Hillsborough staff propose 7.8% solid-waste rate increase to fund $77M landfill expansion

Hillsborough County's Solid Waste Management Department briefed commissioners on a proposed three-year rate plan on June 1 that would fund a $77 million expansion of the county landfill and cover contractual cost increases.

"We generate over 1,200,000 tons of waste each year," Damien Trammell, Solid Waste Management Department director, told the board. Trammell said the county's resource recovery facility is operating at design capacity, processing about 44% of the county's waste, while 41% is sent to the landfill and approximately 15% is recycled.

Trammell said the county is adding roughly 5,000 new residential customers per year. He said landfill volumes jumped in 2024 to about 630,000 tons—an increase of nearly 200,000 tons, or 38% compared with recent years—partly because of the temporary closure of a City of Tampa disposal facility and debris from Hurricane Milton.

The department recommended a $77 million expansion to provide an additional 10 to 15 years of disposal capacity. Trammell said the construction portion is estimated at $66 million, with the remainder for engineering, design and permitting. Staff proposed financing that cost over three years: $26 million in 2026, $27 million in 2027 and $23 million in 2028.

To help pay for the expansion and contractual increases, Trammell proposed a 7.8% rate increase for fiscal year 2026. "If approved, this change will result in an annual increase of $37.33, which is approximately $3.11 per month," he said. Trammell said the FY26 increase would allocate $28.21 of the annual $37.33 toward landfill expansion, $4.47 toward residential collection contract adjustments and $4.65 toward other disposal-contract adjustments. The department projects further increases of about 6% in FY27 and FY28.

Trammell outlined additional details of the solid-waste system: services to more than 325,000 single-family homes; two garbage pickups, one yard-waste and one recycling collection per week; a landfill, a resource recovery (waste-to-energy) facility, two transfer stations and five community collection centers; three donation sites run in partnership with Goodwill; and monthly household hazardous-waste events. The county offers a 33% senior discount and a $68 hardship credit, and provides backdoor pickup for residents who cannot move carts to the curb.

Commissioners asked about financing options and timing. Commissioner Wilson suggested smoothing the cost for ratepayers by creating a small, ongoing capital component on bills or bonding the project so future residents who use the landfill contribute. "If this was my business... the better way would be that we predicted that, and we just had an ongoing small... capital fee on every bill," Wilson said.

Commissioner Cohen said the proposed increases are substantial and urged staff to explore bonding, other financing or general-fund alternatives to reduce the immediate burden on ratepayers, noting the $77 million expansion would buy only another 10 to 15 years of capacity. Trammell and county staff said they plan to use some rate reserves to offset costs in FY26 and to repay reserves over time.

Trammell recommended staff return to the board on June 4 to request a public hearing for Aug. 6 to adopt FY26 solid-waste rates and fees. No rate change was adopted at the workshop.