FAQs
Contracted Program Details
XS cart service (16 gallons)
S cart service (35 gallons)
M cart service (65 gallons)
L cart service (95 gallons)
XL cart service (2 x 95 gallons carts)
- Further clarity on the City requirements for HOA trash and recycling contracts
- Clear timeline for HOA exemption application process
- City contract exemption application for HOAs with existing contracts
- Two virtual information sessions for HOA boards and property managers
- Having all new, city-owned carts prevents any company looking to submit a proposal for the City contract from having an advantage in the competitive purchasing process because of carts.
- For instance, if one company had many carts in the community now and didn’t have to replace them, they might be able to offer a different price than other companies because they don’t have to purchase or deliver carts. To receive multiple competitive proposals and the best pricing for Fort Collins residents now and in the future, the competitive purchasing process is designed to prevent such advantages.
- It provides less change when the next contract starts.
- Regardless of whether the City is to select a different hauler in the next competitive purchasing process, carts will remain at households. These cost savings can be passed along to residents.
- All current Republic and Gallegos Sanitation carts will be evaluated and will either be redeployed in other Republic service areas or if ready to be retired, be recycled.
- Fort Collins has received a grant from The Recycling Partnership to offset part of the new cart cost. These savings is passed through to residents and result in a $0.25 / month/household reduction in the rates, reflected in the service prices shared with the community.
When will services with the single-hauler contract start?
The expected service start date is September 30, 2024.
This allows the hauler enough time to purchase trucks, hire staff and prepare for the new service. It also allows the hauler, in partnership with the City, to conduct an extensive outreach campaign to ensure community members are prepared for the service change.
The contract term is for five years from the service start date.
Will I still have my choice of size of trash container and recycling included in my service?
Yes.
After receiving feedback from the community about the desire for more service options, the program includes options for households with a very small amount of trash—XS cart service—and those with a large amount of trash—XL cart service. Within the contracted program, residents will be able to select from the below trash cart sizes:
Recycling service will be weekly and continue to be included for no additional charge.
The program includes weekly yard trimmings collection from April 1 - November 30 each year. Residents that do not need yard trimmings collection can decline service and receive a discount on their monthly bill.
The new program also includes two bulky item collections per year.
What will the City’s role be in the contracted system?
The City of Fort Collins would manage the contract with the selected hauler and provide education and outreach to the community.
The contracted hauler will conduct billing and provide dedicated customer service representatives for this program.
How long will the contract last?
The contract term is for five years from the service start date.
Which households will be included in the contracted program?
The contracted program will include residential dwellings with seven or fewer units within Fort Collins City limits (including single-family homes, townhomes, duplexes, and small apartment complexes or condos of up to seven units).
Households outside of Fort Collins City limits or in the Growth Management Area (GMA) would not be part of the contract.
Homeowners Associations(HOAs) with contracts that comply with the City’s Pay-As-You-Throw and yard trimmings service requirements and that are in effect before the date the City’s contract is signed (April 28) will be able to continue with their existing contracts or opt into the City’s contract.
For more information on requirements for Homeowners Associations, contact Kira Beckham and Linda Hardin.
How would this impact my Homeowners Association (HOA)?
Homeowners Associations with written contracts for trash and recycling service that are in effect before the City contract is signed (April 28, 2023) can apply for an exemption from the City's contract or can opt into the City's contract.
The City will verify HOA contracts comply with the City’s Pay-As-You-Throw requirements.
HOAs and haulers will have time to amend contracts to comply with the City requirements if needed.
HOAs with contracted collection service will need to match the same level of yard trimmings collection as the City’s contract provides (including yard trimmings service automatically for residents, but residents may decline the service) by September 30, 2024.
In April 2023, the following will be available to support HOAs with contracts for trash and recycling service:
Will my apartment/condo be included in the contracted program?
Apartment or condo complexes with seven or fewer units will be included in the contracted program if trash carts rather than dumpsters serve them. Multi-unit residential properties with eight or more units will not be included in the contracted system but can choose to opt-in by contacting the hauler and requesting service.
Colorado State Law (scroll to 7.5(a) here for text) prevents local governments from requiring contracts for trash services for multi-unit or commercial properties, so mobile home parks, apartments or condos with eight or more units, businesses, and construction sites would not be part of a contracted system.
