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Ordinance committee recommends $130 quarterly refuse fee and larger barrels to shore up enterprise fund
Summary
Brockton officials told the Ordinance Committee that the refuse enterprise fund is underfunded and that raising the quarterly fee to $130 and issuing 64-gallon barrels would stabilize operations; the committee asked for options to limit immediate impact and to spread retroactive charges.
The Brockton Ordinance Committee on March 31 recommended an ordinance that would raise the city's quarterly refuse fee to $130 and move from 35-gallon to 64-gallon barrels, while directing staff to provide additional billing options and analysis.
DPW Commissioner Patrick Hill described a roughly two-decade period in which the primary refuse rate remained unchanged and said the enterprise fund no longer covers contract and operating costs. "From 2003 to 2024 we relied strictly on a $70 per quarter rate..." Hill said, describing earlier requests for increases and the current situation: a refuse contract approaching $9.1 million and a projected shortfall for the year of about $1.3 million to $1.4 million.
Hill said the $130-per-quarter proposal would allow the city to finance and distribute 64-gallon barrels to households, which the department believes will reduce complaints about insufficient capacity. "A 64-gallon barrel... provides about 83% more space," Hill said, and staff argued larger barrels and the consolidated fee would stabilize revenue without raising multiple specialized fees that could encourage illegal dumping.
Councilors pressed for alternatives: keeping the current barrel size while raising the quarterly rate less, offering a hybrid option (residents choosing a larger barrel for higher cost), and ways to spread any retroactive billing so residents would not face a single large charge. CFO Troy Clarkston and staff said they would model scenarios and return figures for full council consideration, including the mechanics of retroactive billing to July 1 and exemptions such as 41C senior tax relief or abatements for vacant multifamily units.
The committee voted to recommend the proposal favorably with the expectation staff will present additional billing options and clarify retrofit timing before the full council takes final action.
