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Tulare County approves 3.36% CPI increase to franchise hauler rates; organics service optional in waiver areas
Summary
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors on May 5 approved a 3.36% CPI adjustment to maximum collection and ancillary rates for franchise haulers, effective July 1, 2026; county staff said customers in waiver areas may opt out of organics service and avoid the associated surcharge. Vote was 3-0 (two supervisors absent).
Tulare County supervisors voted 3-0 on May 5 to approve an annual CPI adjustment to franchise hauler maximum collection and ancillary rates, a change county staff said will take effect July 1.
Guillermo Hermoso, fiscal manager for Solid Waste, told the board the proposed CPI adjustment is 3.36% and that the change reflects the department’s annual indexing of maximum rates under the franchise agreements. Hermoso said the county is proposing a new 15-year franchise term expiring in 2039 and that the organic-collection option would be added to the collection services for those who subscribe.
“The proposed CPI adjustment is 3.36%,” Hermoso said, and he noted typical residential carts that currently cost $38.73 would see roughly a $1.30 increase for a majority of services (he cited the 90‑gallon cart as an example). Hermoso also listed services funded by franchise fees, such as private cleanups, free bulky-item disposal at the landfills and increased funding for illegal‑dumping cleanup programs.
Hermoso clarified that in waiver service areas the organics program is optional: customers who do not subscribe to organics service “will not pay the additional surcharge,” he said, and their food waste would remain in the black (general refuse) cart rather than the green organics cart.
No members of the public spoke in person during the hearing; the clerk distributed emailed public comments to the board. After brief board questions and requests that staff respond to constituent inquiries, the board moved and approved the staff recommendation. The motion was made by Supervisor McCarrie and seconded by Supervisor Vanderpool; the vote was recorded as 3-0 with Supervisors Valero and Townsend absent.
The public hearing closed the same day. The approved maximum rates will be published in the franchise exhibit and implemented for the July 1, 2026–June 30, 2027 rate year, per the staff recommendation.
