Adair County tables request from Waste Connections to start contract extension, seek more information

Waste Connections asked the Adair County Fiscal Court on Tuesday to sign an early extension and raise the per-ton disposal fee to blunt a long-hauler price jump, but the court voted to table the matter so county staff can gather more information and meet with permitted haulers.

Waste Connections representative Fred Chizik told the court the company saw an unexpected “about 20%” increase from its long-hauler this year, which he said “equates to about 1,100,000.0 for all the sites.” To offset that increase, Chizik proposed moving an extension that would otherwise take effect in September 2025 to an earlier date and set a new per-ton rate at $59.93 from roughly $56.

The request matters because the change would affect franchise pricing at local transfer stations, permitted haulers who bill customers, and county collections tied to the transfer station. County members pressed for more detail about how quickly haulers could pass costs to customers and whether households that already pre‑paid annual bills would be asked to make additional payments. Several participants said they wanted a financial estimate of the impact on local haulers and on county expenses before making a decision.

Chizik described the company’s approach to the court: “What we did change is in this contract, we'd like to get the extension for is the amount per ton,” and later, “What we did change is in this contract, we'd like to get the extension for is the amount per ton… I think those are really good, fair numbers for an extension moving forward.” He said the franchise fee and the public minimum would remain the same under the proposed terms.

Magistrates and other court members raised practical concerns: haulers have already printed and mailed customer bills in many cases, and a mid‑year price change could require haulers to either absorb costs or reissue bills to customers. Members asked for estimates of monthly tonnage hauled through the county transfer station and for the projected monthly dollar impact on haulers and on county budgets. The court also discussed whether the county could structure any change to protect permitted haulers or stagger the increase to reduce shock to customers.

After discussion the court voted to table the request and asked staff to return with more specific cost and tonnage estimates and to meet with permitted haulers about how an earlier rate change would be implemented and communicated. Court members said that information should inform whether the county agrees to an early modification or waits for the scheduled September contract renewal.

Next steps: the item was tabled to the next regular meeting. County staff will obtain hauler tonnage figures, model the per‑ton increase’s impact on haulers and customers, and report back so the court can consider either a modification now or addressing the change at the contract renewal in September.