Agreement Could Mean Reduction in Trash Bills

SANTA ANA — Homeowners could see reductions in their garbage bills under a tentative agreement struck between cities and the county over trash disposal contracts.

Negotiators are now finalizing the language of the pacts, which would cut dumping fees at local landfills from $27 per ton to about $22, roughly the same amount the county charged before it filed for bankruptcy in December 1994.

The Orange County City Managers Assn. and the League of California Cities Orange County Division approved the terms of the contracts last week. The Board of Supervisors and the city councils of all 31 municipalities are set to consider the proposals over the next month.

“There is a great deal of support for this,” Brea City Manager Frank Benest said. “What [the contracts] will tend to do is stabilize and over time lower rates.”

Representatives from cities and the county’s Integrated Waste Management Department have been negotiating the disposal contracts since late November. Supervisors said they would consider seeking bids from private companies interested in purchasing the landfill system unless an agreement was reached.

The disposal contracts would guarantee cities a fixed dumping fee of about $22 a ton for trash collected in their communities. The county, in turn, would gain a predictable flow of trash to its landfills for the next 10 years.

The county sharply increased dumping fees after the bankruptcy from $22.75 to $35 a ton, causing garbage bills for homeowners and businesses to rise. As a result, some cities stopped using the county’s three landfills and began dumping their trash in Los Angeles County facilities that offered lower rates. The exodus prompted the county to drop its fee to $27.

“I think this is in the best interests of the homeowners and the commercial users,” Board Chairman William G. Steiner said. “It will help prevent rate increases and give some predictability in terms of the use of our landfills.”

Many ratepayers would eventually see modest reductions in their trash bills if the contracts are approved. Some cities, however, could decide to use the savings to pay for recycling programs or other trash-related activities. Other cities are not required to “pass through” the savings to ratepayers.

The county is generating $15 million a year for bankruptcy recovery efforts by importing trash from surrounding counties. The importation would not be affected by the contracts.