Manteca is moving to level the playing field when it comes to fees charged — or not charged — to collect garbage.
The rate increase as crafted that’s before the Manteca City Council during a public hearing at Tuesday’s 7 p.m. meeting at the Civic Center, 1001 W. Center St., eliminates incentives put in place 12 years ago to encourage people to get into the habit of recycling.
Instead the city is basing its new rate structure on the actual cost of providing collection services such as the manpower, trucks, fuel and maintenance as well as equipment including the actual cost of the Toters as well as the tipping fee or cost of physically burying garbage. The tipping fee represents just 20 percent of the overall costs.
At the same time the smallest Toters — 35 gallons — have been problematic. Residential users will often over jam garbage into the containers making them difficult to dump. As a result the automatic arms on trucks have to be engaged more rigorously. This has led to the Toters falling into the back of refuse collection trucks forcing drivers to climb into the back to retrieve the Toters. Not only does this significantly increase the time it takes to service a residential account but it also increases the risk of injury for city workers.
Over the next five years the cost of the monthly service for 35-gallon Toters will increase by $10.85 compared to $7.12 for 65-gallon Toters and $4.11 for 96-gallon Toters. The city plans to stop issuing new 35-gallon Toter service and eventually phase existing ones out as containers fail or else a customer changes service size or moves.
Manteca is also instituting new fees. They include:
uA $420 fee developers will pay to cover the cost of providing service (three Toters and a pro-rated cost of a new truck) to a new home. The fees will be collected when building permits are issued. There is no such fee in place currently. For every 100 homes built the solid waste division shells out $42,000 to start a residential service. Manteca has added over 1,500 homes during the past five years. That translates into a $610,000 hit.
uMonthly fees for commercial food waste collection using orange Toters and bins. They initially will range from $33.18 (it goes to $35.37 by 2021) for a one week collection for a 35-gallon clean food service to $597.19 (it goes to $636.60 by 2021) for a five times a week collection of dirty food in two-yard containers.
uA charge of $35 plus time and materials to retrieve a residential-sized refrigerator.
uFees will be charged if staff is asked to retrieve electronic waste at a residence on a time and materials cost basis. There will continue to be no charge for electronic waste dropped off at the solid waste office or at special collection events.
uThere will be a one-time charge of $50 to install locking bars on commercial bibns.
uExtra bags placed at curbside beside brown Toters will be charged a fee equal to the 35-gallon monthly rate at the time of service. No more than three 35-gallon bags will be allowed on a given collection day. Currently the city allows three 35-gallon bags with special ties obtained from solid waste to be collected free during the course of a year.
uRemoving bulky items such as a couch or a chair that is placed at curbside will be charged a fee equal to the low-income senior rate at the time of service plus time and materials.
uThose wishing to suspend service due to vacation will be charged $120.
The monthly rate structure staff is recommending would be phased over five years starting in 2017 until fully implemented in 2021.
uIt would take the 35-gallon Toter from $19.78 to $30.67 for a $10.85 per month increase.
uIt would take the 65-gallon Toter from $25.49 to $32.61 for a $7.12 per month increase
uIt would take the 95-gallon Toter from $30.02 to $34.33 for a $4.11 per month increase.
uIt would take senior low-income Toter service from $12.72 to $19.72 for a $7 per month increase.
uIt would take 1-yard commercial bins picked up once a week from $67.57 to $119.80.
uIt would take 2-yard commercial bins picked up once a week from $97.44 to $132.71.
uIt would take 3 yard commercial bins picked up once a week from $120.05 to $145.62
uIt would take 3 yard commercial bins picked up three times a week from $317.96 to $436.85.
uIt would take 4-yard commercial bins picked up once a week from $146.72 to $158.53.
uIt would take 4-yard commercial bins picked up three times a week from $388.31 to $475.58.
uIt would take 6-yard commercial bins picked up once a week from $196.06 down to $184.34.
uIt would take 6-yard commercial bins picked up three times a week from $529.42 to $553.03.
Impacted ratepayers would be notified Jan. 18, 2017 with new rates going into effect Feb. 6, 2017. The first payments of the new rates takes place April 15, 2017.
The rate alternative selected would give the city a 21 percent operating reserve for the solid waste enterprise fund by 2021.
The solid waste enterprise fund had a cash balance in reserve of $6 million in 2009. Rising costs and state mandates for things such as replacing refuse trucks with cleaner burning engines has pushed the reserve down to $2 million this year. The new rates are
Charging for starting service is part of an overall plan to prevent the solid waste division from burning through all of its reserves by Mach 2018 under the existing rate structure.
The proposed rate hikes are following Proposition 218 restrictions. That means the rates charged cannot exceed the cost of providing the service. One segment of ratepayers such as commercial cannot subsidize another such as residential. The City Council is required to consider all protests.
Tuesday’s protest hearing will be followed by a second reading or adoption on Dec. 20 assuming the council moves forward with the new rate structure.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
