Lauderdale County supervisors on Monday made their case to taxpayers as to why the cost residents pay for garbage service needs to go up.

In a Nov. 6 meeting, supervisors proposed increasing the annual cost of garbage service for county residents from $100 per year to $168 per year, a 68% increase.

Supervisor Jonathan Wells said the county contracts out garbage service, and the increase is needed to cover what the county is paying for the service. The increase, which will go into effect for the 2024 calendar year, is the first increase in the garbage fee since 2009, he said.

“I know of no company that exists today that was around in 2009 that still charges what they were charging in 2009,” he said. “Inflation has occurred through COVID; we can make up all the excuses that we want, but the truth is prices have gone up.”

While the cost residents pay has stayed the same, the cost of garbage service has steadily increased over the years, with current costs at more than double what they were in 2012, Supervisor Wayman Newell said. The Board of Supervisors has been using reserve garbage funds, pandemic stimulus money and general fund dollars to keep costs for residents low, but it now faces a lack of alternatives to raising the costs for residents.

County Administrator Chris Lafferty said it is standard for multi-year contracts like the garbage contract to have small annual increases built in based on the consumer price index. Those bumps, he said, mean the cost the county pays for the service also increases every year.

“That CPI is always going to outpace the original price,” he said. “CPIs never go down.”

Supervisor Josh Todd said residents should also know the garbage fee covers more than just the blue trash containers. The county also has roll-off dumpsters at its satellite offices in each district which are used for white goods, such as refrigerators, water heaters and other large appliances, he said.

Although the roll-offs have proven to help reduce illegal dumping, Todd said some residents do not follow the rules and throw household trash in the white goods containers. When that happens, he said, the dumpster has to be taken to a different landfill that accepts household garbage, which charges more.

Lauderdale County also hosts an amnesty day twice per year where residents can dispose of tires, paints, motor oil and other hazardous materials that cannot be placed in regular trash, Todd said.

Board Attorney Lee Thaggard said the public should understand the increase is for those living outside of Meridian and Marion limits. Both the City of Meridian and the Town of Marion have a separate garbage service and have their garbage fees included on their water bills.

Counties do not provide water service, Thaggard said, so the state Legislature tied county garbage service to residents’ annual car tags instead.

Tax Collector Doris Spidle said her office can work with residents to take partial payments on the garbage fee if the $168 is too much to pay at one time. State law gives residents until May 1 to pay the full amount, she said, after which a car tag cannot be renewed until the debt is paid.

Two new supervisors are set to join the board in January and lend their input as the county looks to renew its garbage contract again in the new board term. Supervisor Kyle Rutledge, who currently serves on the garbage committee, said he would like to see an updated audit of the county’s garbage service to help guide discussions during the bidding process.

Road Manager Rush Mayatt said the county also has some other projects in motion that have the potential to also impact garbage service and costs. The Board of Supervisors in March approved a new solid waste plan for the county, and several of the items in that plan, including a proposed solid waste transfer station, could help keep garbage costs low for county residents for years to come.