(a) The County Board of Health of Lauderdale County, which is a part of the Northwest Alabama Regional Health Department, is hereby authorized to recommend reasonable fees or charges to the governing body of the county and the governing body shall establish the actual amount of the fee, with or without regard to such recommendation, for the rendering of public health services within the county to members of the public. Such fees shall supplement, but not replace, local, state, and federal appropriations.
(b) The governing body of Lauderdale County shall promulgate and fix a reasonable schedule of fees to be charged and collected from, or on behalf of, persons receiving public health services, and the amount of such fees shall include charges for personal services, inspections, and the expenses intendant upon the services such as the expenses of necessary drugs, supplies, travel, and the cost of personnel time. Restaurant inspections and food handlers examinations are specifically excluded from charges. The present fee schedule shall remain in effect until the end of the 1981 fiscal year. The county governing body shall adopt a new fee schedule for each succeeding fiscal year. The new fee schedule may be the same or different from the schedule of the preceding fiscal year. The first fee schedule shall remain in effect until the end of the 1981 fiscal year. The county governing body shall adopt a new fee schedule for each succeeding fiscal year. The new fee schedule may be the same or different from the schedule of the preceding fiscal year. Provided, however, that no fee shall be collected after the beginning of the fiscal year, unless the county governing body has acted on the new fee schedule.
(c) All fees and receipts collected shall be paid over to the Regional Health Officer of the Northwest Alabama Regional Health Department and deposited in a bank and shall be expended for the support, maintenance, and operation of the public health services in the county.
(d) Funds collected under this section may be utilized as matching funds from other available sources.
(e) Services will not be denied any indigent person.
(f) In case of grievance, the aggrieved party may petition the county health officer in writing for an informal hearing. If satisfaction is not reached, the aggrieved party may then petition the chair of the county board of health in writing for a formal hearing before the county board of health.
(g) The county board of health shall not have authority to prohibit the installment or turning on of electrical services by a public utility to buildings based on the failure of the sewage system or septic tank to meet health regulations.
Last modified: May 3, 2021