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Pipestone County adopts amended Solid Waste Ordinance expanding assessments to outbuildings
Summary
After a public hearing, the Pipestone County commissioners approved an amendment to the county Solid Waste Ordinance (in place since 1991) that standardizes assessment units and begins assessing certain structures without residences; the board held the fee at $44 for one year to monitor impacts.
The Pipestone County Board of Commissioners voted Jan. 13 to adopt an amendment to the county Solid Waste Ordinance and a related resolution (59.09.166) that updates assessment units and expands which structures are assessed.
Commissioner (unidentified) Speaker 2 introduced the ordinance changes, saying the updates remove fractional unit calculations, standardize unit counts for businesses and structures and aim to make it easier for the assessor’s office to apply assessments uniformly. "We don't know for sure how these proposed changes are going to affect the actual revenue... but it's gonna make... the process easier for the assessor's office," Speaker 2 said.
The amendment leaves the per-household fee at $44 for the coming year, despite earlier discussion of raising it to $52. "We are proposing to leave the fee at $44 for another year and then adjust it next year accordingly," Speaker 2 said, adding the county will reassess the need for a change after the new units are applied.
During the public hearing and discussion, commissioners emphasized the ordinance will expand assessments to structures that previously were not charged — for example, garages, machine sheds and certain farm outbuildings. Speaker 2 explained the county will assess any building with a value of $1,000 or more, and acknowledged the change will affect farmers and some businesses countywide.
Speaker 1 noted the household hazardous waste program and recycling contracts that the assessment helps fund. Speaker 2 provided an estimate that the assessment program "generates for revenue" approximately $22,030,000 and said that revenue pays for the recycling contract with Van Dykes, hazardous waste building disposal costs, staffing and contributions to Soil and Water.
Board members closed the public hearing by voice vote and approved the ordinance-related resolution, recorded in the meeting as Resolution 59.09.166. The board did not immediately raise the household fee, instead choosing to monitor outcomes under the new assessment approach.
The ordinance is effective per the county’s adoption process; the county said it will track impacts and consider a rate adjustment next year if necessary.
