Harford County, Maryland - County Development Fees
Harford County | County | Baltimore Metropolitan Area (northeast) | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD MSA | County seat: Bel Air | FIPS 24025
Harford County sits at the northeast edge of the Baltimore metropolitan area, bordered by Baltimore County to the southwest, Cecil County to the east, Pennsylvania to the north, and the Chesapeake Bay to the south. Developer-side fees are administered by three county offices. The Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits (DILP) issues building permits and collects the development impact fee adopted by Bill 24-033 (Harford County Code Chapter 123 Article VI). The Department of Planning and Zoning (Development Review) sets subdivision and site plan review fees under the Harford County Subdivision Regulations. The Division of Water and Sewer (Department of Public Works) administers connection charges, System Development Fees, and front-foot benefit assessments under County Code Chapter 256. The county's three incorporated municipalities (Aberdeen, Bel Air, and Havre de Grace) administer their own municipal fees separately.
Recent Fee Changes
Development impact fee program under Bill 24-033, effective March 1, 2025. Harford County adopted a development impact fee program under Bill 24-033 (Harford County Code Chapter 123 Article VI), effective March 1, 2025, charging $10,000 per dwelling unit for single-family and townhouse units. The multi-family and mobile home rate was revised to $8,277 per dwelling unit effective January 1, 2026. Separately, the Water and Sewer System Development Fees (Bill 20-002) escalate 4.5% each July 1 under County Code 256.45.4; the figures on this page reflect the FY25 basis (July 1, 2024). Confirm the current-year System Development Fee with Water and Sewer Billing before relying on it for budgeting.
On this page
Fee Summary
| Fee Type | Status | Top-Line Figure | Effective Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Development Impact Fee - Single Family / Townhouse (Bill 24-033) | Confirmed | $10,000 per dwelling unit | March 1, 2025 |
| Development Impact Fee - Multi-Family / Mobile Home (Bill 24-033) | Confirmed | $8,277 per dwelling unit | January 1, 2026 |
| Water System Development Fee | Confirmed | $5,226 per EDU (FY25 basis; +4.5% each July 1) | July 1, 2024 |
| Sewer System Development Fee | Confirmed | $10,803 per EDU (FY25 basis; +4.5% each July 1) | July 1, 2024 |
| Subdivision / Site Plan - Concept Plan Review | Confirmed | $1,000 filing fee + $20 per gross acre | - |
| Residential Lots Subdivision Review | Confirmed | $100 filing fee + $50 per lot | - |
| Proffers | Not applicable | Maryland jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers | - |
| Special District Fees | Not administered by this county | No county CDA / TIF / special-district fee schedule; growth funded via Bill 24-033 impact fee + APFO | - |
Development Impact Fees - Bill 24-033 (Harford County Code Chapter 123 Article VI)
Source: Harford County DILP Fee Schedule PDF (DILP Document 000585-2024; SHA-256 34840888...; 10 pages), extracted verbatim via Stage 1 fetch plus Stage 4 pdfplumber. The development impact fee was enacted by Bill 24-033 and codified at Harford County Code Chapter 123 Article VI, Section 123-59. It is collected at building permit.
| Housing Type | Impact Fee | Effective Date |
|---|---|---|
| Single Family and Townhouse | $10,000 per dwelling unit | March 1, 2025 |
| Multi-family units and Mobile Homes | $8,277 per dwelling unit | January 1, 2026 |
Subdivision and Site Plan Review Fees - Department of Planning and Zoning
Source: Harford County Department of Planning and Zoning (Development Review) Forms and Fee Schedule, captured verbatim via Stage 3 Playwright DOM extraction. Fees are set under the Harford County Subdivision Regulations. Rezoning in Harford County is handled through the legislative Comprehensive Zoning Review (there is no standing piecemeal map-amendment application fee); variance and special-exception petitions are heard by the separate quasi-judicial Harford County Board of Appeals.
| Review Type | Fee |
|---|---|
| Concept Plan Review | $1,000 filing fee + $20 per gross acre |
| Residential Lots (including mobile homes / townhouses) | $100 filing fee + $50 per lot |
| Multifamily and Mobile Home Park | $100 filing fee + $30 per unit |
| Commercial (subdivision or individual site plan) | $200 filing fee + $50 per acre |
| Industrial (subdivision or individual site plan) | $200 filing fee + $50 per acre |
| Preliminary Plan Extension (1 to 5 lots) | $25 |
| Preliminary Plan Extension (more than 5 lots) | $100 |
| Final Plats | $150 per plat + $10 per lot |
| Forest Stand Delineation Review | $100 + $10 per acre |
| Forest Conservation Plan Review (plans greater than 5 lots) | $200 + $20 per gross acre |
Development Advisory Committee plans require the current USPS certified-mailing fee for each adjacent property owner plus $10 per sign per road frontage. No site plan review fee is charged for institutional site plans such as churches.
Water and Sewer Connection Charges and System Development Fees - Division of Water and Sewer
Source: Harford County Division of Water and Sewer General Rules and Regulations (Parts 1-10) PDF (SHA-256 abcf3ca7...; 118 pages), extracted verbatim via Stage 1 fetch plus Stage 4 pdfplumber. The capital connection charges and System Development Fees appear in Part 5 (Billing and Collecting), and the front-foot benefit assessments in Part 4 (Annual Water and Sewer Assessments). The System Development Fees are the material growth charge; they reflect the FY25 basis (July 1, 2024) and escalate 4.5% each July 1 under County Code 256.45.4.