The contract includes an option to include dumpster pricing in the future.
Would I still be able to keep my choice of company?
Households will still be able to hire their own company for waste hauling services even if the City has a contracted system but will need to pay an opt-out fee of $11.10/per month.
The opt-out fee provides a baseline of predictable revenue for the contracted hauler, allowing for a cost-effective price for the contracted service.
Will I receive new trash and recycling carts? What will happen to my current carts?
Yes, households will receive new, city-branded trash, recycling, and yard trimmings carts.
The contract includes new, city-branded carts for all households for the following reasons:
Households will select their preferred trash, recycling, and yard trimmings cart sizes in the first half of 2024, and new, city-branded carts will be delivered in the fall of 2024. Haulers must collect their existing carts at no cost to residents per the current City code.
What will happen between now and the contract start date?
The new service will begin on September 30, 2024. Until that time, households will continue to use the licensed hauler of their choosing.
Households wanting to start or change service prior to September 30, 2024 may contact Republic Services, Ram Waste / Waste Connections, or Waste Management.
In the first half of 2024, households will select their trash, recycling and yard trimmings cart sizes for the new program and set up billing with the new hauler. New carts will be delivered in the fall to be ready for the new service start date of September 30, 2024.
Will I be able to put my service on hold if I go away for an extended period of time?
Yes, the contract includes a service suspension option. Customers may suspend their service for one month or more once per calendar year. During the service suspension, the customer will be charged the XS service rate ($11.10 / month). The customer will not be charged to start or end the service suspension.
Why did the City select Republic as a service provider?
Three companies submitted proposals to the City’s competitive purchasing process: Republic Services, Sweetman Sanitation, and Waste Management.
A cross-functional assessment team of City staff and outside consultants with expertise in single-hauler contracts evaluated the proposals and interviewed the three firms.
The evaluation criteria used were:
CRITERIA |
WEIGHTING |
Acceptance of Key Components of City Contract and Ability to Meet Service Requirements | 10% |
Strategy(ies) for Enhanced Sustainability and Equity | 15% |
Commitment to a High-Level of Customer Service | 35% |
Customer Pricing | 40% |
Total | 100% |
The assessment team determined the proposal from Republic Services most closely aligned with the evaluation criteria. The City then negotiated the contract with Republic.
Pricing
- XS cart service (16 gallons): $11.10
- S cart service (35 gallons): $ 19.10— the most commonly selected size
- M cart service (65 gallons): $ 37.10
- L cart service (95 gallons): $ 55.10
- XL cart service (2 x 95 gallons carts): $ 109.10
- The “current price” in the chart below comes from a Trash Bill Analysisof averaging the prices paid by Fort Collins residents in 2022, which showed inconsistencies in prices paid under the current system. Some residents pay $10-$15 more for the same service from the same company in the same area of town. The proposed program would give all residents access to the same cost-effective rates for service.
- Individual household bills in the current system may differ from the charges below.
- With the addition of weekly recycling, yard trimmings, and bulky item collection, more Fort Collins households may be able to decrease the size of their trash carts and save on their monthly bill.
- The “current price” in the chart below comes from a Trash Bill Analysis of averaging the prices paid by Fort Collins residents in 2022, which showed inconsistencies in prices paid under the current system. Some residents pay $10-$15 more for the same service from the same company in the same area of town. The proposed program would give all residents access to the same cost-effective rates for service.
- Individual household bills in the current system may differ from the charges below.
- With the addition of yard trimmings and bulky item collections, more Fort Collins households may be able to decrease the size of their trash carts and save on their monthly bill.
- The contract includes a predictable 3% yearly price increase that will be communicated well in advance. Additional price increases will only be allowed in very restricted circumstances (such as new regulations impacting the hauling industry) and must be approved by and negotiated with the City.
- A Trash Bill Analysis of prices paid by Fort Collins residents in 2022 showed a wide variation in prices paid under the current licensed, open-market system. Some residents paid $10-$15 more for the same service from the same company in the same area of town. The contracted program will give all residents access to the same cost-effective rates for service.
