COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A judge has ordered the city of Council Bluffs to refund more than $230,000 in fees to local landlords on grounds that the charges exceeded the work done by the city’s previous rental inspection program. The Daily Nonpareil in Council Bluffs reports that the lawsuit covered a time-frame spanning from January 2010 through January 2015. Anyone who was a registered rental property owner in Council Bluffs during that time is likely entitled to repayment funds.

The court order says the city charged $725,013 in rental inspection fees during the time-frame. Of that amount, the court found that the program’s total actual costs were nearly $487,000. Omaha attorney Rodney Dahlquist, who represented the plaintiffs, called the ruling a victory for landlords and taxpayers.