Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Waste Contracts topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves five-year Waste Management contract with contamination fees and 15% initial rate increase
Summary
The council voted to approve a five-year contract (with two two-year extensions) for residential recycling and organics collection that starts with a 15% rate increase, adds contamination charges (third strike) and fees for excess recycling/organics; staff and council emphasized education and local billing options.
City staff presented the proposed residential recycling and organics contract with Waste Management of Washington and recommended approval of a five-year agreement with two two-year extensions. The contract includes an initial 15% rate increase and a 6% per-year cap thereafter; staff said comparable jurisdictions have seen 20–40% increases.
New service rules in the contract include contamination enforcement (a cart with 10% or more contamination triggers a compliance process; on the third strike within a calendar year the contractor will charge the city) and fees for extra/overfilled recycling or organics beyond a customer's cart, with an obligation that cart lids remain closed. Staff said commercial organics service will move to open-market vendors to align with new state organics-management laws and that the change affects only a handful of accounts.
Council members probed how the charges would appear on household bills and whether penalties would be applied to the city or billed directly to customers. Staff said the city bills utility customers and can choose whether to pass contamination charges through to households; the council noted prior decisions invoking annual CPI schedule for utility rates will smooth the transition for customers.
Council emphasized a large education effort before the contract's enforcement date (staff said outreach can run through July 2027) and that the contractor provides photographic evidence when warnings are issued. After discussion about consumer impacts and enforcement, council moved, seconded and approved the contract by voice vote.
"We want to minimize the impact to landfills," said Councilmember Cleveland McGrath, supporting contamination fees as an incentive for cleaner recycling. Public discussion at the meeting focused on balancing consumer education with fair cost allocation.
