Bonner County commissioners approve revised solid-waste fees, keep household sticker rate unchanged

Bonner County commissioners voted to approve proposed changes to the county's solid-waste fee schedule and directed staff to begin administrative steps to implement the new rates, with a planned effective date of Dec. 1, 2025.

The board's action keeps the annual household sticker at $194 but raises or clarifies per-item and commercial charges, increases minimum yardage for several categories, revises fees for tires and CRT televisions, and narrows the circumstances in which a replacement sticker can be issued for a $5 fee. Commissioner Williams, explaining the board's reasoning during the public hearing, said, "If we don't do that, then what's happening is we're actually asking all of the other taxpayers in the county to subsidize the cost of waste processing when we're undercharging."

The vote followed a public hearing at which site attendants and residents described enforcement and equity concerns. Laura Braniff, a site attendant who works at the Clark Fork site, said she had seen commercial garbage dumped using a residential sticker and told the board, "I saw approximately $540 of commercial garbage get dumped using a 2025 sticker." Residents also urged the board to consider the impact on fixed-income and rural…