A report prepared for voters in November says single-family homeowners in the city of San Diego would pay around 29 dollars per month for trash pickup if an upcoming ballot measure is approved.
But the Union Tribune says if voters choose to end free trash pickup for those customers, the monthly bills would almost certainly be higher because the city’s independent budget analyst did not account for increased service levels such as free trash bins and more frequent recycling pickups.
The analysis says the range of 23 to 29 dollars a month is based on the city‘s expectation of spending 79.2 million on trash services this year for the 285,000 single-family homes, just under 53 percent of city households, that receive the free service.
San Diego is the only city in California and the nation that provides free trash pickup to single-family homes, guaranteed by a 1919 law called the People’s Ordinance, which doesn’t extend to businesses or residents living in apartments and condos, who must pay private haulers.
Opponents say property taxes paid to the county, some of which goes to the city, already cover basic services like trash pickup.
The decision, which will appear as Measure B on the November ballot, requires approval by a simple majority of voters.