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Noblesville council approves higher sewage and trash charges, expands hardship relief
Summary
The City Council approved ordinance 41-0724 raising sewage and trash service rates and expanding hardship discounts. Officials cited inflation and higher disposal and construction costs; no public speakers opposed during the hearing.
The Noblesville Common Council on Aug. 13 approved ordinance 41-0724, adjusting rates for sewage and trash service and expanding hardship relief for qualifying residents.
Deputy Mayor Matt Light summarized the trash-fee component and said the city secured a four-year extension with Republic Services that caps contract increases at 3% annually. “The four-year average under the contract extension creates a $15.55 a month new rate,” he said, and pointed council members to more detail on the city’s utilities and street department webpages.
Jonathan morgo, the city’s utilities representative, told the council the utility must balance fixed debt service and rising outside-service and construction costs. “Our proposed increase across the board for the sewage fee is 15–15.5%,” morgo said, and added the change would create a higher residential bill; he described a fixed four-year rate structure that would not change until 2028. Morgo said the utility is increasing targeted discounts and reinstating a temporary hardship program begun during the pandemic to provide relief for those who qualify (property-tax deduction qualifiers, disabled veterans, surviving spouses, those on unemployment or with approved hardship waivers).
The council opened and closed the public hearing on the ordinance after no residents signed up to speak. The ordinance passed on a roll-call vote recorded in the meeting as unanimous.
The ordinance directs staff to maintain expanded outreach about the hardship options and to post detailed eligibility and application information on city websites. City officials emphasized that the increase is intended to preserve utility operations, fund capital work and maintain reserves that protect credit ratings and reduce long-term borrowing costs.
Council documents and staff commentaries are to be posted online; residents seeking assistance were told to consult the utilities or township trustee offices for hardship or energy-assistance options.
The council’s action takes effect as specified in the ordinance language and the utility will implement the new fixed four-year schedule through 2028 unless the council acts otherwise.
