Should Belmont's Solid Waste, Recycling, and Organics Rates be Reduced?

The following is a news release from the city of Belmont:

The Belmont City Council will hold a public hearing Tuesday, November 25th to adopt solid waste rates for residential and commercial customers for calendar year 2015 - the good news is the rates are recommended to be reduced by an average of 4.51%

On September 23, 2014, the City Council reviewed Recology’s 2015 rate application, and set a Public Hearing date for November 25th. During that review, it was noted that the rates would likely be lower than presented since the City was working with Recology to resolve a reporting error on the City’s tonnage reports. Since that time, the tonnage report has been corrected, and the parties also noted that the prior year’s migration recovery surcharge needed to be “reversed” or removed from the City’s rates.

In summary, for 2015 the City’s solid waste rates will not be increased, but rather, reduced by an overall 4.51%. This reduction in rates will affect both the residential and commercial solid waste rates. Prior to these changes, the proposed adjustment to rates was an increase of 2.77%.

The proposed reduction in the solid waste rates has created a unique opportunity for the City to make adjustments between the residential cart sizes. State Assembly Bill 939, passed in 1989, established aggressive requirements for the state and its cities and counties to divert solid waste from landfills by implementing recycling and other waste program. Since the passage of AB 939, State lawmakers have continued to examine statewide disposal and recycling efforts. Given that, the policy objective of encouraging reduction in waste and the use of smaller cart sizes remain relevant for purposes of setting rates.

On October 28th the City Council considered several options on how to set the 2015 Solid Waste Rates while meeting the revenue requirements. Four (4) different residential rate options were considered by the Council and they ultimately selected an option which balances the pricing structure such that the pricing of the carts remains graduated, but reduces the differential between the smallest and largest carts.

Existing and proposed 2015 (in parentheses) monthly residential rates are as follows:

• 20 Gallon Cart, $21.61 ($21.00)
• 32 Gallon Cart, $35.79 ($34.86)
• 64 Gallon Cart, $78.86 ($71.03)
• 96 Gallon Cart, $127.49 ($111.30)

Information on rates and program information including service level options can be found at www.belmont.gov.

(Image via Shutterstock)