- In the current system, each household negotiates its price with its hauler. If they dislike the price offered, the primary option is to select another company, which may or may not offer a better price.
How much wilI I pay in the contracted system?
Like the current system, the contract pricing would be determined by a household’s trash cart size. The following monthly prices include weekly trash, recycling, and yard trimmings collection and two bulky item collections/year:
These prices include a $1.35 monthly City Administrative Fee to recover the City’s contract administration cost. More information on this fee can be found in the Solid Waste Collection Program Administrative Fee Study.
If a household declines yard trimmings service, their service price will be reduced by $5 per month—except for the XS cart service price, which is not reduced if it declines yard trimmings service.
When comparing the average current price for service and the contract price for service, the cost per household is expected to decrease in a contracted system due to the efficiencies of a hauler servicing every household on the street. See details in the chart below.
How does this compare to current pricing for Fort Collins households?
When comparing the average current price for service and the contract price for service, the cost per household is expected to decrease in a contracted system due to the efficiencies of a hauler servicing every household on the street. See details in the chart below.
How will my billing change?
Billing will be conducted by the hauler using their billing system. Households will select their trash, recycling, and yard trimmings cart sizes in the first half of 2024 and set up billing with the hauler in mid-year to be ready for the service start date of September 30, 2024.
How would the program prevent big price increases?
When comparing the current price for service and the contract price for service, the contracted service price is lower than the average service price paid by residents now.
In the contracted program, price increases will only be allowed in certain circumstances and will be predictable and communicated well in advance of any change.
Residents pay different prices for the same service in the current system.
Residents have little control over pricing in the current system.
Do Fort Collins households pay different prices for the same service now?
A Trash Bill Analysis of prices paid by Fort Collins residents in 2022 showed a wide variation in prices paid under the current licensed, open-market system. Some residents paid $10-$15 more for the same service from the same company in the same area of town. The contracted program will give all residents access to the same cost-effective rates for service.
Why do prices include an admin fee?
The prices for the contracted service include a $1.35 monthly City Administrative Fee to recover the City’s cost of administering the contract (including program roll-out, program management, contract compliance, and customer service). More information on this fee can be found in the Solid Waste Collection Program Administrative Fee Study.
Why is there an opt-out fee? Are there exceptions to paying the fee?
Municipalities in Colorado can legally charge an opt-out fee to anyone who wishes to use a different hauler than the awarded contractor or who wishes to haul their own trash and recycling to the appropriate facilities.
The City of Fort Collins will charge an opt-out fee to provide a baseline of predictable revenue for the contracted hauler so that we can negotiate a cost-effective price for the contracted service. Without a guaranteed quantity of residents, the hauler would not be able to provide the same type of lower, volume-based prices enjoyed by many homeowners associations.
There are two possible exceptions (called variances) that the City has included in the proposed ordinance changes needed to move to a contracted system.
Households may submit applications for variances and will be granted the variance if:
1) They are very low trash produces and wish to share the XS (16 gallon) cart service with another household. In this case, one household would apply for the variance; the City would review the application, and once granted, the two households would decide how to split the cost of the XS cart service between themselves.
2) They regularly have more trash than the XL (two 95-gallon carts) cart service can accommodate. In this case, the household may apply for a variance; the City would review the application and, once granted, could contract dumpster service with the provider of their choosing or haul their own trash and recycling to the appropriate facilities.
Customer Service
How would the contract ensure good customer service?
In Fort Collins’ current open market system, customer service is unregulated.
In the contracted program, the hauler will be held to high customer service requirements.
The hauler will face financial penalties if they do not meet metrics such as responding to customers within one business day or if hold times exceed three minutes.
They must also maintain dedicated customer service representatives focused on the Fort Collins program.
If residents experience issues such as not having their carts not delivered within five business days or not having a missed collection picked up within one business day of being reported, they will receive a one-month service credit and the hauler would have to pay an additional penalty.
If issues become persistent, the City could exit the contract.
Contracted System Overview
Pure Open Market: Each household chooses their own hauler for trash and recycling collection. Local government does not play a role in this system.
Open Market with Licensing (Fort Collins’ current system): Each household chooses their own licensed hauler for trash and recycling collection. The local government issues the licenses and may include requirements such as offering recycling and compost collection.
