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HomeMy WebLinkAbout6.3 Garbage Svcs Assess CITY CLERK File # 0810-10 AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: August 1, 2000 SUBJECT: ATTACHMENTS: Public Herting: Assessment Basic Garbage/Recycling Services Prepared by: Jason Behrmann, Administrative Analyst 1) 2) Written Protests Received As of July 24, 2000 Resolution Adopting 2000/2001 Assessment RECOMMENDATION: 1) Open the Public Hearing. 2) Receive the Staff Report and public testimony. 3) Close the public hearing and deliberate. 4) Determine the number'Of any additional written protests received for the record. 5) Adopt Resolution and direct staff to prepare the necessary reports to the Alameda County Tax Collector. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: An annual fee is collected on.the Property tax bill for the cost of Basic Residential Garbage Service. The proposed 2000/2001 Annual Assessment is $122.40 per household. DESCRIPTION: The City has been providing the current mandatory residential garbage and recycling services since July 1, 1993. The program was initially implemented to recognize the fact that ~'the entire community benefits by assuring that' basic garbage and recycling services are provided to ,""'-residential units on a weekly basis. The annual cost of the services is collected on the Property Tax Bill and the City pays the Garbage Company twice' each year..Customers who request services beyond the Basic service are billed directly by Liverrnore Dublin Disposal. Each year the City Council must establish an assessment based upon available revenues from prior.years and the authorized service rates to be paid to Livermore Dublin Disposal, SERVICES PROVIDED The following table describes the services, which are provided Under the basic garbage service agreement: BASIC RESIDENTIAL GARBAGE SERVICES SERVICE DESCRIPTION Garbage Collection/Disp0sal (1) 35 gallon Company Provided Can - Curbside / Semi- Automated ~service C'urbside Recycling Separate Green Waste Recycling Weekly CUrbside collection "of: Newspaper,' Mixed Paper/Junk MaifTAliiiminunl, Tin, Glass, Aseptic cart0n~, and Narrow Neek PlaStic Containers. 64 Gallon Company Provided Container Collected Weekly Special Clean-ups 3. Special Clean-ups 'COPIES TO:Annette Borges, District Manager, LDD ITEM NO. ~ In addition to the direct program costs, the City must consider other factors which affect the total amount to be collected on the Property Tax. These costs include: (a) contract computer service which prepares the magnetic tapes to be provided to the tax collector prior to August l st; (b) Alameda County Collection costs which are 1.7% of the total fees levied; (c) estimated delinquencies for properties which are not current on their property tax payments; and (d) an estimate of surplus funds which may be available from collections made in the prior year. 1999/2000 PROPOSED ANNUAL ASSESSMENT FACTORS For the upcoming Fiscal Year, Staff is proposing an increase in the annual assessment from $120.60 to $122.40. This represents an increase of approximately 1.49% over the assessment levied for 1999/2000. The rate also assumes that the City will contribute $89,000 in Measure D Funds to offset the cost of residential recycling services Offered to both single family and multi-family households. The following are the historical per household assessments levied: ~ ~.. Historical Annual Fee For Minimum Garbage Service 1996/1997 1997/98 1998/99 1999/2000 Proposed 2000/2001 $112.60 $114.90 $118.50 $120.60 122.40 COMPARATIVE RATES S taft has conducted a survey of rates charged in neighboring cities. For comparison purposes the monthly equivalent of the annual assessment has been shown. Residential 1 Can Residential (32-35) Gallon TRI-VALLEY RESIDENTIAL GARBAGE RATE COMPARISON ~' 3 City Livermore Pleasanton San Ramon Average $ 10.58 $ 20.04 $ 11.50 $ 14.04 Pleasanton and San Ramon Residential Green Waste is only Bi-Weekly. Dublin Proposed Disposa} Co. 2000/2001 Rate $10.20 The City Of Dublin service levels are in most cases comparable and in some cases better than the survey cities. For example, Pleasanton offers Residential Green Waste collection only every other .week. The proposed City of Dublin rates are less than all three of the cities surveyed. REQUIREMENTS UNDER PROPOSITION 218 Under the requirements of Proposition 218, the adoption or increase in property-related fees that are refuse service fees, requires a 45-day notice to the parcel owners. A notice explaining the proposed changes and the purpose of the fee was mailed to all parcel owners on June 16, 2000. The notice was mailed in conjunction with the proposed .changes to company garbage rates. 