Community Waste Solutions is the only trash disposal business in Haines. (Emily Files)
The Haines Borough has been trying to figure out if there is a better way to deal with solid waste for a long time. The most recent attempt to improve the current trash situation resulted in an ordinance that could be presented to voters this October. But, the assembly is not fully on board with it.
The solid waste ordinance had its first public hearing at an assembly meeting Tuesday.
In 2016, the assembly tasked a solid waste working group with generating recommendations for how to improve trash disposal in Haines.
They brought their ideas to the assembly in October 2017. The assembly wanted borough staff to do more work on it, and that’s why it’s just coming back as an ordinance now.
Borough Manager Debra Schnabel told the assembly that there will still be time to work on the details of the plan.
“This is a framework, a legal framework, that will provide for an operational plan that is still to be determined,” said Schnabel.
The assembly made a few amendments to the ordinance. It added a component that says a percentage of total revenue collected will be dedicated to reuse, reduction, recycling and composting of waste.
To pay for the new system, a sales tax is being proposed. That’s why the measure would have to go to voters. The assembly voted to phrase the potential ballot proposition as “Shall the Haines Borough levy up to a 1 percent sales tax areawide for management of a solid waste program” as described in the ordinance? That’s instead of saying a flat 1 percent.
The idea is that waste disposal would be funded through a sales tax. That means residents wouldn’t pay each time they go to the dump. And, residents would have the choice of getting garbage collected, or self-hauling.
Assembly member Brenda Josephson moved to refer the ordinance to a committee of the whole and the finance committee, and establish another public hearing on Sept. 11. That motion failed after Mayor Jan Hill broke a tie vote.
Heather Lende said the assembly shouldn’t postpone the matter going to voters.
” I think it’s really important to get this on the ballot,” said Lende. “I think it’s important for the citizens to be able to vote on it. I think it’s a good ordinance. I think it leaves flexibility for enforcement and I think it honors the work of the solid waste task force and all the people before that. I’d like to see us not vote to slow it up.”
But Tom Morphet said more work should be done on the ordinance.
“Let’s take this thing apart, extract the good ideas, see if we can do it for less money,” said Morphet. “I think we might be able to sell something to the public if we work together on this.”
He said the size of the measure warrants more investigation.
“This is a huge piece of legislation that we’re passing on to voters,” said Morphet. “I think without even addressing any alternatives. This is an all-or-nothing deal. And I wish from the administration that we’d gotten two or three little bits of this that we could maybe approve gradually and that the voters could absorb.”
Sean Maidy said, while he’s supportive of getting input from the public, it’s time to move to the next step.
“But how much more can we talk about this,” said Maidy. “We’ve gathered so much information, and whether or not this is the perfect end-all-be-all answer, that’s up for the people to decide.”
The ordinance will have a second public hearing on August 21.
It’s also the topic of a committee of the whole meeting on Tuesday, August 14.
