The Las Cruces City Council is opting to wait until July 20 to consider approving a $2 monthly increase in residential solid waste rates. The item was before council today as old business, but given the current economic climate tied to the coronavirus pandemic, the council decided to wait three months before taking up the matter again.
The proposed monthly rate for a 96-gallon container would go from $13.25 to $15.25. The monthly rate for a 64-gallon container would go from $11.25 to $13.25. In the proposed rate structure, residential customers could keep their current rate by opting for the smaller, 64-gallon container.
The new solid waste rates would replace those that had been in effect since 2015. The new rates would offset a shortfall of $1.34 million that an independent consultant determined was needed to maintain the level of service for customers. Councilors acknowledged the need to maintain the financial health of LCU but recognize that the timing is the issue.
Las Cruces Utilities (LCU) is a City department but is not funded by tax dollars. Operations for LCU are solely funded through monthly utility billing to recover the cost of providing services to customers.