Bill bans fees for recycling program

By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer

A curbside residential recycling project the city began in Mililani nearly four months ago will continue without interruption, but a bill pending before the City Council could kill plans to expand the program islandwide, Mayor Jeremy Harris said.

"I think it's very sad that the council continues to throw roadblocks in the path of recycling," Harris said.

The bill, introduced by Councilman Rod Tam, establishes a timetable for implementing the islandwide program over one year, but forbids any fees from being connected to the service.

Harris said he wanted to begin phasing the program in this summer, but had not decided whether there would be any charges. Harris said it may be appropriate to charge a fee for a second day of rubbish collection per week, to encourage people to recycle.

"Fees are typically used to provide motivation for recycling," he said. "To blatantly try to pass an ordinance that says you can't use a fee structure to pay for a program is wrong."

Tam said he strongly supports recycling, but that Harris hasn't provided enough details about his plans. Harris announced the islandwide expansion plan in his State of the City speech last month.

"The mayor has just been giving us a lot of talk," Tam said. "When we ask for concrete details, he won't give them to us. Is there something he has to hide?"

Tam, who chairs the council's Public Works and Economic Development Committee, said he's heard there are various problems with the Mililani program and wants to review it closely before expanding it.

Council chairman Donovan Dela Cruz has also introduced a resolution calling for an audit of the program before any expansion takes place. He said he strongly supports the concept of recycling, but wants to make sure it's done right.

"I hope something can be worked out to reduce the need for landfill," he said.

The Mililani program includes about 10,000 households and was to last four months. The program does not charge residents any fees. It began in November as a compromise to an earlier proposal by Harris to require recycling islandwide.

The original plan cut free rubbish pickup from twice per week to once, but gave households the option of paying $8 per month for a second pickup.

Tam said he's not absolutely against connecting fees to the recycling program, but didn't want to be blindsided by the mayor.

"We want to make sure we're not caught by surprise by him tacking on a fee," Tam said. "Let's work together, let's come out in public hearings and disclose everything to the public."

But Harris said Tam's bill would far exceed the council's authority and violate the City Charter.

"It's sort of a jumble of silly things that don't go together," he said.

The only way a city fee can be imposed is for the council to approve one, so there's no need to rule it out before it's proposed, Harris said.

The bill also limits the size of recycling containers to 35 gallons. Harris said the ones used in the Mililani pilot project hold 96 gallons, and smaller ones would be impractical.

"It shows you that they don't have any idea of how it works or how it has to work," Harris said.

The council voted unanimously to approve the bill on its first reading yesterday; two more votes by the full council would be required to approve the measure.

Councilman Gary Okino said he had "grave concerns" about the bill's ban on fees, because it's unfair for property taxes alone to pay for a service that not all property owners receive. He said he voted in favor of the bill only so that it could be discussed later in committee.

Tam said he's open to changes in the bill, but that the mayor must be more open regarding his plans. "We don't want a hit-and-miss approach," Tam said. "We want an organized business plan."

The Mililani program allows residents to mix recyclable aluminum, plastic, glass and newspapers in a container picked up every other week. Green waste is picked up on the alternating weeks, and rubbish is still collected twice weekly.

An islandwide plan would affect the 160,000 households that receive automated trash collection from the city — primarily single-family homes, but not apartments or condominiums.

Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.