Richard’s Disposal continues to pick up garbage in Jackson, even though it hasn’t been paid for its service.
The Jackson City Council will not pay Richard’s for its service because a contract is not in place and without a contract state law won’t allow it. Richard’s has filed a lawsuit against the city seeking payment for its service in April and May.
Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba is appealing a lower court’s decision saying he could not veto a negative action of the city council. A decision in the case could determine who will pick up garbage in the city.
If that’s not enough trash talk, here’s more: Residents now pay more for garbage collection and disposal.
The fee for residential garbage collection and disposal is $37 a month, an increase of $16.20 from the previous $20.80 fee, as of Aug. 5. The fee also foots the bill for the operation of the city’s Solid Waste Division of the Department of Public Works.
Residents will see the increased garbage fee reflected on their monthly water-sewer bills, said Louis P. Wright Sr., chief administration officer for the city of Jackson.
Because the city does not send out all water-sewer bills on the same day but staggers them throughout the month, residents may have received a bill in August where the new garbage fee was pro-rated, depending upon where their bill falls in the billing cycle, he said.
Ashby Foote, who represents Ward 1 and serves as president of the city council, said he hasn’t received many complaints from residents about the increased fee, partly because their concerns focus on the city’s ongoing water woes, which require residents boil their drinking water or use bottled water.
The $37 a month is more than what residents of Ridgeland and Madison pay.
Ridgeland residents pay $13.75 a month for garbage collection twice a week and $5.85 a month for once-a-week curbside recycling, which comes to $19.60 for both. Waste Management has the contract.
Madison households pay $20.25 a month for residential garbage collection twice a week and once-a-week curbside recycling. Waste Management has the contract.
The Jackson City Council voted on July 5 to increase the garbage collection fee from $20.80 a month to $37 a month. City residents have garbage collection twice a week but no curbside recycling.
Virgi Lindsay of Ward 7 said the rate increase is necessary because garbage collection has become more costly and the city has a budget deficit.
“The last number I heard was we were going to be about $3 million in the red,” she said.
The increase in the fee for residential trash collection in Jackson is needed, according to the ordinance that the council introduced on June 21 and approved on July 5, because “the current user charge is insufficient during the fiscal year to pay the cost of the city’s emergency agreement for residential solid waste collection, to pay the anticipated cost of a new agreement for residential solid waste collection, and to pay the operating costs of the Solid Waste Division of the Department of Public Works.”
Without the new fee, the city of Jackson would have to go into its general fund and use that to supplement the solid waste enterprise fund. Solid waste fees generate dollars for that fund.
The garbage fee has remained the same for many years and now additional dollars are needed to cover rising costs and a budget shortfall, Foote said.
The council increased the residential rate in October 2006 from $15.39 per household to $20, then raised it to $20.40 a month in October 2007 and upped it to $20.80 per month in 2008.
“I wish we didn’t have to do it, but it’s one of those things,” Foote said.
City council members who voted in favor of the increase were Lindsay, Angelique Lee of Ward 2, Brian Grizzell of Ward 4 and Foote. Opposed were Kenneth Stokes of Ward 3, Vernon Hartley of Ward 5 and Aaron Banks of Ward 6.