'Approximately 6,350 parcels are affected by the residential garbage assessment. Proposition 218 has very specific criteria which must be considered prior to the adoption of this fee. Specifically, Section 6(2) Property-Related Fees and Charges - states the following: The agency shall conduct a public hearing upon the proposed fee or charge not less than 45 days after mailing the notice of the proposed fee or charge to the record property owners of each identified parcel upon which the fee or charge is proPosed for imposition. At the public hearing, the agency shall consider all protests against the proposed fee or charge... If the written prot~ts against the fee or charge are presented by a majority of owners of the identified parcels, the agency shall not impose the fee or charge. /-'--At the time the Staff Report was prepared, the City had received a total of one protest, as contained in Attachment 1. The protest was regarding an insufficient number of special clean-ups and too few materials accepted. During the special clean-ups residents are allowed to dispose of up to 3 cubic yards of househOld trash, throwaways and wood waste. This number of letters is insufficient to override the adoption of the revised fee. Attached to the Staff Report is a Resolution (Attachment 2), which will establish the 2000/2001 Assessment. The Resolution includes levies for duplex units, which are twice the rate for a single family home. Those tov~mhouse units, which have individual service, are charged at the same rate as a single- familv residence. AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF PLEASANTON REGARDING REGULATORY FEES Regulatory fees are among Waste Management's costs and-are taken into account in calculating rates and, thus, necessary assessments. As part of the settlement of litigation over the expansion of the Altamont Landfill, Alameda County agreed to impose new per-ton fees on Waste Management and to require, it to pass those fees to its franchisors and, thus, to the franchisors' customers. The proposed rate increases reflect the inclusion of those fees in Waste Management's costs. Of the $1.25. per ton in fees now assessed by the CoUnty, $0.75 must be spent by a specially, created committee on the acquisition of open space. Twenty percent of the $0.75 will be allocated to the Dublin- Pleasanton area. Pleasantofi has voting representation'on the committee 'that makes decisions about the use of the feesi Dublin and Pleasanton are considering an agreement that provides that, in return for Dublin passing the fees to its customers, Pleasanton will use its position on the committee to vote that half of the funds for the Dublin-Pleasanton area will be spent to acquire open space in Dublin, and that the properties acquired will be approved by the Council.' Neither city has yet approved that agreement. :Pleasanton's City Council is considering the agreement on August 1, 2000. The agreement is also on the Dublin City Council's AugUst..-i-agenda with this proposed 'assessment adjustment. The attached resolution authorizes assessments that meet the full rate increase requested by LDD, if'Pleasanten approves the agreement. It further provides that, if Pleasanton does not approve the agreement, the City Manager is authorized to reduce the amount of the assessments to reflect the rates that would result from not including the open space fees-in LDD's costs. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends that the City Council conduct a Public Hearing and update the calculation of any additional written protests received, Following the Phblic, Hearing, Staff would~recommei~d that the City Council deliberate and adopt the Resolution. June 19, 2000 CJi . -.,- Attention: City Clerk City of Dublin P.O. Box 2340 Dublin, CA 94568 Dear Sk: I am writing in regards to the recent Public Notice And Summary Regarding Proposed Adoption Of Property Related Fees. My Assessor's Parcel Number is 941-0183-060-00. I am opposed to the proposed fee increases in Garbage Company Rates and Residential Minimum Garbage/Recycling Services for the following reasons, When I moved to Dublin 8 years ago, there were 4 free special pickups throughom the year. Residents were allowed to put out a wide variety of garbage to encourage people to clean their yards oftmsightly jtmk, as well as yard trimmings. This was an excellent program to encourage civic pride city-wide. About two ye~ars ago, the program ,,vas reduced to 3 special pickups for yard trimmings only. This has resulted in many houses in different Dublin neighborhoods looking tmsightly and unattractive. Because of subsequent rate increases, it has also resulted in less service at a higher cost. If Dublin were to return to the old program of 4 special pickups of yard junk as well as tr/mmings, I w. ould not oppose periodic rate increases. Thank you for you consideration. Yours truly, William F. Clark 8532 Ardmore Pt. Dublin, CA 94568 ATTACHMENT i RESOLUTION NO. - O0 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN ~' APPROVING AND ESTABLISHING THE COLLECTION OF MINIMUM RESIDENTIAL GARBAGE AND RECYCLING SERVICE FEES FOR FISCAL YEAR 2000-2001 WHEREAS, the City of Dublin is mandated by the State of California, under AB 939, to reduce the amount of solid waste going into the landfill; and WHEREAS, through the Mandatory Garbage Ordinance and other means, the City. of Dublin is taking a proactive stance to meet the State Mandated Goals; and WHEREAS, the goal of the Mandatory Garbage Ordinance is to protect the health and welfare of the community, to provide recycling services to all residential property owners, and to equally share the costs of these programs by mandating that every residence contributes towards the cost of the service made available; and WHEREAS, minimum service includes service described in the current Agreement with the franchised waste