Contracted System (system being considered for Fort Collins): A local government contracts with one company to provide residential trash and recycling collection.
City Hauling Utility: A city owns and operates their own hauling utility using city staff, resources and equipment.
- Increases safety, improves air quality and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from fewer trucks operating in neighborhoods.
For a price similar to what residents pay for only trash and every-other-week recycling now, the proposed program includes weekly trash and recycling collection while adding weekly seasonal yard trimmings and two bulky item collections per year.
The contracted program is the most affordable way to add yard trimmings collection service for community members.
Low-income residents identified the cost of bulky item disposal as a barrier in the current program. The contracted program addresses that need by providing $70-$80 worth of bulky item collection for each household each year for no additional charge.
All community members will have access to the same service price for the same services. Price increases are only allowed in certain circumstances and will be predictable and communicated well before any change.
A Trash Bill Analysis of prices paid by Fort Collins residents in 2022 showed a wide variation in prices paid under the current licensed, open-market system. Some residents paid $10-$15 more for the same service from the same company in the same area of town. The contracted program will give all residents access to the same cost-effective rates for service.
In the open market system, the City cannot regulate customer service from haulers. The hauler will be held to high customer service requirements in the contracted program.
They will face financial penalties if they did not meet metrics such as responding to customers within one business day or if hold times exceed three minutes.
They must also maintain dedicated customer service representatives focused on the Fort Collins program.
If residents experience issues such as not having their carts delivered within five business days or not having missed collections picked up within one business day of being reported, they would receive a one-month service credit and the hauler would have to pay an additional penalty.
If issues become consistent, the City could exit the contract with the hauler.
The City will devote resources specifically to enforcing the contract requirements.
Residents must pay an opt-out fee to receive service from a company different from the contracted hauler. The opt-out fee is $11.10 / month.
Perspective on the ideal role of government – a contracted system shifts the role of local government in the trash and recycling system. Community members have varying perspectives on the ideal role of government.
Our Climate Future, Big Move 2: Zero Waste Neighborhoods (pg. 32)
City Plan, Principle ENV 5: Create a Zero Waste System (pg. 63)
Strategic Plan, Environmental Health 4.3 Zero Waste (pg. 28)
- Accelerate Composting:
- The proposed program would enable a 78% - 130% increase in yard trimmings composted from Fort Collins residents.
- Composting is a critical path for meeting climate goals.
- Food scraps can be addressed in a contract amendment in the future as the options for food waste composting infrastructure becomes clearer.
Improve Air Quality: fewer trucks driving along residential roads reduces related air emissions and greenhouse gas emissions.
Enhanced Recycling Education: The proposed program would include educational requirements in a contract for residential trash, recycling and compost service. It would also ensure all residents could have access to the same educational resources and programs and many would be provided in Spanish.
The contract would impacts approximately 20% of the Fort Collins trash and recycling market share by revenue. The remaining 80% (Homeowner’s Associations with contracts for trash and recycling service, Construction and Demolition Sites, and Multi-Family and Commercial service) would continue to be under the open market and would provide opportunities for multiple hauling companies to remain active in the community.
Fort Collins will engage in another purchasing process in 5 years and could change haulers.
At the end of the five-year term of the current contract, the City would run a new competitive purchasing process. Other Colorado communities with contracts have received multiple competitive proposals each time they engage in a new round of the competitive purchasing process. Based on the proposals received, Fort Collins could then change service providers or stay with the same hauler.
The contract provides requirements for high-quality service and customer service.
The contract includes strict requirements for customer service and high-quality service. If residents experience issues such as not having their carts delivered within five business days or not having missed collections picked up within one business day of being reported, they will receive a one-month service credit. The hauler will also face financial penalties. If issues become persistent, the City could exit the contract.
What is a contracted system?
In a contracted system, haulers compete for the chance to provide service to all single-family, duplex, and small multifamily homes (with seven or fewer units) in the community. The contract provides the city the option to obtain curbside collection services at “bulk rate” prices for households. Households that want to use a different hauler can pay an opt-out fee. Communities in Colorado and across the U.S. have found that this type of system reduces the number of trucks in residential neighborhoods, makes prices more consistent, and increases opportunities for recycling and composting.
