Utilities & Impact Fees

New building developments offer residents countless advantages – increased sales, property tax benefits, even opportunities for new businesses and improved revenue. However, new developments also bring costs and strain to local resources.

To offset the anticipated impact new developments can pose upon local roadways, energy sources, emergency services, recreational services, and more, local entities and service providers rely on various types of administered fees.

While some argue the imposition of such fees may infringe upon property owners’ constitutional rights, recent Supreme Court case rulings suggest a shifting emphasis that focuses on the reasonability of fees assessed. Fees imposed by local agencies are becoming more and more scrutinized, with newly developing standards – assessing the relationship between fee rates and anticipated communal impact – rapidly shifting the legal landscape.

Milberg’s Utilities & Impact Fees Practice Group attorneys assist individuals, homeowners associations, builders, and developers in recouping improper, disproportionate fees they have paid to local entities and service providers.

Our success in this area relies heavily upon class action litigation and has resulted in well over $150 million recovered for wronged consumers.

Utility Fees

Milberg represents individuals and companies in fighting against unlawful or excessive energy rates charged by public and private utilities.

For example, Milberg has brought class action lawsuits against several large energy service companies (“ESCOs”) for unlawful contract-renewal term electricity and natural gas rates charged to customers that were exorbitantly more than the market rate for energy. When the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DPW) overcharged customers for their electricity, Milberg brought forth a class action lawsuit on behalf of residents.

Milberg also has filed a class action lawsuit against Consolidated Edison of New York, which supplies energy for all of New York City, for refunds of excessive natural gas rates charged to certain residential customers.

Milberg is equipped to represent individuals and companies wronged by the unfair acts of utility providers throughout the country.

Impact Fees

Impact fees are one-time charges local governments levy on property developers to accommodate new growth infrastructure costs.

Impact fees go by many names, including development fees, mitigation fees, recreation fees, mobility fees, system development fees, and service availability charges. They are charged to property developers to defray part of the cost of building or improving public infrastructure—such as roadways, sewer, schools, police, fire, and recreation areas—needed to service a new development.

Milberg represents clients in matters involving unauthorized or unfair impact fee charges. Our attorneys have held leadership roles in class action lawsuits that have recovered tens – even hundreds – of millions of dollars for builders and developers illegally charged impact fees.

Notable Cases & Recent Recoveries

• Deadalus, LLC v. City of Charlotte – Class action settlement with a $106 million fund for builders and developers over improper capacity fees paid to the City of Charlotte (2023)
• Plantation Building of Wilmington, Inc., et al. v. Brunswick County – Class action settlement with a $15.25 million fund for builders and developers to recover improper impact fees paid to the city (2022)
• Upright Builders Inc. et al. v. Town of Apex – Class action settlement with a $15.3 million fund for builders and developers to recover improper capacity replacement and transportation paid fees to the town (2019)
• Town of Holly Springs – Class action settlement with a $7.9 million fund for builders and developers to recover improper capacity replacement and transportation fees paid to the town (2019)
• Plantation Building of Wilmington, Inc. v. Town of Leland, Brunswick County – Class action settlement with a $6+ million fund for builders and developers to recover improper impact fees paid to the city (2022)
• Mayfair Partners, LLC et al. v. City of Asheville – Class action settlement with a $1.85 million fund for builders and developers to recover improper impact fees paid to the city (2020)