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Groves council adopts ordinance granting exclusive commercial and industrial waste franchise to Republic Services
Summary
The Groves City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2025-21 to give BFI Waste Services of Texas LP (DBA Republic Services of Beaumont) an exclusive franchise for large commercial and industrial waste collection, establishing a franchise fee and authorizing the city manager to execute an agreement; council cited street impacts and revenue collection as reasons for the change.
The Groves City Council voted to adopt Ordinance No. 2025-21 to grant an exclusive franchise to BFI Waste Services of Texas LP, doing business as Republic Services of Beaumont, for collection and disposal of solid waste from large commercial units (10 yards or larger) and all industrial units within the city.
City staff told the council the ordinance is intended to reduce wear on city streets and provide a mechanism to collect a gross‑receipts fee from commercial haulers. "In order to simplify the process and to help reduce the load on our streets, it was recommended the council go with a franchise with Republic Services," a staff member said, explaining the change from an open market to a single commercial provider.
The ordinance amends chapters 12 and 27 of the city's code of ordinances, establishes a franchise fee, and authorizes the city manager to execute a franchise agreement. Council members asked how the city would monitor performance and customer complaints; staff said the contractor will submit monthly reports that include customer service complaints and that violation of the ordinance would subject unauthorized providers to ordinary enforcement measures. "They'd be in violation of the ordinance as written," staff said, describing enforcement options.
Councilors also discussed excluded items and publication of a list of prohibited materials; staff confirmed the contract lists excluded items and recommended posting that list publicly. The council voted to adopt the ordinance and then later authorized the city manager to negotiate and execute the municipal materials/maintenance agreement with Republic Services to operationalize the franchise.
The ordinance was approved by a council vote with the mayor and council members recorded as voting "aye." The contract authorization directs the city manager to finalize terms and execute the necessary documents.
The adoption and contract authorization together move the city from an open-market approach for commercial/industrial haulers to a single authorized provider for large commercial and industrial units; the change is intended to centralize oversight and fee collection while keeping smaller roll-off units under the open market.
