HomeMy WebLinkAboutC.054.93011_1112 (2)waste classified as "household waste. " Just because a child eats at school instead of at home
does not make the lunchroom waste become household waste any more than restaurant waste
becomes household waste because a person eats out instead of fixing their meals at home. In
order for waste to be classified as "household waste, " it must be waste generated by the
occupants of a home carrying out normal daily living activities.
"Why do we waive tipping fees for certain waste for the NC Department of
Transportation and all tipping fees for Iredell County departments? As to the NCDOT, we
exempt only the waste they bring in from the roadside clean-ups. This is waste that has been
picked up by volunteers who agree to pick up waste from along side the road, bag it up, and
leave it for DOT to pick it up and bring it in. Who should we charge? The volunteer that takes
their Saturday morning to do more than their part to keep Iredell clean, or should we charge
the DOT for transporting the waste to the landfill? The greater good is being served by having
the waste disposed of properly rather than on the roadside.
"If we look at the amount of fees waived from April '05 to March '06, the Solid Waste
Enterprise fund contributed a little over $39,000 for the benefit of the community. That is not
even one percent of its budget. If we are going to operate the landfill like a business, even a
business would contribute that much, or more, back to the community.
"With all the above being said, what is my recommendation concerning the request
from Covenant House? My recommendation is that we use the same rationale as we have
with other charitable organizations. If the items brought in are items that were donated to
the charity, and would have been classified as household waste if brought in by an individual,
then I say the fee should be waived If the items brought in are waste resulting from the
normal operations of operating a group home, then the fee should be paid. I also feel this
same rationale should be applied to all charitable organizations as long as the waste is
separated and easily identifiable.
"As far as charging county departments, I don't feel you can justify a waiver based on
the above rationale; however, I do feel there is a way to make it a fair and simple transaction.
Instead of charging each department when the waste is delivered, the solid waste department
should record all transactions and submit a quarterly or annual billing to the finance
department. The finance department could then credit the charges against the Cost Allocation
Plan which recovers admin costs provided to the Solid Waste Disposal Enterprise Fund.
"Will the above cover every conceivable waiver request? It is doub�Nl, but it will
provide some semblance of a standard guideline that could help to decide when future requests
are made."
Commissioner Williams concurred with the manager's suggestion, but he
(Williams) emphasized that fairness and consistency needed to be applied in evaluating
the waiver requests.
(The board requested for the manager to briefly review his recommendation at
the 7:00 p.m. meeting in order for a formal decision to be made regarding tipping fee
waivers.)
ADJOURNMENT: Chairman Tice adjourned the briefing at 6:20 p.m.
Approval: -
Clerk to the B and