Fresno’s garbage collection division is broke. City’s fix is higher rates | Opinion
Fresno’s solid waste management division is in the dumps.
Financially, that is.
Because of that economic reality, the city’s 119,000 utility customers can expect to see increases for the weekly takeaway of garbage, recycling and organic materials starting next summer.
That’s the gist of a community outreach effort by City Hall to inform residents about the impending rate hikes and explain why they are necessary. There are two remaining 6 p.m. public meetings: Tuesday at the Paul Caprioglio Community Center (5191 N. Sixth St.) and Wednesday at the Sunnyside High cafeteria.
I viewed a video replay of the first, held inside a sparsely filled City Council chambers. Seated front row center was Georgeanne White, Fresno’s industrious city manager.
Now that White has newly arrived help in the form of assistant city managers Nick Mascia and Michael Rogers, perhaps she’ll relieve herself of the duty to attend after-hours public meetings.
But knowing White even a little bit, perhaps not.
Brock Buche, the city’s director of public utilities, began his presentation by giving a short overview before cutting to the financial chase. The solid waste management division, solely funded by ratepayers, has experienced skyrocketing operational costs since the last rate hike in 2009.
Buche displayed bar graphs depicting how costs for fuel, labor, landfill tipping fees, vehicle replacement costs, fleet maintenance and collection bins have all risen over the past decade. Dramatically in some cases, including 71% for fuel. (City garbage trucks run on methane gas.)
Besides that, Buche said the department has to cover a $2.5 million hit to repair a leaky landfill as well as extra costs associated with SB 1383, a 2022 state law that aims to reduce greenhouse gasses.
(It should be noted many California cities and municipalities have been diverting methane-producing waste from their landfills long before being compelled to do so by Sacramento. Fresno is late to the party in that regard. Clovis, too.)
Compared to increasing costs, the solid waste division’s revenues haven’t nearly kept pace. To the point where what used to be a $15 million operating reserve — as recently as 2014 — is now completely gone.
“We’ve depleted the reserve in a very short period of time and so we’re projecting we’ll have zero reserves in this fiscal year,” Buche said.
Buche told the group that barring a rate increase for garbage, recycling and organics collections, the only recourse would be to cut the current level of service or to dip into the general fund. This, of course, would necessitate cuts someplace else.
Absent an unexpected development, residents who currently pay $25.37 per month (or $19.20 per month for a smaller gray bin) should expect to see higher rates by July, 1, 2024.
How much higher? That has yet to be determined, since another state law more or less determines that process.
Passed by California voters in 1996, Proposition 218 limits the methods by which local governments can create or increase taxes, assessments and fees. As the law pertains to garbage collection rates, fees charged to property owners cannot not exceed the cost of providing the service.
Rate increase procedures
Before the city can impose any rate hikes, certain procedures must be followed. First, the adjusted fee schedule must be supported by a detailed report prepared by a state-certified engineer.
Then it’s up to the city council to decide whether to begin the Proposition 218 process. That entails notifying each ratepayer by mail and asking them to return a sealed ballot disclosing whether they support the new fees.
After a period of no less than 45 days, a public hearing is held to unseal and tabulate the ballots. If a majority approves the new rates, that’s all there is to it. If a majority disapproves, what happens next is up to the city council.
“Should it be less than 50%, they can have the discussion whether to approve (the new rate schedule) or not,” Buche said.
Considering the solid waste management division is broke, that decision seems a fait accompli.
A timeline published by Buche showed the city council considering whether to initiate the Proposition 218 process during its Dec. 14 meeting. If approved, ratepayers would see notification and ballots in March 2024, a public hearing in May and the new fees instituted July 1 at the start of the new fiscal year.
To Fresno homeowners already bracing for higher electricity and gas bills, the news isn’t good. But unlike PG&E, at least the city has to be transparent about why and how much.
