Law cited in dispute on new trash pickup

Waste district says it has authority

Even as some aldermen and residents in Saline County question the authority of the county’s Solid Waste Management District to implement a mandatory curbside recycling-and-trash-pickup program, one district official is citing a 1991 state law that gives the district the authority to bypass city councils in the decision.

The new program set to begin next year in the five cities that have representation on the district’s board - Benton, Bryant, Alexander, Shannon Hills and Haskell - is meant to encourage recycling and lower customers’ monthly trash bills. But some have expressed concern about the program being mandatory and creating a monopoly of trash service within the city limits, since only one company will be chosen to operate the program.

Act 752 of 1991, which established solid waste management districts, gives a district the authority to regulate trash hauling and prohibit any person from being competitive with the district’s services.

Arkansas Code Annotated 8-6-712(a)(3) states that a district may “provide, by regulation or other legal means, that no person, other than as may be designated by the district, shall engage in the collection or utilization of solid waste within the district which would be competitive with the purposes or activities of the district.”

Benton City Attorney Brent Houston filed a request for information Wednesday from the Saline County district’s executive director, Michael Grappe, under the state Freedom of Information Act. Among other material, Houston requested e-mails between Grappe and board members concerning the new program.

“We are just trying to gather some information right now about what they are doing and their basis for doing it,” Houston said. “They are willing to create a monopoly … and before they take over this kind of action, at least in the city of Benton, we want to know more information about what’s going on.”

“This is not something that we are just going to idly accept as just OK.”

When a reporter reached Houston for comment Wednesday morning, Grappe hadn’t yet cited the portion of the law that gave the district its authority. Houston couldn’t be reached after business hours Wednesday once that portion of the law was known.

In the first phone call, Houston said he has heard from Benton aldermen that their constituents have some concerns, notably that there would be no opt-out option in the new program.

But for the first time Wednesday, Grappe alluded to a process that would allow residents to apply for an exemption from the service.

“We are not trying to make it hard on anybody,” he said. “We are trying to make it as fair as possible.”

He cited as an example one person who said he has a limited amount of trash that he takes to his business to be picked up, rather than subscribing to a residential trash-hauling service. That person could appeal to the board for an exemption under the new program, Grappe said.

So could another resident who told Grappe that she is handicapped and has trouble dragging her trash bin to the curb. Her local trash hauler does that for her.

“She will lose that personal touch under the new program unless we do something,” Grappe said. “And we need to do something for someone like that.”

He is looking into having a separate contractor serve people in that situation - whether handicapped or elderly - who need help getting bins out for pickup.

“All they have to do is submit their need and we will justly evaluate it,” Grappe said.

He added that details of the new program are not finalized and will likely change based on public input at two hearings next month. The first is July 9 at the Saline County Office of Emergency Management in Benton at 102 Main St. The second will be July 23 at Bishop Park in Bryant at 6401 Boone Road.

“At the end of the day, everyone may have the chance to vote on [the program]” Grappe said. “It doesn’t matter to me if we mandate it, or the cities vote on it or the people vote on it. Whatever is decided I will execute … Today, based on input from mayors and their representatives on the board, I have been directed to bring curbside recycling to the district, whether mandatory, by a vote or a combination of both.”

At the board meeting Wednesday, the board voted to allow Grappe to hire a contractor to help with media requests and other public-relations concerns about the new program until April. Grappe anticipates negotiating with Shane Knight, who used to be in the trash-hauling business, to be that contractor for between $2,000 and $5,000 a month.

Arkansas, Pages 9 on 06/20/2013

Upcoming Events