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Consultant recommends stronger enforcement and higher fees for commercial haulers; council backs increased reporting
Summary
A consultant study recommended keeping the city's nonexclusive franchise system but increasing enforcement and expanding monthly franchise fees to construction and demolition and recyclables; council agreed to staff'led compliance and updated reporting.
A consultant engaged by Palm Coast recommended keeping the city's nonexclusive franchisee model for commercial solid‑waste collection but strengthening enforcement and expanding the monthly franchise fee to cover construction and demolition (C&D) and recyclables.
Alyssa Roscoe, residential solid waste collection supervisor, said the city currently charges a 10% monthly franchise fee on commercial municipal solid waste and that fiscal year 2024 franchise revenue was $3,393,720.38. Roscoe told council the city has six franchisees and that five are regularly remitting required reporting; she also said budgeted staff (a commercial compliance officer who started June 2) would focus on registration, financial reporting and liquidated damages enforcement.
Consultant Allison Truelock of NewGen said benchmark cities charge a wide range of franchise fees (examples cited included 8% in Boca Raton, 15% in Clearwater and 25% in Hollywood) and that some peers apply monthly franchise fees to C&D and recyclables as well. Roscoe said an in‑house conversion would require a large capital outlay (the consultant provided an illustrative 40‑yard roll‑off truck price of about $386,000) and that state “displacement law” would require three years’ notice plus an 18‑month payout of gross receipts to displaced haulers, a buyout the consultant estimated at roughly $6 million.
Council directed staff to pursue Option 1 from the consultant report: keep the nonexclusive franchise arrangement while increasing enforcement, add C&D and recycling to required monthly reporting, and evaluate aligning the franchise fee more closely with peer cities. Staff said the reporting platform is being implemented in house with no additional license cost and that new compliance staff will track invoicing, liquidated damages and registration.
Councilmembers stressed stronger, clearly defined liquidated damages and administrative penalties; staff said a list of liquidated‑damage triggers exists in the current franchise agreement and agreed to provide more explicit, dollarized penalties for council review.
