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Albany hears Republic Services on Recycling Modernization Act, company outlines 2.4% refuse rate index increase
Summary
At the Nov. 5 Albany City Council meeting Republic Services updated council on Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act roll-out and said an index-based refuse rate adjustment of 2.4% would apply next year, driven by CPI and increased Coffin Butte disposal costs.
Republic Services representatives told the Albany City Council on Wednesday that Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act (RMA) is expanding curbside recycling and that the company will seek a 2.4% index adjustment to refuse rates for the coming year.
Julie Jackson of Republic Services presented the company's 2025 annual report and described Phase 1 of RMA, effective July 1, which adds several materials to the statewide recycling list. Jackson said Phase 2, scheduled for the Willamette Valley in the first quarter of 2027, will shift some depots to producer-organization "pro depots" to accept hard-to-recycle items such as plastic film, expanded polystyrene and small appliances.
Jackson also reviewed the refuse rate index formula used to determine annual adjustments. "This year, the adjustment is 2.4%," she said, adding that 1.4 percentage points of that amount are tied to the consumer price index, there is no fuel surcharge this year because fuel costs were flat, and a 1.0 percentage-point increase reflects higher disposal costs at Coffin Butte Landfill. Jackson translated the index into monthly changes: for example, a 20-gallon cart would rise about $0.60 per month and a 90-gallon cart about $1.02 per month under the proposed index.
Councilors asked whether RMA has increased recycling volumes. Jackson said recycling participation and capture have not yet risen markedly, but that the RMA's standardized statewide materials list and new depot services should increase recycling over time. She warned that waste per capita has increased and that waste reduction remains an explicit program goal.
When asked why disposal costs at Coffin Butte have risen, Jackson said the landfill faced higher capital and operational costs after delays developing an expansion cell and by moving into a higher-cost quarry cell. "We had to move Knife River out and move into that cell, and it was very expensive to develop that cell," she said.
Jackson described operational steps Republic Services will take to reduce contamination, including trialing AI-equipped cameras on collection trucks to identify contaminated carts and send customers photo notices. She said RMA requires warnings before enforcement and that depots will eventually track materials through sorting and end markets so more material stays domestic.
The presentation did not include a council vote on rates; staff and Republic Services framed the briefing as an annual index report and opportunity for councilors to ask questions about service, contamination and the RMA implementation timeline. The council thanked the presenter and moved on to the next agenda item.
