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Brown County adopts landfill rate increases after staff warns of cash shortfall
Summary
After a months-long review showing the landfill running an 18% operating loss, commissioners voted unanimously to raise municipal solid-waste rates and construction-and-demolition rates; staff will publish the new fees and give haulers notice.
Brown County commissioners voted to raise several landfill fees after solid-waste staff presented year-to-date data showing cash reserves declining and operating losses tied to hauling costs and out-of-county disposal volumes.
The vote: Commissioners approved a package of rate changes for municipal solid waste and construction-and-demolition (C&D) waste intended to bring the landfill's monthly cash flow back toward break-even. Under the motion commissioners set municipal solid-waste rates at $75 per ton for in-county customers, $86 per ton for out-of-county customers, and $75 per ton for volume haulers. The commission also raised C&D rates to $36.50 per ton in-county and $41 per ton out-of-county. The motion was moved and seconded and carried with the recorded vote of three ayes and no nays.
Why it matters: Solid-waste staff told commissioners their 2024 and early-2025 figures show the county operating at around an 18% loss since a change in the waste stream and higher-than-expected truck-haul costs. Staff said increases are necessary to replenish cash reserves and to reduce the county's recurring monthly deficit. Staff also highlighted that current C&D rates in Brown County are well below neighboring counties.
Details and process: Staff compared Brown County's existing fees with neighboring counties (Nemaha and Atchison) and proposed the increases after modeling several scenarios. Commissioners discussed the tradeoffs: raising rates could push some volume haulers to other transfer stations, but commissioners concluded the county needed to stabilize the landfill's finances. Commissioners asked the clerk to prepare distribution materials and provide haulers with advance notice; staff said they would distribute fee changes to haulers and the public and work with the clerk on timing. No effective date was specified in the motion, and commissioners discussed a standard 30-day notice period.
Additional context: Solid-waste staff also described operational pressures that increase costs: an unreliable contracted hauler schedule, extra days where private contractors must be hired at higher per-ton rates, and a large out-of-county C&D inflow that the county currently charges at rates well below neighboring jurisdictions. Staff recommended the increases as a first step and said they would return with monitoring reports after implementation.
Ending: Commissioners approved the increases unanimously and directed staff to publish the new rate schedule and notify commercial haulers; staff will report back on the landfill's cash position in coming weeks.
