San Bruno Council OKs 6.91% Recology Rate Increase After Independent Review

San Bruno, Calif. — The San Bruno City Council voted unanimously June 9 to approve a 6.91% increase in residential solid-waste collection rates under the city's franchise agreement with Recology, effective July 1, 2026.

Public Works Director Matt Lee opened the Prop 218 public hearing and said the increase follows the contract and a required independent review. "This review process matters," Lee said, explaining that the city uses a third-party rate validation every three years to ensure requested adjustments match actual service costs.

Jordan Muratsuchi, senior consultant with R3 Consulting Group, presented the independent analysis R3 performed on Recology's application. R3's review adjusted allocations, normalized one-time revenues and smoothed abnormal 2025 costs, producing a recommended rate increase of 6.91% down from Recology's original 7.46% request. Muratsuchi said labor was the largest driver of cost increases and R3 identified approximately $294,000 in adjustments that lowered the overall increase. He also summarized the household impact, saying most customers would see roughly a $2.89 monthly increase for a typical 32-gallon cart.

The hearing included public comment. Dennis Matthews, a San Bruno resident, urged council and Recology to consider affordability for seniors and households on Social Security, saying he had trouble reading his bill and had reduced his cart size to save money. "If Recology would set up the same discount of 25% off for residents on Social Security like the city utility billing does, it would help," Matthews said.

The city clerk reported 20 written protests against the rate proposal; under the Prop 218 rules those protests did not amount to a majority protest, allowing the council to proceed. Following council questions and technical clarifications from R3 and staff, councilmember [name not recorded in transcript] moved to adopt the resolution and the motion carried with all present voting in favor. The clerk read the resolution into the record.

The rate increase is intended to preserve service levels — including recycling and organics collection and regulatory compliance — while reflecting cost pressures in collection operations. Staff and R3 emphasized that the three-year cost-based review aims to confirm rates are based on verifiable, city-specific costs rather than formulaic or regional allocations that include unrelated communities.

Next steps: the rate adjustment will take effect July 1, 2026. The city and Recology will continue to provide customer materials explaining how rate components are calculated and options for customers to reduce service levels where available (for example, smaller carts). The council's action and R3's report will be included in the administrative record for the Prop 218 process.

Sources: Public presentation and Q&A by Jordan Muratsuchi (R3 Consulting Group) and Director Matt Lee during the San Bruno City Council meeting, June 9, 2026.