Thu Sep 09 2010
By TODD HELBERG
Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland promised not to raise taxes to balance the state's next two-year budget, but he does want to raise landfill fees.
Some say this is the same as a tax increase.
"I thought he said there were no new taxes," questioned Defiance County landfill manager Tim Houck. "A fee is a tax. I know, they call it a fee, but a fee is a tax."
Regardless of what you call it, this would increase the cost to residents and businesses alike.
Strickland has proposed to raise state disposal fees for municipal solid waste from $3.50 per ton to $4.75 per ton. Municipal solid waste is defined as industrial, residential and commercial waste, according to Houck.
Strickland also wants to increase state disposal fees for construction and demolition debris from $1.70 per ton to $4.40 per ton.
The proposed increases, to be enacted as part of the state's two-year budget that must receive General Assembly approval by June 30, would help fund the Ohio EPA and Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
For example, $1 of the $1.25 increase for municipal solid waste would go to Ohio EPA while the remainder would be used by ODNR, according to Defiance County's outside legal counsel on environmental matters, Richard Sargeant of Toledo.
Of the proposed $2.70 increase for construction and demolition debris, $2.25 would go to ODNR while 45 cents would go to Ohio EPA.
If the increases are enacted, Houck said there could be a short-term impact that reduces the landfill's waste stream.
"In the past, whenever (local government) increased water or sewer rates, people found a way to create less, ... then they get used to paying the tax," he said. "The citizens don't care where (the money) goes, but it will cost them more to get rid of their trash in Ohio. Everything we do creates trash, so this impacts everybody."
Sargeant said he is not aware of any lobbying effort opposed to the increases.
"That's part of the attractiveness of it," he said. "It's tough to get people interested enough to oppose it. For each household it will not be a lot of money."
But estimated receipts from the fee increases would be considerable.
According to Sargeant, the two would generate $32 million annually, with $17 million going to Ohio EPA and $15 million to ODNR.
Most people would see state-imposed increases through their local waste hauler. Werlor Waste Control of Defiance, for example, which contracts with the city of Defiance for residential service, would pass the cost on to its customers.
If the Strickland proposals are approved by Ohio General Assembly, additional costs would be added after the state's next two-year budget becomes effective on July 1.
But Werlor owner Jerry Wertz said he doesn't think the amounts Strickland has proposed will increase household costs significantly.
"When it gets down to a household level, it won't be that much," said Wertz. "(Industry) will get hit a little harder because the volumes are higher on an individual basis. I don't think in the long run it's that big a deal."
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