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Water Connection Charge (Water Area Charge) | $650 per connection |
| Sewer Connection Charge (Sewer Area Charge) | $450 per connection |
| Water Surcharge | $450 per connection |
| Sewer Surcharge | $100 per connection |
| Water System Development Fee | $5,226 per EDU (FY25 basis; +4.5% each July 1) |
| Sewer System Development Fee | $10,803 per EDU (FY25 basis; +4.5% each July 1) |
| Front-Foot Benefit Assessment (Water) | $1.00 per front foot per year |
| Front-Foot Benefit Assessment (Sewer) | $1.30 per front foot per year |
| DILP Plumbing Permit - Sewer Connection | $60 |
| DILP Plumbing Permit - Water Service Connection | $60 |
| DILP Plumbing Permit - Sewer and Water Combined | $120 |
System Development Fees apply per Equivalent Dwelling Unit to properties connecting to public water or sewer served by a County treatment facility, with meter-size multipliers per Table 5.1 Schedule of Peak Demands. The $60 / $60 / $120 entries are DILP plumbing-permit connection fees from the DILP Fee Schedule, distinct from the Division of Water and Sewer capital charges above.
Coverage Notes - What This Page Does Not Cover
Per ZoneFee's Partial-Verified Publication Standard, the items below were not closed via confirmed fee amounts on this page. They are disclosed here rather than estimated or omitted silently.
Proffers
Maryland jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers. Virginia Code Section 15.2-2303.4 has no Maryland counterpart. Harford County uses an Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance plus the Bill 24-033 development impact fee program as its growth-mitigation instruments. Closed-search outcome: this fee family does not apply to this jurisdiction.
Special District Fees
Harford County does not administer a Community Development Authority, Tax Increment Financing zone, or county-level special-district development-side fee schedule. Growth infrastructure is funded through the Bill 24-033 development impact fee (captured above) plus the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance, while water and sewer benefit assessments under County Code Chapter 256 fall under the utility connection scope above. Official-source paths probed (DILP consolidated Fee Schedule, Planning and Zoning Development Review schedule, Zoning Administration page, and the Division of Water and Sewer Rules and Regulations) surfaced no separate county-administered special-district development fee schedule. The three incorporated municipalities administer their own municipal fees. Closed-search outcome: not administered by this jurisdiction.
Board of Appeals Petition Fees and System Development Fee Escalation
Variance and special-exception petition filing fees are set by the separate quasi-judicial Harford County Board of Appeals and are not on the Planning and Zoning Development Review schedule; they have not yet been captured. The Water and Sewer System Development Fees shown reflect the FY25 basis and increase 4.5% each July 1 under County Code 256.45.4, so the current-year figures may be higher. These are enrichment items and do not change the confirmed figures above.
County Adjacency
The adjacent-jurisdiction list (Baltimore County, Cecil County, and the Pennsylvania border) has not yet been fully researched and is not published on this page rather than estimated. This is a geographic-context enhancement and does not affect any fee figure above.
Fee Authorities
| Authority | Fee Types | Official Website |
|---|---|---|
| Harford County Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits (DILP) | Building permits, development impact fee (Bill 24-033), plumbing / mechanical / electrical permits, demolition and sign permits | harfordcountymd.gov (Inspections, Licenses and Permits) |
| Harford County Department of Planning and Zoning (Development Review) | Subdivision and site plan review, concept plan, final plats, forest conservation | harfordcountymd.gov/998/Forms-and-Fee-Schedule |
| Harford County Division of Water and Sewer (Department of Public Works) | Water and sewer connection charges, System Development Fees, front-foot benefit assessments (Code Chapter 256) | harfordcountymd.gov (Water and Sewer) |
Sources
| Document | Agency | Accessed |
|---|---|---|
| DILP Fee Schedule PDF - Document 000585-2024 (10 pages; impact fees effective 2025-03-01; SHA-256 34840888...) | Harford County, MD - Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits | 2026-05-20 |
| Forms and Fee Schedule (Development Review) | Harford County, MD - Department of Planning and Zoning | 2026-05-24 |
| Water and Sewer General Rules and Regulations, Parts 1-10 PDF (118 pages; FY25 basis; SHA-256 abcf3ca7...) | Harford County, MD - Division of Water and Sewer | 2026-05-24 |
Last verified by ZoneFee: 2026-05-24. Fee schedules are subject to change. Verify current rates directly with the Harford County Department of Inspections, Licenses and Permits (for impact and building permit fees), the Department of Planning and Zoning (for subdivision and site plan fees), and the Division of Water and Sewer (for connection charges and System Development Fees) before relying on this data for any financial decision.
This page reflects fee data sourced from the Harford County DILP Fee Schedule (Document 000585-2024; SHA-256 34840888...; impact fees effective March 1, 2025), the Department of Planning and Zoning Forms and Fee Schedule (Development Review subdivision and site plan fees), and the Division of Water and Sewer General Rules and Regulations, Parts 1-10 (SHA-256 abcf3ca7...; FY25 basis). ZoneFee does not guarantee that fee amounts are current at the time you read this page. Fee schedules change. The Water and Sewer System Development Fees escalate 4.5% each July 1 under County Code 256.45.4, so the FY25 figures shown ($5,226 water / $10,803 sewer per EDU) may be higher in the current year; confirm with Water and Sewer Billing. Maryland jurisdictions do not use Virginia-style cash proffers. Harford County does not administer a county-level special-district development fee schedule. Board of Appeals variance and special-exception petition fees are set by that Board and are not captured here. County adjacency has not yet been fully researched. Verify all current rates directly with the relevant Harford County department before relying on this data for land acquisition, project budgeting, or any financial decision. This page is for research and due-diligence reference only - it is not legal or financial advice.