HomeMy WebLinkAboutNB 6 TRASH COLLEC FEES 12-06-82 NEW BUSINESS
AGENDA
NO. 6
DATE: Dec. 1, 1983 Inter-Corn
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
BILL HUSTON, CITY MANAGER
ESTABLISHMENT OF TRASH COLLECTION FEES
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council authorize the establishment of a fee for residential
and commercial can service to be collected by the City through the
bi-monthly water bill effective January 1, 1983.
BACKGROUND:
The City pays the cost of residential trash collection (single family
dwellings and multi-family dwellings with three units or less) and
commercial collection by allocating General Fund monies each fiscal year.
Under the terms of the franchise agreement with SCA, the City compensates
SCA each month based upon a formula which establishes the number of units
served and an adjustment for inflation.
The City Council authorized increases in all collection rates in October
1982 as a result of the Board of Supervisors decision to enact a gate fee
for County landfill sites and transfer stations. The current gate fee of
$4.90 per ton is expected to increase to a minimum of $7.00 per ton in July
1983.
The Board of Supervisors enacted the gate fee on the basis that County
landfill sites should operate as an enterprise operation and not be
subsidized with County General Fund monies. The County no longer allocates
its general funds for solid waste management activities.
For fiscal year 1982-83, the City will pay approximately $247,000 to SCA
for trash collection. It is estimated that in 1983-84 the cost will be
$400,000 due to the anticipated increase in the gate fee, which the Board
of Supervisors has very clearly indicated will happen, and inflationary
increases in the fees regulated through the franchise agreement.
DISCUSSION:
Tustin is one of two cities in the County which pays the cost of
residential and commercial can collection. The other City is in the
process of enacting an ordinance to levy a fee paid by its residents.
There are two reasons for proposing that Tustin residents pay the cost of
trash collection:
Trash collection is an enterprise operation with a discernable
relationship between the cost of providing the service and the
benefit. It is a utility operation as is gas, electricity and water
each of which are supported by user fees.
With reductions in State subventions, using General Fund income topay
the cost of trash collection is a financial burden and will affect
the City's ability to fund general operations.
Staff's preliminary analysis indicates that the City can collect the fees
at a lesser cost than SCA, however, staff could continue to explore the
possibility of SCA collecting the fee directly if so desired by the
Council. The most cost-effective approach could also be determined and
incorporated within the City's franchise agreement for trash collection
which takes effect on July 1, 1983. At this point, the most expedient
approach would be to collect it through the water bill'.
If the Council authorizes establishment of a trash fee to be collected
through the water bill, it would be a matter of determining the accounts to
be billed and adding an entry on the water bill. Except for the nominal
initial cost of modifying the affected accounts, the City
significant cost in collecting the trash fee since it already is processing
the water bills. However, if experience demonstrated that there are
incremental costs, an administrative change could be added when the
collection rates are adjusted in July 1983.
BH:dmt
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