Boulder council sets landfill fees to cover long-term closure costs, authorizes staged rollout

The Boulder Town Council voted to set new fees for use of the town landfill, approving a $15 charge for a standard truckload and $30 for a truck-and-trailer combination to begin building a closure and long‑term monitoring fund.

Councilmember Josh explained the change as needed to comply with state audit findings and to accumulate money for eventual landfill closure and the 30‑year monitoring requirement that follows closure. "We gotta start charging money for the landfill in some shape or form just to offset those basic, long term costs," he said, and proposed the $15/$30 amounts after consulting peers in the region.

Council members and staff discussed logistics for collecting fees, including whether to accept credit cards, checks or create a ticket/punch‑card system. Staff noted credit‑card processing would incur roughly a 3% transaction fee and require manual entry into the town’s accounting system; others warned that collecting fees without a practical process had failed in prior attempts. The council accepted those constraints and agreed staff should develop procedures for accepting payments and for public rollout.

The vote to adopt the fee schedule passed with council consensus and voice vote; the council also authorized the mayor and administration to manage the public rollout and timing of implementation so that collection begins when staff can reliably accept payments. The motion included direction that staff test onsite collection and signage, and that the town publicize the effective date and procedures ahead of enforcement.

Council members said the amount is intended to be significant enough to matter but not burdensome, and that larger commercial hauls would continue to be restricted by existing noncommercial-use rules at the landfill. The council directed staff to return with implementation details and a plan for recording and depositing receipts.