May 10th, 2021, the Solid Waste Disposal Fee Private Act was ratified by County Commission. The Commission voted and passed the $7.00 per month fee, which is $84.00 a year. The Commission also voted for Lance Beshires, Trustee, to collect this fee on the resident’s property tax bill.
The disposal fee will start being collected on October 1, 2021. You will see the $84.00 fee on your property tax bill for 2021 listed as a Solid Waste Disposal fee.
Where do I pay this fee?
You may pay the fee in the Chester County Trustees office at 159 East Main Street Henderson, TN, by mail at PO Box 386 Henderson,TN, website (see below for link), or use the drop box located in the lobby of the Chester County building. You will pay this fee along with your property tax.
I live in Henderson. Doesn’t the city take care of my trash and recycling, so this won’t affect me?
This fee from the County is totally separate from the city and will affect everyone who lives in Chester County. Residents and businesses within the city limits of Henderson pay a monthly fee that covers not only garbage pickup but also the cost of biweekly recycling pickup and seasonal loose-leaf pickup, as well as brush and limb removal.
The City of Henderson has partnered with Chester County’s West Tennessee Recycling Hub to provide city residents with blue carts obtained with grant money. The city collects the carts and delivers recycling to the West Tennessee Recycling Hub. The goal of the program is to eliminate the amount of trash that city residents are adding to landfills. The city provides a pickup service, and the County provides the service to haul the garbage to a landfill. This is two separate services being paid for. So, everyone in the City and County has to pay the Solid Waste Disposal fee because it is two different services.
Yes. County Commissioners, the Mayor, and the Solid Waste Department have spent the last year looking at other options from pay as you throw to a property tax increase. Mandatory door-to-door trash pickup on the county would cost rural Chester County residents $45.00 to $60.00 a month per household for one 96 gallon trash can to have a waste service company pick up trash at each house.
Can this fee be used for anything else besides Solid Waste?
The Solid Waste Disposal fee will be allocated for solid waste disposal services in Chester County, TN.
The solid waste disposal fee authorized by this act shall be subject to the same penalty and interest as delinquent property taxes. The unpaid fees, penalty, interest, and cost shall be a lien on the real estate and improvements. No sale or transfer of such real property may be legally closed and recorded until the lien has been satisfied. Chester County may collect the delinquent fees, penalty, interest, and cost through an action for debt filed in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Why does handling Chester County’s trash cost money?
Chester County does not operate a landfill. Chester County operates five convenience centers to accept residents’ trash. At one time, Tennessee had 159 active landfills. As they have been filled, they have been closed. Currently, there are only 35 active class one landfills in our state. Chester County keeps the budget as a priority when contracting landfill services. Since 2010, Chester County has paid more than $ 2 million to bury trash in a landfill. The landfill charges tipping and hauling fees to bury solid waste, and those fees that the County pays increase every year.
Sales tax, hotel and motel tax, beer/alcohol/beverage tax, TVA tax and cable tax help fund solid waste. Also, in the past, Chester County used rent from the nursing home and some proceeds from its sale to offset landfill costs; the last of that allocated money will be spent by this summer of 2021. In July 2021, without additional funds being added, the county budget will not have enough funds to pay increasing landfill costs for burying Chester County’s trash.
Staying educated about future trends and best practices in the solid waste industry-led Chester County to become a leader through the West Tennessee Recycling Hub on Talley Store Road. In addition to saving money on tipping and hauling fees, the West Tennessee Recycling Hub allows Chester County to meet state and federal mandates to divert at least 25% of our residents’ solid waste from the landfill. Since 2010, Chester County has recycled more than 30 million pounds/15,000 tons. This has saved more than $1.8 million dollars because those items did not have to be landfilled. While about 36% of residents in Henderson recycle through the blue cart program (See details below.), only about 18% of Chester County residents who live outside of the city recycle. These recycling statistics provide great opportunities for growth. The Solid Waste Dept and Recycling Hub focuses their education and outreach programs on increasing residential recycling. If everyone in the County and city recycled, we would not have had to haul over 6506 tons of trash to a landfill in 2020.
Haven’t we received grants for recycling? Can’t we just use that grant money to cover the cost of putting trash in a landfill?
The West Tennessee Recycling Hub has allowed Chester County to receive grant money that makes recycling in our community easier and more accessible, saving us money and putting us in a more sustainable situation for our residents’ future. However, grant dollars have been received for the very specific purpose of increasing recycling in the region. There are no grants available for landfilling trash.
Will COVID grant funding be able to be used for the Solid Waste disposal fee?
No, COVID grant money can not be used for the Solid Waste Disposal Fee. The grant money has been received for a specific purpose, and it is not to fund the Solid Waste Budget. Each grant has specific guidelines on how you can spend the money.