The city of Hillsdale has adopted a new program which will allow credit card users to pay for almost all city services with their card or electronic checks.
The city council voted to approve the program, which is powered by Point & Pay LLC, an electronic billing service, at Monday’s city council meeting. The program applies to all payments except library fees, Dial-A-Ride tickets, and city park concession stand payments.
“Choosing Point & Pay will allow the city to have a single point of contact for all issues regarding our accounting and payable system,” Mayor Scott Sessions said.
Point & Pay will levy fees from credit card companies onto individual users who choose to pay electronically for the city’s services. Other communities already use Point & Pay, including nearby Jonesville.
Councilman Patrick Flannery said it is becoming common practice for businesses and governments to charge fees for people who choose to pay with a credit card.
“People are really pinching margins right now and getting every penny they can. And people are realizing that credit cards are a big deal,” he said.
The city, however, will still allow people to pay for services with checks or cash.
“We’re just giving another option for paying, that’s all,” Councilman Bruce Sharp said. “People have to understand though, if you pay with a credit card, you’re gaining the interest and possibly will have to pay a fee.”
The city’s two banks, Southern Michigan Bank, which handles the majority of the city’s accounts, and County National Bank, which holds the Board of Public Utilities’ accounts, do not have the platform to process credit card payments directly, and do not have the software to deliver reports to the city about such payments. In addition, the city does not have a way of electronically depositing checks.
“Right now, we physically walk our checks from city hall over to the bank,” City Clerk Stephen French said.
Sessions said the city will save a significant amount of money each year by adopting Point & Pay.
“This fixes a problem because, right now, the rest of the city has to subsidize those who use credit cards around $20 to 30 thousand a year, and that factors into the BPU’s budget and is calculated into the rates,” he said. “Those who pay the bill electronically and don’t pay the convenience fee are actually being subsidized by those who pay by another method.”
Councilman Bill Zeiser said he was not thrilled about placing the new charge on people but is happy the city will allow people to skirt the fee by paying with check or cash.
“This is our best worst option,” he said.
