Montgomery County solid waste plan would raise per-ton fee, council asked to ratify draft

John Yamaneer, a representative of the Montgomery County Solid Waste Management District, told the Brookville City Council on April 15 that the district—xpects a budget shortfall beginning in 2026 and is asking municipalities to ratify an updated solid waste management plan that includes a $3.65 per-ton generation fee and a 6% annual escalation thereafter.

Why it matters: The plan is a countywide, multi-decade budget and service roadmap. Yamaneer said the district must guarantee 15 years of disposal capacity and meet recycling and participation goals while showing a balanced 20-year projection of revenues and expenditures. Local ratification is part of a statutorily required process; if the plan reaches a 70% population threshold the policy committee will recommend adoption and the director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will then have 90 days to review it.

Yamaneer summarized the district—ase and financial background. He said House Bill 592 (1988) and subsequent state guidance established solid-waste districts and statewide planning requirements. He described two enduring plan goals: guaranteeing disposal capacity for residential, commercial and industrial waste and reducing landfill-bound waste (a 25% target for residential and commercial). He said Montgomery County currently meets many diversion targets and that the county updates its plan every five years but must model a 20-year budget for the plan document.

On financing, Yamaneer said the district—inancial advisory committee forecast a deficit beginning in 2026. The committee recommended raising the generation fee from the current $3.00 per ton (established in 2010) to $3.65 per ton and applying a 6% year-over-year increase after the initial change. Yamaneer said the initial increase equates to about $0.65 per average household per year (the district estimates the average household produces roughly one ton of garbage annually), or roughly $0.05 per month. He told council, "We recommended a $3.65 generation fee" and described the advisory process that led to the percentage escalation.

Yamaneer said maintaining a development fund was central to the calculation. That fund, which covers legal exposure if a jurisdiction is named a potentially responsible party for past landfill contamination, must remain at a minimum of $1 million; he said the district currently has a modest excess (about $1.5 million) that helped reduce the immediate recommended increase. He also said the committee considered program refinements and contracting choices to limit impacts on residents.

On ratification and timing, Yamaneer explained the district has a 90-day window to collect municipal approvals and must reach 70% of the population represented by elected officials because projected fees later in the plan exceed a statutory $5 threshold. He said the district was at roughly 63.25% support at the time of his presentation and had until May 25 to reach 70%. Yamaneer warned that if municipalities do not approve the draft plan, Ohio EPA can prepare and issue an implementation plan and related findings and orders for the district.

Council members asked technical questions about the 6% escalation and what would occur if the plan is not approved. An unidentified council member asked, "How did you come up with the 6% year over year?" Yamaneer replied the percentage was chosen to avoid large, infrequent jumps in the fee and to preserve the development fund and program funding through the 20-year projection. He also said Ohio EPA has in the past required municipalities to adopt curbside recycling in cases where a district did not meet statutory participation measures.

Action: Council accepted the first reading of Resolution 25-06, the motion to begin local ratification of the Montgomery County Solid Waste Management Plan. The motion passed by voice vote; council recorded a unanimous vote in favor on the first reading.

What happens next: If the policy committee and the Ohio EPA director approve the locally ratified plan, the fee schedule and program changes described in the plan would take effect as the district implements the plan and updates it in subsequent five-year cycles. Yamaneer said the district will revisit fees and projections at each five-year update and can reduce the escalation if revenues or diversion change.

Ending: Yamaneer asked council to consider submitting the municipal resolution before the May 25 deadline to help the district reach the 70% threshold for policy committee recommendation. He offered to answer follow-up questions and provided contact details in the packet materials.