SWAB minutes 121202 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Solid Waste Advisory Board- -Regular Meeting December 12 , 2002 Government Services , Hillsborough Approved January 9 , 2003 year . Finally a decision was made to bill all the non- residential facilities . A survey was sent to each large business facility on how much waste was generated in a year . It was estimated on the usage from the businesses where they did not respond to the survey . In order to do the solid waste billing , the computerized financial billing system had to be upgraded to go along with the assessment system of the county in order to generate fees to be taxed . It took about 2 1/2 years to go through the entire process of setting this up , with how much to charge on the tax bill , getting the system up and running with the finance office and the assessor ' s office . All the long-terms options were evaluated before settling on the one that would be suitable for the county . Every inhabitable structure gets billed . The county implemented a user fee , which was approved by the state . An ordinance was developed to implement the fee structure . Questions were asked of Mr . Smith to differentiate between townhouses and an apartment attached to a house . He explained that duplexes are a single - family dwelling and each dwelling was taxed as such . An adjustment can be made if a building is vacant for at least 6 months out of a year . The owner must apply for the adjustment In his conclusions Mr . Smith recommended that the SWAB board look at as many options as possible . Never say " it won ' t work" . Try to look at all options . Make sure that you have , as many citizens as possible are involved as they are all stakeholders in this process . This will not be an easy issue , since you are thinking of attaching another fee to whatever is already assessed . Evaluate all the options . Get the media involved . Understand your politics . Consider what is best for the county . What does it cost to run the landfill ? Have the citizens understand that whomever benefits from the system should pay for it . Think long -term . Comments and questions were solicited from the board [ and staff] . Gayle Wilson asked how many counties around the nation are having the same problem . Mr . Smith responded he did not know the figures , but there are a lot . Mr . Smith explained that every drop is taxable . An ordinance is in effect in VA to get the fees and who will pay . Every hauler is charged fee . A lengthy discussion followed with questions how the Virginia system is handling card board , plastic bottles , metal , etc . It was also asked how the landfill is operating at this time . Mr . Smith stated that it is now operating on a 32 % basis and the goal is 40 % . Haulers are being fined $ 1 , 000 per violation if they are caught hauling waste in from out of county illegally mixed with in- county waste . Citizens are involved and will patrol the landfill for non- compliance and will report the violator . It was noted that the only facility not being serviced is the [Quantico ] Marine base , they dispose of their own waste . 1 . Alternative Financing recommendations — SWAB Process and Schedule for Reporting to Board of County Commissioners . Jan stated that he met with Mr . Jacobs last month to 4