Sebastian County raises trash rates for some.
GREENWOOD — Certain residents in Sebastian County can expect to pay more to have their trash collected in the near future.
The Sebastian County Quorum Court approved an ordinance during its regular meeting Tuesday authorizing a rate increase for residential solid waste collection and disposal within the unincorporated areas of the county.
The ordinance will increase the monthly rate for each participating household from $15.53 to a fee not to exceed $18.01 per month. The rate includes equipment and services related to two countywide clean-up campaigns per year, and does not include sales tax.
In a Sept. 24 letter to
County Judge David Hudson that was included in the meeting packet, Robert Altes of Fort Smith-based Altes Sanitation wrote that the company was requesting this $2.48 per month rate increase mainly because of the rising cost of landfill rates at the Fort Smith Sanitary Landfill, which have been raised three times since the last rate increase that the county granted in 2018. Rising cost of insurance, wage rate increases, and greater volume resulting from customers staying home also played a role in the request.
Altes noted that the company previously requested only one rate increase over the last eight years.
Jim Goodman, manager of Altes Sanitation, said before Tuesday’s meeting that slightly more than 4,000 households would be affected by the rate increase.
The agreement between Sebastian County and Altes Sanitation will reflect the increased rate effective Nov. 1, according to the ordinance.