hauler, Livermore Dublin Disposal (LDD); and WHEREAS, under the current Agreement, LDD proposes rate increases that will generate a target revenue that takes into account specified regulatory fees that LDD must pay;.and WHEREAS, LDD's currently proposed rate increases take into account regulatory fees imposed as part of the settlement of litigation over the expansion of the Altamont Landfill; and WHEREAS, the Cities of Dublin and Pleasanton are considering an agreement regarding the expenditure of a portion of those regulatory fees to acquire open space, which agreement neither city has yet approved; and WHEREAS, in accordance with California Constitution Article XIII C (Proposition 218) Section 6 (2)the City has provided written notice to all affected property owners at least 45 days prior to holding a public hearing; and WHEREAS, the City received a total of I written protest to the adoption of the fee, which was not.a suf~Scient number to represent a majority of the affected property owners; and WHEREAS, the City Council has considered this action as part of a noticed public hearing on August 1, 2000. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that, on the condition that the City Council of the City of Pleasanton approves the agreement entitled "Agreement between the City of Dublin and The City of Pleasanton Regarding Expenditures by the Open Space Advisory Committee Created by an Agreement Settling Litigation over the Expansion of the Altamont Landfill," the City Council of the City of Dublin ATTACHMENT 2 does hereby approve and establish the collection of minimum residential services fees by the City on the property tax bill as shown in Exhibit A, which is attached hereto and hereby incorporated by reference. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, if the City Council of the 'City of Pleasanton does not approve the "Agreement between the City of Dublin and The City of Pleasanton Regarding Expenditures by the Open Space Advisory Committee Created by an Agreement Settling Litigation over the Expansion of the Altamont Landfill," the City Council of the City of Dublin hereby authorizes the City Manager to reduce the minimum residential services fees shown in Exhibit A to be collected on the property tax bill, but only by amounts equal to the portion of the proposed increases attributable to taking the regulatory fees into account in calculating the increases. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Staff are hereby authorized to undertake all administrative tasks to implement the assessments, including, but not limited to an agreement with Alameda County for collection which may provide payment to Alameda County of its reasonable costs of collection not to eXceed 1.7% of the total amount levied.' PAS SED, APPROVED AND' ADOPTED this 1*t day of August, 2000. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ATTEST: City Clerk K:/G/8-1-00/reso-garbag¢-proptax.doc Mayor City of Dublin RESIDENTIAL MINIMUM GARBAGE / RECYCLING SERVICES (Collected With Residential Property Tax Bills) Affected Parcels Residential housing units are billed for the cost of Minimum Garbage/Recycling Services, which is included with the annual property tax bill. This fee only applies to residential units, which have individual garbage containers and are not serviced by central bins. This does include duplexes and other attached housing types, which receive individual service. Households subject to this fee which only receive Minimum Service, will not be billed by the Garbage Company. Livermore Dublin Disposal will continue to bill customers each quarter for additional services, if_ a household selects weekly garbage collection of a container larger than the 35 gallon container included in the Minimum Service Level. Basis of The Fee The City estimates the total revenue required to pay the Garbage Company for Minimum Service to all residential units which are eligible to use the service. The specific factors considered in this calculation include the following components: the monthly residential rate for Minimum Service (Proposed at $10.20 per month); estimated number of. housing units affected by the fee; costs associated with the collection of the fee as part of the Property Tax Bill; estimated delinquencies; estimated revenues from late payments m~d interest earnings; and funds available from collections in a prior year. - What Sen, ices Are Provided By The Fee Minimum Service includes: weekly collection and disposal of one (35 Gallon) garbage container; weekly collection of one (64 Gallon) Green Waste container; weekly curbside recycling (including: glass, tin, aluminum, newspaper, mixed paper/junk mail, magazines, and cardboard); and three special clean-ups each year. All monies collected will only be used towards the cost of these services. Amount of the Fee The am~ual amount of the assessment includes the cost of collection as well as the cost of services over the entire year. The City makes the payment to Livermore Dublin Disposal based upon the current rate allowed for Minimum Residential Service. TYPE OF HOUSING UNIT Each Single Family Residence Each Condominium /Townh6use Unit Each Duplex (2 Units) Each Duplex (3 or More Units). ANNUAL FEE $122.40 $122.40 $ 244.80 $122.40 times the number of units Exhibit A