The Bossier City Council on July 29 adopted an ordinance amending Ordinance 2 of 2025 to adjust sanitation rates, after public comment and an extended council discussion about how the fee affects apartment complexes and the city’s public works budget.

Council action followed a public hearing in which a resident said billing details were unclear and urged more transparency. The city’s finance and public works staff described a projected operating deficit for the sanitation enterprise fund and said the rate adjustment was intended to reduce that shortfall.

Council members and the mayor framed the vote around fiscal necessity and fairness. Mayor Chandler said the increase was “necessary and financially responsible,” and warned that the department could not continue to operate at a deficit. Cassie Rogers, a Bossier City resident, told the council she could not find notices on bills and that her sanitation charges had risen more than the single $12 figure discussed publicly: “Not only did my $12 rate go up, my fee for my trash can also doubled... There is no notice that says my fees are going to increase,” Rogers said.

The administration provided budget figures in response to council questions: the 2025 sanitation operating budget was presented as $11,115,799 and staff said the department was projected to run a $124,282 loss for 2025 under current assumptions. Staff also estimated that suspending the fee for the months discussed would reduce department revenue by roughly $335,000, based on projections for apartment-related suspensions. Council members pressed for alternative approaches and for stepped implementation to reduce immediate impact on business owners; some urged that apartment owners share more of the burden and others warned of the risk that a sudden large charge could harm property owners and tenants.

Council members also discussed operations and procurement. Several members urged issuing a new request for proposals for sanitation services; councilmembers noted that the current RFP dated from 2018 and that the city is not operating under a current contract with Live Oak Environmental. Councilman Cliff Smith and others clarified that common municipal services (street sweeping, mosquito spraying) generally do not go inside private apartment complexes and that many complexes contract separately for dumpster service, which the city does not provide.

After discussion and public comment, the council voted to adopt the ordinance amending sanitation rates. The motion to adopt was made and seconded on the record, and the mayor called for the vote; the motion carried.

Council members and staff said they will continue to refine billing transparency and to meet with affected businesses. The council directed staff to return with clarified billing information and further budget projections when the ordinance returns for any required follow-up or implementation details.

Ending: The council’s action settles the immediate rate ordinance, but multiple members said follow-up work remains on transparency, possible RFPs for sanitation service, and longer-term budgeting to eliminate the operating deficit.