StopWaste Regulatory Fee - Frequently Asked Questions

The StopWaste Regulatory Fee is a small fee added to garbage bills that helps fund environmental programs required by law to keep compostable and recyclable materials out of landfills, reduce food waste, support edible food recovery and donation, and prevent plastic bag pollution.

Because the state provides only very limited funds to carry out this work, the fee allows StopWaste to recover the cost of implementing these programs on behalf of Alameda County jurisdictions.

Since StopWaste’s founding, California has adopted new, unfunded state mandates that significantly expand the scope and cost of required regulatory work.

To ensure StopWaste can continue supporting its member jurisdictions in meeting state requirements, the StopWaste Board directed staff to develop a regulatory fee to recover these costs.

The regulatory fee supports compliance with multiple California laws, including:

• SB 1383, which requires jurisdictions to reduce organic waste, recover edible food, and keep compostable materials out of landfills to reduce climate pollution.
• AB 341 and AB 1826, which requires jurisdictions to regulate disposal of recyclable materials
• SB 270 and SB 1053, which ban plastic bags at many stores

These laws apply statewide, and local governments are responsible for implementation and enforcement. StopWaste implements these programs on behalf of Alameda County jurisdictions.

Although California law requires local governments to implement these programs, the state does not provide funding to do so. State law instead allows local agencies to recover the reasonable costs of implementing and enforcing their regulations through a fee.

The fee recovers StopWaste’s expenses for regulatory programs that protect community health and the environment in Alameda County, including:

• Keeping food and valuable materials out of landfills through food waste prevention and composting and recycling programs
• Getting surplus edible food to feed community members by supporting food recovery partnerships with food banks and community organizations
• Protecting local waterways by reducing single-use plastic bags
• Making sure the rules are applied fairly, so all businesses and jurisdictions do their part
• Providing clear information and education to help customers understand requirements and avoid confusion
• Tracking results and improving programs, using data to ensure these programs are effective and meet state requirements

StopWaste carries out this work at the countywide level to reduce duplication and cost for individual cities and jurisdictions as well as ratepayers.

StopWaste worked with an independent consultant to evaluate which regulatory expenses are eligible for cost recovery under state law and to estimate appropriate fee levels. The fee is designed to recover only those regulatory costs — not generate excess revenue — and is set below projected expenses to ensure it does not exceed what is necessary.

The regulatory fee is adjusted each year to match the actual cost of running the programs it supports. Those costs can change based on things like new or updated state requirements, the level of service needed for outreach and education, the amount of food recovery and waste reduction work happening in the county, and overall program costs.

StopWaste sets the fee to cover program costs, not to make a profit. Each year, the fee is reviewed and updated to make sure it is fair, transparent, and aligned with what it actually takes to deliver these services and meet state requirements.

Fee amounts vary by account type and service level:

The monthly fee is the same for all single-family accounts. The monthly multifamily and commercial fee is applied based on garbage bin volume, specifically the weekly number of cubic yards of landfill solid waste service. For example, a commercial account that subscribes to two cubic yards of landfill service picked up weekly, will pay a fee of $2.20 per month (i.e., $1.10 x 2 cubic yards serviced weekly = $2.20 fee per month).

For most customers, this represents an average increase of about 0.6 percent on the monthly garbage bill.

For most account holders, the fee will appear as a separate line item, typically labeled "StopWaste Regulatory Fee." Your waste hauler will collect the fee and remit it to StopWaste.

The ordinance includes:

• Regular evaluation of regulatory costs and fee revenue
• CPI-based adjustments to reflect inflation
• Periodic reporting to the StopWaste Board
• A process to adjust the fee up or down if costs change

Yes. StopWaste has limited spending, maintained vacant staff positions, and held overall expenditures flat for multiple years while absorbing new regulatory responsibilities. For more information about our annual budget and financials, please visit our Budget & Financials section.

StopWaste is coordinating with jurisdictions and waste haulers to share information through:

• Garbage bill inserts
• City and hauler newsletters
• Social media
• Direct links to this webpage