--- title: Non-Resident Fees That Fund Your Scholarship Program description: Saint Paul sent every non-resident surcharge dollar to fee assistance. How to set the surcharge, defend it, and tier the scholarships it pays for. image: https://www.recreationhq.net/hubfs/blog-images/photo-non-resident-fee-scholarship-fund.jpg --- [Skip to content](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook/non-resident-fee-scholarship-fund#main-content) [![](https://www.recreationhq.net/hs-fs/hubfs/raw_assets/public/recreationhq/images/logo-N6.png?width=34&height=34&name=logo-N6.png) Recreation**HQ**](https://www.recreationhq.net/) [Free trial](https://app.recreationhq.net/register?utm_source=site&utm_medium=mobile_header) [Home](https://www.recreationhq.net/) [Platform](https://www.recreationhq.net/platform) [Solutions](https://www.recreationhq.net/solutions) [Pricing](https://www.recreationhq.net/pricing) [Playbook](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook) [Sign In](https://app.recreationhq.net/) [Start Now](https://app.recreationhq.net/register) [Home](https://www.recreationhq.net/) / [Playbook](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook) # The Non-Resident Surcharge That Pays for Your Scholarship Fund BM Brian M. · Oct 8, 2026 ![Kids of different ages and backgrounds high-fiving on an outdoor basketball court, showing play open to every child](https://www.recreationhq.net/hs-fs/hubfs/blog-images/photo-non-resident-fee-scholarship-fund.jpg?width=1520&name=photo-non-resident-fee-scholarship-fund.jpg) The first complaint of fall registration comes from a family who lives just past the city line. Their daughter plays on the same rec soccer team as her best friend. They paid more for the same season, the same field, and the same volunteer coach, and they want someone at the front desk to explain why. "Non-residents pay more" is an answer. Where the extra money goes is a better one, and it has to be written down before registration opens, not improvised at the counter. ## A surcharge holds up when every dollar has an address Saint Paul wrote the destination into the policy itself. Its Parks and Recreation Commission's [Resolution 16-07](https://www.stpaul.gov/sites/default/files/Media%20Root/Parks%20%26%20Recreation/Res%2016-07%20Non%20Resident%20Fee%20Policy.pdf), adopted in October 2016, endorsed a 50 percent non-resident surcharge on athletic, class, and activity fees, plus a $75 non-resident team fee in municipal athletics. Every dollar collected was directed to the fee assistance scholarship program. That changes the conversation at the counter. The family past the city line is not covering your overhead. They are paying for a resident kid to get a season their family could not otherwise afford. ## Charging outsiders more still needs a reason on paper The legal footing depends on your state, so start with your city attorney. Florida shows what the question looks like. A 1987 [Attorney General opinion](https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/park-fees-for-nonresidents) recalled earlier guidance that a city charging nonresidents more would have to show the difference reflects real economic factors, including a definite financial burden in park maintenance costs. That is a paper trail your department can build. Maintenance cost per field, the tax-supported share of the pool budget, the resident subsidy already built into every program fee. A surcharge that tracks those numbers survives the public comment period. One picked because the next town over charges it does not. ## A sliding scale beats a single income cutoff Manhattan, Kansas publishes its tiers. The city's [2024 scholarship policy](https://www.manhattanks.gov/DocumentCenter/View/68731/2024-Scholarship-Policy-PDF) gives a 50 percent discount to families in the free and reduced lunch program or at 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, stepping up to 60, 70, and 80 percent, and a full 100 percent discount below 75 percent of the guidelines. Prince George's County runs a wider band, and its [fee assistance program](https://www.pgparks.com/activities-events/fee-assistance-scholarships) discounts 20 to 90 percent on the same federal guidelines, for county residents only, with a 10 percent deposit still due toward course fees. Tiers matter because a single cutoff builds a cliff. The family a dollar over the line pays full price for swim lessons while the family a dollar under pays nothing. ## Eligibility paperwork is where assistance programs quietly stall The same [Manhattan policy](https://www.manhattanks.gov/DocumentCenter/View/68731/2024-Scholarship-Policy-PDF) has families submit documentation once a year, with eligibility expiring each July, and requires registration before the early deadline. Staff confirm residency and strip Social Security numbers before scanning anything. Every quarter, staff total the scholarships awarded and invoice the parks foundation for reimbursement. Each of those steps lands on someone's desk. When proof of income lives in a filing cabinet and the discount lives in the registration system, your staff match the two by hand every season, and without a once-a-year rule the same family reapplies for every program. ## Write both policies in the same budget season Before your fee schedule goes to council this fall, put three things in one document: - **The surcharge and its basis.** A percentage or a flat team fee, tied to the cost numbers that justify it. - **The destination.** Name the fund the surcharge feeds, the way Saint Paul did. - **The tiers and the paperwork rule.** Discount bands, the income standard, and how often a family proves eligibility. Then the answer at the front desk is one sentence long. If you want to know what your current fees actually recover before you set new ones, our [free cost-recovery audit](https://www.recreationhq.net/audit) runs the numbers with you. ## Related reading - [The 25 percent cost recovery standard from NRPA](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook/25-percent-cost-recovery-standard-nrpa) - [What parents pay for youth sports](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook/youth-sports-pricing-what-parents-pay) - [A three-tier program pricing model](https://www.recreationhq.net/playbook/program-pricing-three-tier-model) ## Frequently asked questions ### Where should non-resident surcharge revenue go? Write the destination into the policy. Saint Paul directed every dollar of its non-resident surcharge to its fee assistance scholarship program. ### Do you need a reason to charge non-residents more? The legal footing depends on your state, so start with your city attorney. A Florida Attorney General opinion says the difference should reflect real economic factors, such as park maintenance costs. ### Why use a sliding scale for scholarships? A single income cutoff builds a cliff, where a family a dollar over pays full price and one a dollar under pays nothing. Manhattan, Kansas steps discounts from 50 percent up to 100 percent. Find your leaks ## See what your organization could recover. A 20-minute audit, your numbers, no obligation. [Get my cost-recovery audit →](https://www.recreationhq.net/cost-recovery#audit) Or get one practical playbook like this by email, every week. [Start your 30-day free trial](https://app.recreationhq.net/register?utm_source=site&utm_medium=sticky_bar&utm_campaign=playbook) [![](https://www.recreationhq.net/hs-fs/hubfs/raw_assets/public/recreationhq/images/logo-N6.png?width=34&height=34&name=logo-N6.png)Recreation**HQ**](https://www.recreationhq.net/) Organization, never chaos. 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