LaSalle County committee approves landfill host-fee rates, accepts quarterly report; discussion on PFAS testing and service-area limits

LaSalle County’s Oversight Landfill and Land Use Committee on Feb. 5 approved an annual host-benefit fee rate adjustment and accepted the landfill’s quarterly and year-end report, and heard updates from Republic Services on tonnage, waste origins and emerging testing requirements for PFAS.

The committee voted to set the host-benefit schedule tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and to apply the tiered per-ton rates presented by county staff and Republic Services. Stephanie Thompson, LaSalle County auditor, said the CPI calculation for the year was 1.0387 and walked the committee through the per-ton rates: $3.15 per ton for the first 105,000 tons, $4.82 per ton above 105,000 tons, $6.60 per ton above 140,000 tons, and a $0.50 per-ton surcharge on tonnage exceeding 200,000.

The quarterly report listed $218,002.87 due to LaSalle County for the fourth quarter and reported fourth-quarter tonnage of 42,003.25 tons (noting a transcription typo in the report). Year-to-date tonnage for fiscal year 2024 was stated as 152,805.33 tons and year-to-date host fees paid were $1,122,865.94. Thompson said the county budgeted $850,000 in tipping fees for the previous year but had lowered the estimate to $650,000 for the current year based on recent trends.

Why it matters: host-benefit fees are a revenue stream for the county tied directly to landfill activity; changes in tonnage or the service area affect county revenue and landfill life estimates. Committee members pressed for clearer breakdowns of waste origins…