City looking to charge recycling fee

NOVI — The Novi City Council recently amended its code of ordinances to allow it to adjust garbage and refuse rates, specifically to pass along increased recycling expenses to residents.

The Novi City Council approved the second and final reading of an amendment to the city’s waste and refuse ordinance Feb. 23 to allow for these rates to be determined and assessed by the city.

“When we went forward and went to a consolidated single hauler, the ordinance was written in a way that we can only charge what was bid for those services,” Novi City Manager Victor Cardenas said during the Feb. 9 City Council meeting. “Unfortunately, since then, the costs for recycling have gone up.”

Cardenas said the costs are being paid by the city’s general fund. 

“What the ordinance does is just allows us to go ahead and just add some of those costs on (to the residents’ bills),” Mayor Justin Fischer said. “What the reality is, is that over the last couple of years we have been subsidized by like $250,000 dollars out of the general fund, but the problem is that the recycling fees have escalated so quickly that, for instance, this upcoming year we are expecting $500,000. That’s an incremental $250,000 that we can’t continue to subsidize out of the general fund.”

According to the Feb. 9 meeting agenda packet, recycling expenses have increased from $221,441 in 2023-24 to an estimated $378,522 in 2025-26 and $488,400 in 2026-27.

“We are looking at making small changes to the costs that our residents pay for recycling, and this ordinance amendment allows us to do so,” Cardenas said. 

Cardenas told the Novi Note that residents who are under the city’s waste removal contract coverage area can expect to pay somewhere between $18 and $35 a year for recycling services. Those who are not affected by this measure are those who live in apartments and mobile homes, as well as any business. 

He said that the city will be discussing the exact costs that will be imposed with the City Council next month. He said the conversation will include what costs the city will be covering and what residents should pay.

Cardenas said that the measure to recoup some of the costs that are being taken from the general fund budget stems from the city’s recent loss of $800,000 in funding from the state as a result of constitutional revenue sharing. A measure the state implemented to increase revenue for road funding is decreasing revenue the cities have been receiving, according to Cardenas.

“Costs have gone up across the board for other kinds of expenditures. So, in order for us to keep on offering services and whatnot, we had to slim down our proposed budget that we are going to give council in another month or so to keep operations as it is right now,” Cardenas said.

Councilman Matt Heintz said that he appreciates the support of the recycling program and initiated the motion for the first reading. 

“I appreciate the support of this just to demonstrate our value and our interest in recycling and just to do this and make sure that residents are recycling at the rates they are,” Heintz said. 

He added that he would welcome any suggestions to make sure the city is not adding any “undue burden” and to help make sure that it is “as streamlined as possible.”

 Councilman Aaron Martinez said that there was a recent case at the Michigan Supreme Court over the treatment of franchise fees. According to Martinez, the court ruled that they were an unlawful tax.  

“Are there any concerns on that end that this could fall into that same fate, or is this pretty well within our boundaries of what we’re able to do?” Martinez asked City Attorney Tom Schultz. 

 “I would say it’s pretty well within your boundaries. There’s a case law that talks about using rates to pay for garbage and refuse service, so it’s pretty standard,” Schultz said. 

The council then unanimously approved the first reading 7-0 on Feb. 9. 

The second reading was approved as part of the consent agenda on Feb. 23.  

“Honestly, to me it is just passing it on to people,” Fischer said. “But this is also about being transparent, because right now they’re paying taxes and it’s not clear how much we’re paying for recycling, so in the future when people actually see that recycling fee, they’re going to know what they’re paying for. When it’s kind of just part of the general fund, people don’t have line of sight to see just how much they’re spending on recycling.”

The measure is expected to be implemented with the summer tax bill around Aug. 9.