North Ridgeville utilities committee tables proposal to expand senior refuse discount amid fund shortfall concerns

The North Ridgeville Utilities Committee on July 21 tabled consideration of an ordinance that would change the city's refuse senior discount after finance staff said the proposal would reduce refuse-fund revenues and could produce future deficits unless rates rise for all customers or other offsets are found.

Councilwoman Holly Swank introduced the measure, identified in the meeting as O 225-100, which would amend the city's refuse-collection discount rules to change eligibility and credits for seniors. Committee members said they need more legible financial projections before voting. The committee voted 3-0 to table the item until its next meeting.

Finance Director April Wilkerson told the committee the refuse fund is separate from water, sewer and storm funds and is governed by an ordinance that requires a two-month carryforward tied to refuse collection costs. Wilkerson said the fund "annually made $46,824" in the current reporting period and that the carryforward requirement leaves an ending balance of $33,303 under the present forecast.

Wilkerson presented a forecast showing that giving the larger senior credit proposed in the ordinance would reduce refuse revenues by an estimated $133,968 per year based on the roughly 2,700 seniors currently enrolled in the city's senior-discount program. She said, using the current enrollment numbers, the fund would run into a deficit by 2029/2030 under that scenario unless other changes were made.

Wilkerson also explained that the city maintains a separate senior credit tied to a county homestead exemption and that several discounts start at age 62, while the county homestead program starts at 65. She warned that the ordinance before the committee would eliminate the homestead credit and replace it with a city-administered larger credit, which is the source of the projected revenue loss.

Mayor Kevin Corcoran and committee members asked how much an average per-customer increase would be should the committee proceed with the credit. Wilkerson said that, for a year with a $26,851 deficit associated with the credit, each refuse customer (about 14,631 customers in her figures) would pay roughly $1.83 extra to cover the senior credit. She cautioned that the exact increase depends on future enrollment and other variables.

Council members and the chair said they were unclear on several projections and on whether the city's billing and accounting systems can support separate rate structures; Wilkerson said the city does not maintain two separate refuse rates and that any rate increase applies to all customers, with qualifying discounts subtracted afterwards.

Members also discussed credit-card transaction fees: committee members noted the city previously absorbed merchant fees and had recently begun passing them to customers; council members asked whether the change had saved the refuse fund money. Wilkerson said the city's electronic-collections line aggregates multiple fees and that she had not isolated refuse-specific credit-card charges, but that merchant-fee savings so far appeared minimal when viewed in the overall electronic-collections statements.

Two members of the public spoke during the public-comment period. An unidentified resident at 8717 Mosswood Circle said automatic bank payments generally avoid card fees and expressed support for customers paying card fees. Sandra Williams of 33909 Bainbridge Road urged the city to "give a little bit back" to residents rather than raising rates.

After discussion, Council member De Vries moved to table the ordinance; Councilman Bruce Evans seconded. The roll call vote recorded Councilman Eric Schafer 'yes,' Evans 'yes,' and De Vries 'yes,' and the motion to table passed 3-0. No ordinance change or rate adjustment was adopted at the meeting.

The committee asked staff to provide clearer, legible fund projections and a breakdown of the assumptions (current enrollment, projected new enrollments, supplier cost increases) before the next meeting so members can evaluate trade-offs between a larger senior credit and potential rate increases for all customers.