Court halts county from ending subsidies to private garbage haulers

Potential hikes to ratepayers loom

2004 Archived News

King County today was prevented from ending a decade-long annual $1.8 million public subsidy of private garbage haulers and their profits by a temporary restraining order issued today in King County Superior Court.

King County Executive Ron Sims, following the ruling, said, "In 2004 I proposed and the County Council agreed, to stop having county residents subsidize private hauling companies by charging them the $10 more per ton it costs us to service them. That, plus efficiencies I called for, will delay a rate hike to the public for two years. If today's ruling holds, private haulers will pay less and citizens pay more, which is simply not acceptable. I am confident the court will see the merits of our actions and the county - and its citizens - will prevail."

The county's effort to recover its full cost of handling waste collected by two private haulers was challenged in a lawsuit filed yesterday, by one of the haulers, Rabanco Ltd., a division of Allied Waste Industries Inc., the second largest garbage company in the nation.

The court denied Rabanco's request to be allowed to immediately begin sending garbage it collects to its own landfill in Kittitas County. The state gives the county sole authority to determine where garbage collected within its borders is disposed. Disposal at Cedar Hills costs local ratepayers less than sending it out of county.

Judge James Doerty said he was not persuaded by Rabanco attorneys that the Solid Waste Division's payment of rent for use of Cedar Hills landfill to the King County general fund was what the Rabanco attorneys called "a shell game." Judge Doerty said it is possible that legitimate revenue sources have been previously overlooked.

The court indicated the case was too complicated to issue a ruling on such key issues but was swayed by the hardship of possible layoffs on Rabanco employees, which was the basis of the temporary restraining order (TRO). However, the ruling means that 10 county employees will not have jobs.

"Yet, as a result of today's TRO, the county's long time public servants will be laid off for the benefit of private corporate profits," said King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks Director Pam Bissonnette. "That is why we are pleased the judge will continue this discussion about the impacts of layoffs by hearing further arguments Friday about the impact on the county workforce."

"The county's goal is to become more efficient, end the subsidy of private corporations and protect county ratepayers' $100 million investment in our solid waste disposal system," Bissonnette said. "Efficiencies and the end of the subsidy to private haulers will help the county delay a planned rate increase to 2007 instead of 2005. We have the lowest rates in the region and will do everything we can to keep it that way."

The ruling delays King County's plans to offer overnight service beginning April 1 at key transfer stations to meet the needs of Rabanco and the county's other hauler, Waste Management. Without the subsidy to haulers, it would be cheaper for them to use county transfer stations instead of their own transfer stations. King County just completed negotiations with Teamsters Local 174 to allow the change in shifts for employees.

Rabanco argued that it would have to lay off up to 12-15 employees if the county was allowed to recover its full costs of handling waste at the Cedar Hills Landfill. Rabanco and the other hauler, Waste Management, pay $59.50 per ton for garbage taken directly to Cedar Hills. Transfer station users pay $82.50 per ton. Both companies base their rates on the higher transfer station rate even though they pay $23 less when they use Cedar Hills.

"We believe we are on solid legal ground and will eventually prevail on the merits," Bissonnette said.

The Solid Waste Division is moving forward to implement other elements of its business plan designed to deliver new efficiencies, which means the elimination of 86 positions throughout the system. When the haulers notified the county they would begin needing overnight service at county-owned transfer stations, the county began negotiating with the union and made plans to add back 10 jobs. Now, eight of the employees will be laid off as planned June 30. Two new hires will not have jobs.

One efficiency that will begin April 1 is the mid-week closure of the Enumclaw and Vashon transfer stations and the Cedar Falls Drop Box where use is extremely low.

"Our employees have made personal commitments to new schedules, rearranged their family life, child care and work life to create the efficiencies for the public. This ruling disrupts not only our work but their personal lives."

King County serves 1.2 million customers and provides garbage disposal services to all cities except Seattle. It operates eight transfer stations, two drop boxes and the 900-acre Cedar Hills Regional Landfill.