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Table 2. summarizes the increases from 2022 to those proposed for 2025. It illustrates how <br />discrepant the rates have become over the three-year period, and that those who discard less than pay <br />much more in comparison to those who discard more. <br /> <br />Below are the more important findings of this three -year summary: <br /> <br />• In dollars, rates for the smaller bins increase more than for the larger bins for this 3-year period <br />$20.00, $18.00, $16.00, and for $12.00 for the 20-, 32-, 64-, and 96-gallon bins respectively. <br />• The proposed rate increases from 2022 to 2025 are 105.9%, 51.6%, 24.9%, and 12.6% for the <br />20-, 32-, 64-, and 96-gallon bins respectively. Small bins see a much higher rate of increase <br />• As cost per gallon of proposed 2025 rate compared to the 2022 rate the increases are $1.00, <br />$0.56, $0.25, and $0.13 for the 20-, 32-, 64-, and 96-gallon bins respectively. <br /> <br />Tables 1 and 2 display that rates for solid waste disposal impact customers with smaller bins much <br />harder than those with larger bins. But that alone is not the problem. From Table 1 we know that costs <br />per gallon were not equal across the board in 2022. Yes, the smallest bins saw the lower rate per gallon <br />initially, but so did the largest. Over the years the inequities were change such that the smallest bins <br />are charged almost double what the largest are charged per gallon of waste. Yet the costs moving <br />waste in the service center and disposing (processing) of it are not related to the size of the bins from <br />which it is collected, but to the overall volume. That is a gallon of waste from a 20-gallon bin costs <br />exactly the same to process and dispose as one gallon from a 96-gallon <br /> <br />Table 3. shows how the size capacities of the four different size bins compare to one another. <br />The diagonal is blackened as there is no reason to compare cans of the same size. The entries above <br />the diagonal display the percentage of capacity of the larger bins to smaller bins. Thus, 160% in the <br />column titled “32” along the row titled “20” shows that the capacity of the 32-gallon bin is 160% of a <br />20-gallon bin. And in the column titled “20” the values 12, 44, and 76 reflect how many additional <br />gallons the bins sized 32-, 64-, and 96-gallons when compared to the 20-gallon bin. For example, a 96- <br />gallon bin is 480% of the size of 20-gallon bin; and holds 76 more gallons (480% of 20 gallons is 96 <br />gallons and 3.8 x 20 is 76 more gallons). <br /> <br />Reducing waste while encouraging recycling is an important for our environment. Rate <br />structures should reflect that goal. For solid waste they do not. When a customer using a small bin is <br />charge d $1.94 per gallon and another just $1.12 per gallon for a much larger isn’t promoting <br />conservation. The City should be encouraging citizens to reduce waste and recycle more. The City <br />recognizes that water conservation is important to the environment, and one way to encourage less <br />use is to penalize by way of higher rates for those that use more. The water rate structure does that. <br />Why doesn’t the solid waste follow the same rationale. We know that there are costs to the City and <br />Recology to provide this service. I don’t pretend to know the details, but some costs are fixed while <br />others depend upon the amount of waste collected/disposed. The City’s costs are mostly fixed. Each <br />customer has an account for each residence, there are costs for the billing system, mailing bills, and <br />personnel costs (salary, benefits, hiring costs, etc.) and likely others. Whether a customer has a 20- <br />gallon bin or a 96-gallon bin the costs for maintaining an individual account are the same or nearly the <br />same for Redwood City. Recology has similar fixed costs (facilities, personnel, and others).