Owners Alexis McCarthy, left, and her mother, Angela Pursel, browse the shelves on Aug. 25, 2021, at The Next Chapter Bookstore. Pursel will host the Silent Book Club on Feb. 25, 2024, at the Hermiston business. The Hermiston City Council on July 8, 2024, voted unanimously to adopt a fee schedule for business licenses. The schedule goes into effect in January 2025.

HERMISTON — Beginning in January 2025, businesses operating in Hermiston will have to pay an annual business license fee.

The Hermiston City Council voted unanimously Monday, July 8, to adopt a fee schedule for business licenses. The annual fees will range from $85 to $1,200, depending on the size of the business and where it is based.

The council voted in January to implement a business license program but delayed approving the fee schedule to get feedback from the business community.

The city then formed a Business License Fee Committee comprising city councilors, Hermiston Chamber of Commerce representatives and local business owners. The committee’s job was to study the issue and make recommendations.

Hermiston City Manager Byron Smith said the committee met multiple times during the spring and voted 6-1 on June 10 to recommend the city council adopt the business license fee schedule as originally proposed back in January. Smith said the proposed fee structure is to be straightforward and is modeled after the fee system used in Pendleton.

According to the fee structure the council approved, a business with a permanent location inside the city limits with zero to five employees would pay a base fee of $85 a year.

A similar business with six to 49 employees would pay the base fee plus $15 for every employee over five. As an example, a business with the equivalent of nine full-time equivalent employees would pay a base fee of $85, plus $60 for the additional four FTEs, totaling $145.

A similar-based business with 50 or more employees would pay $1,000 per year.

A business without a permanent location inside city limits with zero to five employees would pay a base fee of $100. A similar business with six to 49 employees would pay the base fee plus $20 per employee over five. A similar business with more than 50 employees would pay $1,200 per year.

The city allows for exemptions such as a typical family garage sale and certain types of vendors operating at “special events” such as Melonfest. Nonprofits also are exempt in most cases.

More details are available online in the staff report.

Smith said the city has been in contact with Pendleton officials to get some insight into how they rolled out their business license program.

“That was very helpful in how we’re going to implement this,” Smith said.