What other systems exist for city trash and recycling collection?
In addition to a contracted system, there are three other systems cities can use to manage trash and recycling collections for households.
Pure Open Market: The government is not involved in a pure open market system. Local examples are Wellington and Estes Park. In this system, haulers provide trash service and may or may not offer recycling service, or other additional services. Recycling is generally an opt-in service and customers pay a separate fee to recycle.
Open Market with Licensing: Fort Collins currently has an open market system that requires haulers to get a license from the City in order to provide households with curbside services. Households shop for and choose their own haulers. Through the license, Fort Collins requires haulers to provide data about the materials collected in Fort Collins and to follow the Pay-As-You-Throw system (in which the cost for collection services is based on the size of the trash cart and recycling service is offered at no additional cost).
The Fort Collins community has had as many as six and as few as three haulers in the past 25 years. Any hauler can receive a license to operate within the community. There are currently three nationally-owned haulers (Waste Management, Republic Services and Waste Connections), and a small start-up hauler (Mountain High Disposal) licensed to provide services to Fort Collins households. Timberline Waste is no longer in business.
Municipal hauling utility: Some cities do their own trash and recycling collection using city staff, equipment, and resources. Loveland is an example of a local municipal trash and recycling system. Fort Collins City Council is not exploring this model.
Why is Fort Collins moving to a contracted system?
Fort Collins is moving to a contracted system for residential trash and recycling collection to increase opportunities for composting and recycling, provide equitable, consistent pricing across the community, and increase safety and reduce emissions by reducing the number of trash trucks on residential streets.
For a price similar to what residents pay for only trash and every-other-week recycling now, the proposed program includes weekly trash and recycling collection and two additional services: weekly, seasonal yard trimmings collection and two bulky item collections per year.
What benefits does Fort Collins expect to see from a contracted system that couldn’t be achieved with our current licensed hauler system?
Fewer trucks on the road and only one service day per week per neighborhood
More services for a similar price
Uniform, predictable pricing
Customer Service standards
Fort Collins explored moving to a contracted system before. Why are we moving forward with a contracted system now?
Moving to a contracted system is the most affordable way for Fort Collins households to progress on zero waste goals and addresses feedback community members have shared with City Council about frustration with multiple trash companies servicing the same neighborhoods.
Fort Collins has also adopted aggressive waste reduction goals, including working toward zero waste by 2030 and has identified a stagnant residential trash diversion rate as one of the challenges of making progress on that goal. Strategies to achieve zero waste are outlined in Our Climate Future, the combined waste, climate, and energy plan for Fort Collins.
Has Fort Collins considered a municipal hauling utility?
Fort Collins City Council is not currently considering a municipal hauling utility. Many of the benefits of a hauling utility can be achieved in the contracted system.
How does this project relate to the Larimer County contract for the new landfill?
They are completely separate processes focused on achieving different goals.
The City’s contract will be for residential trash and recycling collection, which represents about 20% of the trash and recycling collection market share in Fort Collins (Homeowner’s Associations with contracted service, businesses and multi-family services, and construction site trash and recycling collection would be unimpacted by the contracted service). The contract would be for five years from the start of service and then the City would engage in another competitive purchasing process.
In comparison, the Larimer County purchasing process was for waste infrastructure (in this case, the new landfill, transfer station, and recycling center) and is for the life of the landfill site and up to 40 years for the transfer station and recycling center.
Does the contract include flow control to the County Landfill?
The contract does not include flow control of any materials.
What are some of the tradeoffs of shifting to a contracted system?
Tradeoffs to shifting to a contracted system include:
How does contracting connect with adopted plans and goals about waste and recycling collection?
The contracted program is the most affordable way to enable actions critical to meeting Fort Collins’ adopted goal to produce zero waste by 2030.
Fort Collins has identified a stagnant residential trash diversion rate as one of the challenges to progress on that goal. Fort Collins's 2021 Residential Diversion rate was 29%, and the Community Diversion Rate (combining residential, commercial, and industrial materials) was 52%.
