JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Some Jacksonville City Council members are talking trash. Specifically, your trash pick-up.
Matt Carlucci is working on a bill that would increase how much homeowner pay for trash collection.
"Everybody wants these services, but nobody wants to pay for them," Carlucci said.
Carlucci says, growing up with his dad on the Jacksonville City Council, he used to hear him use that line on constituent after constituent, whenever they brought up the tough topic of raising taxes.
He finds himself in a similar situation – as he’s writing a bill that would increase the garbage fee for Jacksonville homeowners.
“Every time we want to change it, the political will is getting weaker and weaker, and the problem keeps getting bigger and bigger," said Carlucci.
Carlucci says the city hasn’t changed its garbage fee in 14 years, but the cost of trash collection has steadily climbed.
Right now, the garbage fee in Jacksonville sits at just over $150 per year or about $12.5 per month.
However, Carlucci says it needs to be nearly double that – around $300 – to actually cover the service.
Which is why the city council has used tens of millions of dollars of reserves from the general fund to cover the difference each year.
“It could be used for other things if we had the fee at the correct amount. It could be used for parks, roads, drainage, water and sewer line extensions, all kinds of things, a new jail, perhaps," said Carlucci.
Carlucci isn’t the only city councilmember looking into the issue. Rahman Johnson says he’s researching the best way to go about handling the necessary increase.
“My belief is that it’s the graduated approach," said Johnson. "We can’t just run up to this thing. Some people are saying, ‘Let’s bite the bullet and charge this fee.’ But, some of us are saying, ‘Wait a minute, let’s take our time and work down the road.”
Whether it’s jumping the fee all at once or gradually bumping it up over a few years, Johnson says it’ll have to be addressed one way or another soon.
“Figure out how we can keep this contained to the council and not a problem that spills over, pardon the pun," said Johnson. "A couple years ago where people are in the communities and garbage is stacked up to heaven.”
Carlucci says he’s hoping to have public meetings about the fee in the next few months so homeowners have a chance to weigh in.
He likely won’t file the bill until the new year, but if approved, it could impact next year’s property tax bill, which go out in November.