La Habra Heights residents press city over billing, access and safety after Ware Disposal rollout

La Habra Heights residents packed the council chambers on Oct. 14 to press the city and new contractor Ware Disposal for fixes after a transition from Republic Services led to missed pickups and unexpectedly large bills.

Longtime resident Claudia Shacklin said she went three weeks without pickup, accumulated yard-waste piles on an acre property, and received invoices for cans she does not have. "I have no technology," Shacklin said, adding that many seniors in the Heights cannot use online account tools and need assistance by phone or mail. Others told council members that large trucks have driven down a fragile private quarter-mile driveway and said the heavier vehicle activity risks road damage and safety for horses and pedestrians.

Jay Ware, general manager of Ware Disposal Company, told the council the company began transitioning services two weeks earlier and has completed most residential cart exchanges for non-scout routes. Ware said billing began from account data Republic provided; in many cases that data proved inaccurate. "We have found that it is not the case," Ware said, referring to the prior database, and he pledged to work one-on-one with customers to adjust invoices and, where appropriate, change dumpster sizes or reclassify commercial bins used by residents into residential pricing.

City Attorney Litvin said the prior contractor was required to provide customer data and acknowledged the data problems; he urged residents to call Ware so staff can correct individual accounts. Litvin also said the city's franchise fee is part of the franchise agreement (section 3.2 of the contract) and is not a hidden tax under case law.

Residents raised several recurring complaints: steep first bills (one resident reported a jump from about $148 to $350 or more), unclear senior-discount eligibility when additional green-waste carts are needed, lack of itemized bills explaining per-cart charges, and inconsistent customer-service responses. Ware acknowledged mistakes in classifying some dumpster accounts as commercial and said the company is adjusting invoices to residential rates where appropriate. He said scout (small-vehicle) routes would be transitioned in the coming one to two weeks and that customized solutions would be offered over 30–45 days.

Council members asked that residents document specific problems in writing; staff said a Ware customer-service representative and supervisors were available in the lobby after the meeting to help. The council directed staff to continue working with Ware and to return with written answers to specific billing and service questions.

The transition also reflects statewide changes in waste handling: staff briefed the council on a CalRecycle low-population waiver permitting a phased approach to food-waste (SB 1383) requirements and said food scraps are being routed to organics/yard-waste streams going forward. Ware said the company is implementing separate trucks for trash, recycling and organics as the transition completes.

Next steps: Ware and city staff said they will review and correct invoices, offer individualized service adjustments (including dumpster resizing and reclassification), and continue in-person customer service in the lobby. Residents were asked to submit written, itemized questions so staff can provide precise, documented responses.