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Council discusses proposed residential sanitation user fee and commercial waste rate increase; no vote taken
Summary
City staff briefed council on a proposed solid-waste ordinance to permit a residential sanitation user fee and on a recommended CPI-based rate increase for commercial sanitation contracts. Staff said billing lists must be checked to avoid charging vacant or commercial properties incorrectly; the council did not take a formal vote.
City staff told the Snellville City Council on Monday they plan to present two solid-waste items for future formal action: (1) an amendment to permit a residential sanitation user fee and (2) an annual consumer-price-index adjustment for commercial sanitation service rates.
Staff said the proposed solid-waste ordinance (code reference discussed as "0.5-12" in the packet) would allow the city to set a sanitation user charge; staff emphasized they are still verifying property-classification lists so only occupied residential properties — not vacant or commercial parcels — would receive the residential charge. "We have to get to the digest and make sure no commercial property is gonna get the charge," staff said.
For commercial accounts, staff described an annual increase tied to the CPI that would be applied to business sanitation contracts. The proposed CPI-based increase would not affect residential customers, staff said.
Why it matters
A user fee would change how sanitation costs are collected for residential customers and would affect billing on property-tax digest statements if the city chooses that collection method. Staff said they are taking care to avoid double-billing properties that receive multiple tax bills or that contain unbuildable lots adjacent to residences.
Clarifications and next steps
- Property classification: Staff said they are reviewing parcels (including duplexes and multi-family properties) to assign correct charges and to exclude vacant and commercial parcels from residential sanitation fees.
- Timing: No date for ordinance introduction or a public hearing was announced during the work session.
- Commercial rate adjustments: Staff said the city routinely negotiates annual adjustments with contracted commercial waste haulers and will proceed to update commercial rates if the council supports the CPI-based approach at a formal meeting.
No formal motion or vote occurred during the work session on either the residential user fee ordinance or the commercial CPI adjustment; staff said they will return with ordinance language and billing verifications for council consideration.
Ending
Councilmembers asked staff to continue verifying property lists and to return with ordinance text and clear billing impacts before any formal action.
