Decatur council adopts new fee schedule with tiered cemetery pricing

The Decatur City Council on March 23 adopted a new fee schedule document that, for the first time, includes cemetery fees and a proposed tiered pricing structure.

Staff said the cemetery board recommended that Decatur residents within ZIP code 76234 continue to pay $700 per grave space; Wise County residents who do not live in 76234 would pay $1,000 per grave space; and non‑county residents would pay $1,500 per grave space. The memo from the cemetery board included with the packet reflects several months of discussion and benchmarking with comparable cities.

Council discussed the change briefly; no council member objected and the fee schedule ordinance passed on second reading. Staff said the fees will be incorporated into the city's official fee schedule so they may be legally assessed.

The council also noted the inclusion of CPI‑based trash collection adjustments elsewhere in the fee document.