Contracted residential trash and recycling collection aligns with several adopted plans and other Council priorities. Those plans include:
Contracting for single-family home trash, recycling, and compost supports the following adopted Council Priorities:
How does this new system address community concerns like trash truck traffic, environmental impacts, available services, and pricing?
The contract for one trash and recycling service provider will decrease the number of heavy trash and recycling trucks on residential roads. A trash truck causes wear and tear on a residential road equivalent to over 1250 passenger vehicles*, so multiple haulers operating on a street significantly increase road maintenance costs.
A contract would provide uniform and transparent pricing for households, set customer service requirements for the waste hauling company, and increase the ability for the City to offer services that reduce waste, like yard trimmings and bulky item collection, for about the same price as households pay for trash and every-other-week recycling only now.
*source: 2022 Fort Collins Refuse Vehicle Street Maintenance Impact Study.
How will moving to a contracted system affect market competition?
The contracted service only represents 20% of the market share in Fort Collins. Other haulers would remain active in the community and region.
Will the City be divided into different trash districts?
The same hauler will service all eligible households within City limits in a single district.
Have other cities implemented this type of system?
More than 70% of U.S. cities use either a contracted system or municipal hauling utility (Fort Collins is not considering a municipal hauling utility). On the Front Range, more than 10 cities have a contracted system for trash and recycling including Commerce City, Dacono, Edgewater, Frederick, Greenwood Village, Golden, Lafayette, Lone Tree, Louisville, Morrison, and Sheridan.
Services
- XS cart service (16 gallons)
- S cart service (35 gallons)
- M cart service (65 gallons)
- L cart service (95 gallons)
- XL cart service (2 x 95 gallons carts)
What collection services will be provided in the contracted program?
For a price similar to what residents pay for only trash and every-other-week recycling now, the contracted program includes weekly collection of trash and recycling, weekly seasonal yard trimmings, and two bulky item collections per year.
After receiving feedback from the community about the desire for more service options, the program includes options for households with a very small amount of trash—XS cart service—and those with a large amount of trash—XL cart service. Residents will be able to select from the below trash cart sizes:
Recycling will be collected weekly and will continue to be included for no additional charge.
The program includes weekly yard trimmings collection from April 1 - November 30 each year. Households that do not need yard trimmings collection can decline the service and receive a discount on their monthly bill.
The new program will also include two bulky item collections per year.
Alley and door-to-door services will be offered to those that need them at no additional cost.
What are the benefits and tradeoffs of moving to weekly recycling?
On February 21, Council voted to move forward with the contracted program and include weekly recycling collection.
The table below shows the contracted service pricing for weekly vs every other week service. These prices include trash, recycling, yard trimmings and bulky item collection.
Trash cart size | Every-Other- Week Recycling | Weekly Recycling |
XS | $11.10 | $11.10 |
S | $17.85 | $19.10 |
M | $34.60 | $37.10 |
L | $51.35 | $55.10 |
XL | $101.60 | $109.10 |
Benefits of weekly recycling | Tradeoffs of weekly recycling |
Additional recycling ~800 – 2500 tons (9% - 27% increase) | Additional cost $1.25 / mo for small cart customers |
Net GHG benefits ~3-8% of waste emissions (0.05-0.15% progress toward climate goals) | Slight GHG increase 60 MTCO2e increase from additional trucks |
Additional convenience | Additional truck in the neighborhood every other week
|
Does the contract include compost for yard and food waste?
The program includes weekly yard trimmings collection from April 1 - November 30 each year. Residents can opt-out of yard trimmings collection and receive a discount on their monthly bill.
The contracted service is the most affordable way for community members to receive yard trimmings collection service. The contract would allow households to have yard trimmings collection as well as two bulky item collections per year for about the same price most households pay for only trash and recycling collection now.
Due to a lack of regional food scrap composting infrastructure, food scrap collection is not included in the contract. When infrastructure comes available, the contract could be amended to offer this service.
What services will accommodate seniors and others with disabilities that cannot pull their trash carts to the curb?
Door-to-door services will be provided upon request to residents with disabilities who cannot pull their carts to the curb. Haulers currently provide this service at no cost to those who request it.
Will the contracted hauler continue to collect trash carts from alleys?
Alley services will be provided for areas where the alley is the primary service option. Haulers currently provide this service at no cost.