Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Solid Waste Rates topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves Waste Connections rate increase after presentation on Murphree transfer-station rebuild
Summary
After a presentation on the rebuilt Murphree transfer station and its cost overruns, the Board of Supervisors approved a combined rate adjustment that includes a CPI pass-through and a charge to recover construction overruns; the vote was 4–1.
The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors approved a combined increase to material-recovery-facility (MRF) and solid-waste collection rates after a detailed presentation from Waste Connections of California (doing business as Eldorado Disposal) about the recent Murphree transfer-station rebuild and related cost challenges. The board voted 4–1 to adopt the two-part adjustment: a 3.62% interim (CPI-based) increase and a 2.74% charge tied to construction cost overruns identified in the county’s independent review.
The vote followed a 09:00 presentation showing how the rebuilt transfer station operates, what services it provides and how the capital overrun arose. Christopher Brown, district manager for Eldorado Disposal, described the facility as “a one-stop shop” that processes municipal solid waste, mixed organics and a range of recyclable materials and also accepts many items at no gate charge in order to keep them out of the landfill. Brown and company engineer Dave Brown walked the board through operational changes — new lanes, separate commercial scales, an expanded household-hazardous-waste area, and a baler/processing bay — and then explained why the project cost exceeded earlier estimates.
Why it matters: county staff and an independent consultant (Crow) reviewed the firm’s request and found the Murphree project met the franchise agreement’s threshold for cost recovery. Project circumstances cited in the staff report and consultant review included discovery and remediation of lime waste on the site, pandemic-era delays, evolving building and fire-code requirements, and post‑COVID spikes in construction pricing and contractor availability. Those factors pushed the final cost to about $38.7 million, well above the original $8–$12 million estimate used when the 2014 franchise agreement was drafted.
Supervisor questions and public comments focused on how much of the overrun rate was already being collected, how the recovery will be monitored, and whether there will be a future rate reduction once the overrun is paid. Staff and Eldorado Disposal representatives said revenue from earlier interim adjustments and the newly approved increase will be tracked on a base‑year review cycle (every three years); when construction-cost recovery for a particular tranche is completed, base‑year reviews will reassess rates. County and company staff warned that a future formal rate reduction is not guaranteed: an offsetting CPI or other adjustments in a later base-year review could produce a small net increase or very small decrease, depending on conditions at that time.
Public comments included concerns about perceived double‑billing and requests for clearer charts showing outstanding recovery balances and pay‑off schedules; speakers asked for a transparent amortization schedule to be made available during subsequent base-year reviews. Several local civic and nonprofit representatives and residents also praised Eldorado Disposal’s community programs and the improved customer flow and safety of the rebuilt transfer station.
What the board decided: the supervisors adopted the combined adjustment: the 3.62% CPI-based interim increase and a 2.74% rate component to recover construction costs that Crow and county staff found to be an “unforeseen circumstance” under the franchise agreement. The motion carried 4–1 (Supervisor Parlin registered a no vote). County staff will continue to collect financial reports from Eldorado Disposal and include the overrun recovery in future base‑year reviews to determine whether the recovery has been completed and whether rates should be adjusted then.
Ending note: Eldorado Disposal emphasized the facility’s expanded services — more free recycling drop-offs, new household hazardous-waste capacity and a community education center — and said the rebuild increases daily capacity while aiming to reduce material sent to landfill.
