Temporary increase: Commission approves upping solid waste collection fees through July

MARQUETTE -- The Marquette City Commission on Monday night voted to approve a temporary increase in solid waste collection fees.

The commission voted 7-0 to increase the residential collection fee to $1.80 per year, or 15 cents per month, through July 1.

The decision comes in part as a result of the Marquette County Solid Waste Management Authority increasing its tipping fee by $4 per ton to help cover lost revenue as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, city officials said. The tipping fee was $59.50 per ton prior to the increase, which became effective Jan. 1.

In relation to the tipping fee increase, waste haulers contracted with MCSWMA have requested adjustments to their contracts to accommodate the change.

The commission approved the original motion after a lengthy discussion on the matter, with several commissioners emphasizing they believed the increase should be temporary.

"We obviously have to pay it, we obviously have to ante up, so to speak, for what they need at the solid waste yard. But it is disturbing to see that they passed this without any sunset on it," said Commissioner Fred Stonehouse. "In other words, we're paying the additional money in theory now forever. You would think that they would at least sunset the requirements, so it went on for six months to a year, and then at that point it dropped off because they should've recovered from COVID."

Mayor Pro Tem Jenn Hill questioned why the fee is being passed on to ratepayers.

"Waste Management, our hauler, is a $15 billion-per-year company and had $1 billion worth of profit -- according to the information I found on various websites -- as reported in their financial reports," she said. "I don't understand why our waste hauling firm can't absorb this cost and instead is trying to pass it on to the residents of Marquette."

Transparency from MCSWMA was also discussed. Stonehouse said he would have liked to see more public input before MSCWMA agreed to the tipping fee increase.

Marquette City Manager Mike Angeli told the commission that concerns had been discussed with the waste management authority.

"This situation is because of action by the Marquette County Solid Waste Management Authority," Angeli said. "It's not anything that Waste Management did or enacted or actually went after or tried to change. We, as a group of county managers and supervisors, have met twice with leaders at the solid waste authority, just to discuss this process specifically. They understand our concerns, and one of the things that Commissioner Stonehouse mentioned was a major one, in that we would've preferred that if they create this increase -- to what we perceive as a short-term problem -- that they put a sunset on it and then re-examine it at that time to see if it needs to be renewed. It's maybe something that they do in the future, but it was a little too late for this particular action."

Commissioner Sally Davis voiced concerns about the regular increases in utility fees for city residents.

"A $1.80 (increase) per (year) for each household doesn't sound like much and I will support this motion," she said. "My concern is for the constant fee creep for residents. This on top of our annual increases for various utilities becomes a burden for those with restricted incomes; 25% of our residents live in poverty. And we have to remember that some will experience water, gas or some utility shutoff, especially this year.

"We talk a lot about affordable housing in our community, but we really need to talk about affordable residency. How much does it cost to live in Marquette on top of rent or on top of how much it costs for a home? I just wanted to acknowledge this burden and make sure that we're paying attention to the financial stresses that our residents have."

After the discussion, the commission voted 7-0 to make an amendment for a temporary increase through July 1, with hopes that MCSWMA will review the issue in the short term.

In other business conducted at Monday night's meeting, the commission received an update from the Traffic and Parking Advisory Committee and voted 7-0 to reappoint the City Manager Search Committee, consisting of Davis, Stonehouse and Commissioner Cody Mayer, to select a consultant to provide executive recruitment services in the city manager search process, as Angeli is set to retire from the position on May 31.

Ryan Spitza can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 248. His email address is rspitza@miningjournal.net.