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Staff recommend water deposit and solid-waste fee increases as transit COVID funds end
Summary
City staff proposed raising tenant water deposits to about $120–$150 and increasing solid-waste cart fees (35-gallon to $5.00/month, 65-gallon to $8.50/month) to help cover costs; transit COVID funding has ended, increasing General Fund subsidy pressure.
City staff outlined suggested enterprise rate and fee adjustments at the Jan. 20 work session to address revenue shortfalls and rising costs.
Streets and Solid Waste Superintendent Eric Fisher proposed raising 35-gallon cart fees from $4.17 to $5.00 per month and 65-gallon cart fees from $7.00 to $8.50 per month, which Fisher estimated would generate about $80,000 in annual revenue. He said Coralville currently offers weekly free bulky-item curbside pickup while some neighbors charge for that service; switching to a fee structure mirroring Iowa City could add about $8,000 in revenue. The solid-waste budget includes a $230,000 automated refuse body purchase for a truck acquired in FY2026.
Finance Director Ann Hester and staff discussed water deposit policy. Hester said deposits no longer cover the cost of final utility bills and that state law limits deposits to the average total cost over a 90-day period; staff recommended raising deposits to roughly $120–$150 to better align with comparable communities. Hayworth told the council financial-adviser modeling and an updated CIP will inform any final rate recommendation for FY2027.
Parking & Transportation Director Vicky Robrock noted transit funds from COVID that had helped reduce the General Fund subsidy were exhausted in FY2025; Robrock requested $45,000 for ADA bus-stop improvements and a local match to replace older fixed-route buses in coming years. She also proposed modest wage and parking-facility replacement fund increases and targeted capital replacements for EV chargers and payment readers.
Next steps: staff will present CIP-linked rate models and a final recommendation for user fees and deposits ahead of the budget adoption process.
