GREEN COVE SPRINGS – After getting a break for the past eight years, the solid waste collection fees next year are set to go back up to the rates from 2010-11 following a 4-1 vote during the May 28 regular Board of County Commissioners meeting.

Originally discussed in the Finance and Audit Committee’s most recent meeting, an agenda item to discuss and vote on the solid waste collection fees was added to the BCC meeting. Milton Towns of the county’s Environmental Services Department took to the podium to explain why the increase was happening.

“Staff recommends that we do a rate adjustment due to our increasing costs,” Towns said. “Costs have been increasing roughly about 3 percent a year, primarily due to CPI and fuel adjustment changes that are contractually based so ... those combined ... we’re seeing about a 3 percent increase in our collection costs.”

Currently, the Curbside Collection Assessment Rate is $139.20 a year, which equates to a monthly rate of $11.60. With a return to the 2010-11 rate, the annual cost rises to $154.44 which equates to a monthly rate of $12.87, an increase of $1.27 per month.

According to the environmental department, homeowners were charged less than the full cost of garbage collection during seven of the past eight years.

“To paraphrase for the public of what’s going on here, three years ago, we lowered the rate,” BCC member Wayne Bolla said. “We saw that we were collecting more money that we needed so we lowered the rate. Now, we’re finding out that because of the fuel adjustment, the rate needs to go back up so we can keep our fund whole so we’re bringing it back up to where it was when we lowered it the first time.”

When it came time for a vote, the BCC voted to approve the new rate with a 4-1 vote, with BCC member Gavin Rollins dissenting. The final resolution for this increased rate will come later this year around August, according to Towns.