Marion County considers raising solid waste rates by over 150%

File photo: A tree fell into a home at 1613 Northwest 3rd Avenue during Hurricane Ian in Ocala, Fla. on Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2022.

Editor’s note: This article has been edited to correct factual inaccuracies. 

Marion County is considering raising residents’ annual solid waste fee by over 150% in an effort to cover deficits, fund the landfill expansion and allow emergency reserves in case of hurricanes or other disasters.

A public hearing will be held at 2 p.m. on March 5 to consider amending the ordinance for the solid waste residential assessment. The Marion County Commission agreed that it would consider a one-time increase of the solid waste fee from $87 to $215, rather than increasing the fees over the next three years.

The commission discussed the potential change at a Jan. 29 workshop, where county staff and Clerk of Court and Comptroller Gregory Harrell provided context to the financial need for the increase.

“None of us are atmospheric scientists. We don’t know what’s going to happen, but we have seen an uptick in storms in Florida and I believe this is the proper area for these reserves,” Harrell said.

The county’s storm operating reserves in Fiscal Year 2025-26 are currently at about $19.9 million. Harrell recommended that the county attempt to maintain about $40 million in reserves to utilize in case of emergency.

Hurricane Helene cost the county about $22,500. Marion County was not eligible for FEMA reimbursement for this amount, according to County Spokesperson Stacie Causey.

“Hurricane Milton numbers have not been finalized nor submitted to FEMA. Marion County does qualify for reimbursement for Milton,” said Causey. “This storm’s reimbursement request is estimated at $2 million.”

Nearly all of that amount, paid through reserves, is expected to be reimbursed by FEMA, Causey said.

In 2017, Hurricane Irma cost the county about $25 million. The county calculated how much a storm of that level would cost now, considering inflation, and recommended that solid waste keep reserve funding of $40 million going forward in case an emergency occurred.

The county’s ordinance for solid waste assessment, introduced in 2007, was intended to allow the rate to increase over time—but the rate remained at $87 from 2007 until the present.

If the ordinance was followed as written, residents already would have been paying $150 annually by 2022 and a rate increase to $215 wouldn’t have been necessary, Harrell said.

Three out of five commissioners agreed that the rate should be increased only one time to $215, rather than the phased plan to increase the rate to $150 in 2026, then raising the rate to $190 in 2027, and $225 in 2028, with the rate finally moving to $255 in 2036.

Commissioners Craig Curry, Matt McClain and Michelle Stone supported a one-time increase, while Kathy Bryant and Carl Zalak favored a phased-in approach.

Harrell said since a phased-in approach hasn’t worked since 2007, that it would be more financially prudent to implement a one-time increase to make up for it now.

“The phased-in approach with an ordinance, and the talk of adhering to it is all well and good, but you’ve had an ordinance in place—with all due respect—since 2007 that has not been adhered to. If it had been, the rate would have already been $150 three years ago,” Harrell said.

He theorized that the ordinance likely wasn’t followed after 2007 due to the recession.

“We have been saying since I have been clerk that you’re running deficits here,” Harrell said.

County Administrator Mounir Bouyounes confirmed that there had indeed been deficits in the solid waste fund, but that the deficits were very slight, and the county always had plenty of reserve funding to take care of any emergency that might come up.

“We still have reserve money to cover anything we may have to deal with,” Bouyounes said. “I believe it’s the year to adjust the rates and to overcome that deficit, and we’ll be back on financially good footing.”