DELAND -- Volusia County is proposing a $65 increase to the annual solid waste collection fee for unincorporated residences beginning in October. The fee funds the collection and disposal of solid waste and curbside recycling for unincorporated residences, according to Volusia County spokesman Dave Byron..
The current residential fee is $132 per year and has been in effect since 2004.
According to Solid Waste Director Leonard Marion, the current fee does not cover the cost of the contracted service. The proposed fee of $197 per year will fund this service adequately through the end of the collection and disposal contract, which expires Dec. 31, 2011.
The county pays Emerald Waste Services, of Freeport, $6.8 million annually for collection, disposal and recycling service for more than
44,000 households. In 2008, more than 45,000 tons of refuse was collected and disposed of and more than 6,300 tons of recycling materials was collected.
All residential properties in unincorporated Volusia on 10 acres or less are billed annually by the county as an itemized charge on the property tax bill. Homeowners within municipalities pay a similar charge billed monthly or annually by their city.
A public hearing will be conducted by the Volusia County Council at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, in the County Council Chambers (second floor) of the Thomas C. Kelly Administration Center, 123 West Indiana Ave., DeLand.