Waste district increases tipping fee

Tipping fees are going up.

Jay County Solid Waste Management District’s board voted Tuesday to increase tipping fees at Jay County landfill by 25 cents per ton.

The district also heard an update on contract negotiations with Waste Management, thanked outgoing director Samantha Rhodehamel for her service and discussed the future of the director position.

The move to increase tipping fees is another step in the district’s ongoing effort to balance its revenue and expenditures.

Board members Randy Geesaman, Chuck Huffman, Gene Ritter, Chad Aker, Mike Leonhard, Bill Gibson and Mike Rockwell voted to increase the landfill tipping fee to $2 per ton. The current tipping fee is $1.75 per ton.

That amounts to a 16-percent increase. Based on last year’s tonnage, that would bring a revenue increase of about $50,000 annually. However, tonnage is expected to decline this year.

The board plans to have attorney Bill Hinkle notify Waste Management, which operates the landfill, of the increase, with a planned effective date of July 1.

The last time the district increased the tipping fee was in 2011, when it was bumped by 50 cents to the current $1.75 per ton. (The district board controls tipping fees at the landfill, with a cap of $2.50 per ton.) 

The district has made a variety of moves in the last year in order to try to cut spending, hacking its original budget proposal for 2019 from more than $375,000 to $311,881 — a decrease of 17 percent. Even with those cuts, the district was still expected to have deficit spending of more than $70,000 this year.

That continues a pattern, as the district’s year-end balance peaked at about $489,000 in 2015. It has dropped each of the last three years, closing 2018 at $366,265.46.

The decision to increase tipping fees came after Huffman informed the board that it has no recourse for getting out of a contract with Waste Management for recycling trailers.

Huffman, Geesaman and Rhodehamel met with a Waste Management representative to explore the possibility of getting out of the current contract early. It extends through April 2021.

The board wanted to look at other options in an effort to save money, given increases in Waste Management costs. The company’s response was that it felt the contract was reached in good faith and that it should be fulfilled.

Board members also thanked Rhodehamel for her 2.5 years of service as director. This is her final week on the job as she plans to take a full-time position in Coldwater, Ohio.

“You know how well she’s done for us,” said Geesaman. “We hate to lose her.”

Her resignation led to a discussion about the future of the director position and the possibility of making it a full-time role. Currently, the job is part-time, with the office staffed three days a week.

The board agreed to research how much it would cost in terms of additional salary and benefits to make the position full-time.

In other business, the board:

•Agreed to hear a proposal from Community Fiber Solutions about internet and phone service. The board will also check into the status of its current contracts.

•Heard the district had income of $21,876.95 in April from tipping fees on 12,627.39 tons dumped at Jay County Landfill. The district has a total balance, including investments, of $389,459.53.

•Approved a capitalization policy for the district. Government entities are now required to report all capital assets with a cost of $5,000 or more.

•Heard from Rhodehamel that 83 cars passed through during the district’s free shred day this month. The district also had 77 participants at its rain barrel workshop in April.

•Set a special meeting for 4 p.m. Thursday.