DeKalb CEO Proposes Cuts to Waste Pickup Services

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Interim DeKalb County CEO Lee May has proposed a radical cut to the county’s residential waste pickup services in an effort to reduce costs.

According to Reporter Newspapers, May’s plan would reduce the number of garbage collection days to one a week, and would combine yard waste and recycling collection with garbage collection. Currently, DeKalb’s sanitation trucks run twice a week to pick up garbage and twice a week to collect yard waste and recycling.

May told the audience at a recent town hall in Brookhaven that the county must either raise rates for the first time in almost a decade or cut services; if the reduction plan is adopted, residents will pay the same fees they are paying now, Reporter Newspapers said.

The interim CEO is facing pushback from some county residents, including those who were included in a pilot program to test the new system. Some DeKalb residents have said that they would gladly pay more to keep the current high quality of service.

The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners will examine May’s proposal during their meeting on Tuesday.

Would you rather pay more to continue receiving the county’s current sanitation services, or would you rather continue paying the same rate but only have waste collection once a week? Tell us in the comments!