Trash collection fees going up; Norris approves new budget
Norris residents will pay $1.10 a month more for trash pickup under an ordinance approved on final reading by the City Council on Monday night.
The increase will come in two separate 55-cent additions to residents’ monthly utility bills – one on July 1 and another on Jan. 1.
City Manager Adam Ledford said the higher rates are necessary to cover the city’s growing expenses to have Waste Connections operate the city’s refuse-collection service.
The council also gave tentative approval to a city budget for the new fiscal year beginning July 1 that calls for no increases in the property tax rate.
Passed unanimously on first reading, the new budget lists an expected $2.074 million in total revenues for the new year, and total operating and maintenance appropriations of $1.796 million.
With capital project outlays, total expenditures for 2024-25 are predicted to be $2.473 million. Grant money would make up the difference.
The council also discussed recent trash-collection delays by Waste Connections, and members were told by Ledford that the current contract is in its final year, and will be up for bidding again next year.
He said that for now, there are no penalties built into the contract for late pickups, and he conceded that the current contract was written to favor Waste Connections more than the interests of the city.
As for the rate increases, Ledford cited diesel-fuel prices and the Consumer Price Index, which both have increased dramatically since January 2021.
The city’s contract with Waste Connections allows the private company to raise the rates it charges the city based on the increased CPI and fuel costs.
Starting July 1, residents will pay $17.55 a month, up from $17, for trash pickup. That will rise to $18.10 a month beginning Jan. 1.
Commercial trash customers will see even higher increases, including paying more in monthly dumpster rental costs and weekly trash pickups.
The council will consider finalizing the new budget by passing it on second reading during the next council meeting, June 17.