[StBernard] St. Bernard might levy a garbage fee

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard might levy a garbage fee
It has never charged for trash collection Tuesday, June 10, 2008By Mary
Elise DeCoursey
When Dave Peralta's parents moved to St. Tammany Parish after Katrina, they
found themselves paying for something they never had to in St. Bernard
Parish: garbage collection. 

"They were shocked at what it cost them," said Peralta, chief administrative
officer for St. Bernard Parish government. 

St. Bernard is the only parish government in the metro area without a direct
collection fee. Collection and disposal is financed by the half-cent sales
tax and a share of property taxes, parish officials said. But that might be
coming to an end, as Parish President Craig Taffaro has floated the idea of
a garbage-collection fee to the Parish Council. 

"Something needs to be done to address the issue," Councilman Ray Lauga
said. "Nothing's been decided, and we're looking at all our options now. But
it's kind of something that's overdue." 

The parish has a 10-year contract with SDT Waste and Debris Services for
twice-weekly garbage collection, for which it pays $20 per household, around
$235,000 a month, Peralta said. 

But Peralta said the real problem lies in the "tipping fees," basically what
it costs to dispose of the waste in a landfill. Peralta said the parish
spends about $160,000 monthly disposing of hurricane debris, and $30,000 to
$35,000 each month disposing of garbage. Combined with collection costs, the
monthly bill is around $425,000. 

Meanwhile, he said, the tax base has not kept pace. 

"You've got a lot more refuse in the community, but you've got half the
amount of revenue being generated to pay for it," Peralta said. 

The council will take up the issue later this summer after a cost-based
analysis is conducted. The item is expected to be discussed again today at
the council's Executive/Finance Committee meeting. 

"It may mean at one point there's going to have to be a shared cost between
the individual homeowner and the parish. This isn't different than anyplace
else," Peralta said. "I hope it will be lower than anywhere else, and I
think we will be." 

Parish Councilman Mike Ginart said he hopes the parish doesn't have to
introduce a collection fee, adding that it may be inevitable. 

"I know it has become a large part of our budget, and the cost of collection
and disposal has skyrocketed," Ginart said. "But I want to make sure we
explore all the available avenues before we make people start paying. 

"If not, we'll just have to bite the bullet." 

. . . . . . . 

Mary Elise DeCoursey can be reached at mdecoursey at timespicayune.com or (504)
826-3362.