1.
Ordinance No. 27978-09-2025
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The findings set forth above form the basis for adoption of this ordinance and are incorporated into
the body of this Ordinance as if fully set forth herein.
SECTION 2.
Chapter 2, "Administration," Article I, "In General," of the Code of the City of Fort Worth,
Texas (2015), as amended, is hereby revised to enact a new Section 2-11 to be entitled
"'Convenience Fees and Service Charges" and to provide for imposition of a convenience fee on
payment transactions utilizing a credit card in order to reimburse the City for the merchant
processing fees such payment method incurs and to be and read as follows:
Section 2-11 Convenience Fees and Services Charges
Pursuant to Chapter 132 of the Texas Local Government Code, as amended, to the extent
any fine, permitting fee, or other financial obligation owed to the City is paid utilizing a
credit card, there is hereby established and authorized a convenience fee charge equal to
two -and -one-half percent (2.5%) of the amount of such payment as a convenience fee to
the customer in order to reimburse the City for the merchant processing costs such credit
card transaction would otherwise impose on the City.
SECTION 3.
This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code of the
City of Fort Worth, Texas (2015), as amended, except where the provisions of this ordinance are
in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordinances and such Code, in which event conflicting
provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed.
SECTION 4.
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections, paragraphs,
sentences, clauses, and phrases of this ordinance are severable, and, if any phrase, clause, sentence,
paragraph, or section of this ordinance shall be declared unconstitutional by the valid judgment or
decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the
remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, and section of this ordinance, since the same
would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any
such unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, or section.
Ordinance No. 27978-09-2025
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SECTION 5.
That all rights and remedies of the City of Fort Worth, Texas are expressly saved as to any
and all violations of the City Code, or any amendments thereto, that have accrued at the time of
the effective date of this ordinance; and as to such accrued violations, and all pending litigation,
both civil and criminal, same shall not be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until
final disposition of the courts.
SECTION 6.
This ordinance shall take effect on October 1, 2025, and the convenience fee charge
authorized hereby may be applied to any and all payments made on or after that date, regardless
of when the underlying payment obligation first arose.
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY: CITY SECRETARY
Denis McElroy Jannette S. Goodall
Assistant City Attorney City Secretary
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ADOPTED: September 16, 2025 Pj J6, �o�I
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NEFFECTIVE: October 1, 2025 ��� oo� o00 ��
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Ordinance No. 27978-09-2025
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