Jefferson City is in the process of preparing a scope of services for the city's next solid waste services, or trash, contract, but whether anything will change after the six-year contract with Allied Waste Services ends likely will depend on whether any other company submits a bid.
City officials held two open houses earlier this month to get public input on the current service offered and what residents would like to see in a future solid waste contract.
Those who attended the open house meetings expressed similar sentiments - the monthly cost of the service is too high and not everyone needs to have trash service. Many said they preferred the old service to the mandatory trash carts used now.
The old service
Before November 2009, city residents were not mandated to have any type of trash service.
The city itself sold trash bags at local grocery stores for about $1.50 per bag, said Janice McMillan, director of the Planning and Protective Services Department, and users were charged based on the volume of trash produced. Carts also were available for a monthly fee of $14.88 (as of February 2009) and residents received twice weekly trash pickup.
City attorney Drew Hilpert said it was a volunteer system and a cheaper service for many people compared to what is currently offered. He said trash providers were trying to move to a cart system that was more economically feasible and safer for employees.
"That was a big consternation for people who really liked the bags," Hilpert said.
In early 2009, city staff estimated that 55 percent of households had cart service, while 45 percent either used the bags or found an alternative source - illegally dumping, sharing carts with other families or simply finding a way to store garbage on their property.
Hilpert said businesses often complained about people dumping trash in commercial receptacles instead of paying for service.
The current service
McMillan said what drove the changes to the service was residents' desire to have recycling service and trash providers' desire to move exclusively to the cart system, which was seen as a safety issue.
The cart system allows the trash provider to use trucks with a mechanical arm that grabs the carts and empties them into the truck.
"The company wanted to provide a safer work environment for their employees," McMillan said. "There's a lot of risk involved when somebody's out picking up and throwing bags into the truck."
In November 2009, the city entered into a six-year contract with Allied Waste for exclusive service to city residents. Though several companies had expressed an interest in bidding on the service, Allied was the only bid received by the city. An ordinance passed earlier that year made the service mandatory, and not subscribing to it is a violation of city code.
The current service costs each residential household $17.82 per month, according to the city's website, and Allied bills customers quarterly. Each residence is provided with two carts, one for trash and one for recycled materials, with both being picked up once per week.
The current contract with Allied Waste ends Oct. 31, 2015.
Complications along the way
After enacting the mandatory service with Allied Waste, the city saw two challenges to the new system.
In 2010, city resident George Massengale filed a lawsuit in the Cole County Circuit Court against both the Jefferson City government and Allied Waste. The suit claimed the city violated the 1980 Hancock Amendment to the Missouri Constitution, by levying or increasing taxes or fees without voters' approval.
It also claimed the city's contract with Allied Waste violated both state and federal antitrust laws, and is a void or illegal contract because Allied Waste did not sign an affidavit confirming it was in compliance with the Missouri law that prohibits the employment of unauthorized aliens.
The issue was settled in June 2013, when a three-judge panel of the appeals court's Western District in Kansas City upheld a previous ruling by Cole County Presiding Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce that granted the city's motion for "summary judgment" in the case - a legal ruling that means the court found no dispute about the facts in a case and that one party was entitled to the judgment as a matter of law. Joyce had ruled in 2012 against Massengale.
In their unofficial memorandum, the appeals judges wrote: "The trial court found that Mr. Massengale failed to offer any substantive legal theory entitling him to relief. We agree. While Mr. Massengale may disagree with the City's actions, that is not a legal theory entitling him to relief in a court of law. If an ordinance is within the scope of a municipality's delegated police power, we do not substitute our judgment for that of the enacting body."
Another challenge arose after opponents to the trash contract submitted a petition in 2010 to change the ordinance requiring mandatory participation in the program. The City Council put the issue on the ballot in April 2011, asking residents whether the city should keep the requirement that trash be collected only by an authorized collector, Allied Waste. Roughly 74 percent voted to keep the requirement.
The service moving forward
McMillan said it's unlikely residents will see much change in the trash service offered unless other bidders come forward. Some people have said they would be interested in composting services, but considering the high interest in keeping costs as low as possible, McMillan said that service is unlikely to be added any time soon.
"People are concerned about the cost," McMillan said.
She said many have indicated they want to continue with the single-stream, curbside recycling currently offered.
"I think there's widespread support for keeping recycling in the mix," McMillan said.
As far as any new contract is concerned, Hilpert said a lot depends on how many bids the city receives. But he's pretty sure that any trash company will want to maintain the mandatory service. Another potential change could be having the city do billing and collections, he said, which Allied likely would prefer.
"Obviously, the more proposals we get, the better it is for the city, cause it puts us in a better negotiating position," Hilpert said.
City staff will spend the next two months preparing the scope of services, which will be reviewed by the Public Works and Planning Committee in January. By March, the committee and the council will need to approve the scope of services, and staff will begin the request for bids period in April.
Around May or June, the Public Works and Planning Committee will review the bids received, and public hearings on the proposals will be held at City Council meetings in July. By the end of September 2015, the council is expected to select the solid waste provider.