Sedgwick County reviews new solid-waste fee tiers after resident, city questions

Sedgwick County staff on Tuesday reviewed a redesigned solid-waste fee schedule that takes effect with tax bills this year and funds household hazardous-waste (HHW) services, e-waste and tire collection events, illegal-dump response and other programs. County staff and the commission’s solid-waste committee said the fee is assessed per parcel and was re-tiered to reflect current waste-generation patterns rather than classifications in place in 1999.

The briefing matters because the fee pays for services that are not property-tax supported and because the new per-parcel bills produced a noticeable number of inquiries after the county mailed tax notices. County staff said the committee created new tiers tied to estimated tons of waste generated and to program usage, and that the fee revenue is intended to make the solid-waste program revenue-neutral.

Susan, the committee presenter, said the county developed tiered base rates for nonresidential parcels and added new units for high-density residential properties such as apartments and hotels. "For the tiers ... tier 5 is over 1,500 tons of waste a year. Tier 4, 500 to 1,500. Tier 3, 101 to 500," she said, describing the thresholds that determine higher charges for larger waste generators.…