The San Diego City Council has until mid August to respond to a Grand Jury report that says the city should charge residents for trash pickup. But if a council committee meeting held Wednesday is any indication, formulating a response might not be so easy.
The People’s Ordinance prohibits the city from charging for trash pickup on public streets. San Diego spends about $54 million a year on the service. The Grand Jury found the law unfair because many apartment complexes and businesses must use private companies, while most single family homes get trash picked up for free. The council’s rules committee debated for more than an hour on how the city should respond. Councilwoman Donna Frye says the argument could be made that everyone pays already.
“Everybody pays into the General Fund and actually that money is used to collect trash,” she says.
Frye says there are fundamental differences of opinions among council members that could make it hard to reach a consensus on the matter. The committee voted to forward the issue to the full council.
